Day 23- Froth of July!

(Originally posted on my facebook page on July 4, 2013)

Happy Fourth of July!

Yesterday began with a trip to the Forum and the Palatine hill, which is where the emperors mostly lived. A lot of brick work to look at, but there's a good small museum with bits of sculpture and fresco and info about the Etruscan settlements here that predated the Romans. 

Seriously? Braided pubic hair?

Wandered around out in the heat looking for some of the underground stuff I knew was there but still found difficult to find. Finally located the Casa di Augusto, the only one of four that was open. It isn't a big space, (the Casa di Livia right above it is much larger, but it was closed) but the ornamental panels there are on a par with the work at the Villa della Farnesina. Very fine work! Also had a chatty Italian guard who saw the Bowie t-shirt I had on and gave his approval, then asked if i liked Al Stewart. "Year of de Cat"? One of his favorites! I love little moments like that. 

Interior of one of the rooms in the House of Augustus.  Masterful trompe l'oeil work!

So we strolled down through the rest of the Forum, which really needs some better signage of what the reconstructions look like so that people would have a better idea of what they are looking at (very glad that I have done so much research- makes it a lot more fun to look at the ruins and imagine what was there before.)

From the middle of the Roman Forum looking toward the Arch of Septimus Severus and the Tabularium behind it. Until the 19th century this area was buried under 20 feet of dirt and debris.

We the decided to jump up to the Villa Torlonia, a bit off the beaten tourist path to the north. Took the Metro, which is very like the NY subway- dirty and covered in graffiti, but efficient. Villa Torlonia is in a little park with about 8 buildings built by its owners, including a theater, a museum, and various follies. It's a neo classical assemblage, begun in 1808. At one point it was occupied by Mussolini, and then the Allied Command, and then it fell into disrepair in the post war years. It has been in the process of restoration for about 20 years, with the main house almost complete, and it is a gem! Very high quality decorative painting through 2 floors of the house in all kinds of revivalist styles, with marble, mosaic floors, scagliola, gold, all looking very nice. They also have good documentation of the restoration process. Really fun visit.

The quality (and density!) of decorative work at the Villa Torlonia is truly stunning. 

On our way there, the neighborhood architecture made me remember something I had seen earlier online- a crazy little Disney neighborhood called the Quartiere Coppede (you can look it up on Italian Wikipedia if you like) Not too far away and it was a really fun tour of wacky exteriors done in a mish mash of styles.

Quartiere Coppede. Eclecticism at its best!

Back to town to meet our friends Darius and Erica for a delicious dinner in Trastevere right around the corner from the place we stayed last time we were here 6 years ago. Got the requisite gelati afterwards and made our way back to the casa de stinko, which is becoming like home....not!

Walking across the Tiber at dusk.