ezlivin

Oh BTW, I'd hate to disappoint you. But, pigeons in central Rome - hardly any.

adrienne

Patricia - I think you're the one with the poetic soul to derive all that from the word pigeon.

Just think of how much we would gain from this thread if everyone posted a type of bird as a response.

chardonnay

Ok, here is what I did.

I stood on the Sant Angelo bridge and watched the clouds float over the Tevere in the deep blue sky.

I watched an Asian couple fish from the Tiber (Tevere) river and run and put their fish in a basket and wondered if they were really going to eat them.

I sat in P. Navona very early on a chilled foggy morning and watched a man sweep the street and curb with a ragged broom.

I watched a lady hanging out her wash on the line next to my hotel window and marveled at the way she slowly and lovingly took each garment and shook it, smoothed it with her hands and carefully put on the clothes pins.

I watched an elderly man hold his wife's arm as she limped on the slippery cobblestones one misty evening. He held her shopping bag and patiently waited for her to find their keys in her pocket. He handed her the bag and he slowly opened their apartment door and they stepped into the darkness inside.

I watched a child chase the pigeons in a square and then come back to his parents for a hug, over and over again.

I sat on a stone bench still warm from the setting sun and ate my gelato and tried to lick the drips before they ran down my hand, then turned and saw I had been watched by an amused woman wearing a white apron.

I ran from the rain into the Pantheon and sat there almost alone on a winter day watching the rain fall into the opening and then disappear as it fell.

I like to savor moments like these, they are what sticks in my memory more than any museum.

dcespedes

What a beautiful memory, Betsy--thanks for sharing it with us!

SalB

Hi, Patricia. We just returned from Rome last month. We were delighted to discover it's a pretty small city and you can walk to all the major tourist attractions. You can see a lot without paying entrance fees.

Just looking at the buildings and piazzas is a wonderful experience. The churches are all free and most of them have excellent art, no tickets, no lines and no hoards of fellow tourists. The only exception to that was St. Peter in Chains where Michelangelo's Moses is displayed. There were enough tourists there to make up for the other churches. It was worth it though.

Check through some guidebooks at your local library and see which churches have major works of art. You'll create your own little art tour with no entrance fees.

The fountains, gardens and piazzas are fun and can be enjoyed for free or for the price of a cup of coffee. Check for local festivals while you are there too. These are always fun and a real experience . . . something unlike home!

Have fun. I like your attitude.

It's not free, but very inexpensive and that's the bus mentioned by a poster above. Try to avoid the bus during rush hours but the rest of the time, it's a great way to rest your feet and still see something.

PatriciaV2

Thanks SalB and Chardonnay, beautiful imagery! Would either of you happen to know where the best places would be to discover impromptu concerts? (I heard that you can read about them in the local bulletins, but am wondering about the small churches or sites where people have accidentally stumbled upon sublime music in their travel experiences in the past). Any that are regulars for holding free music?

Thanks again!
Patricia

joan_a

Lovely Chardonnay. I do believe that you certainly have a poetic soul. I myself have spent many hours at the Trevi Fountain. Sometimes in the early morning and sometimes very late at night. I still find it hard to believe that something like that is just around the corner in a regular neighborhood.