I was reading an article by Dr Thomas-Leo True, an art and architectural historian and Assistant Director of the British School in Rome. He is also a lecturer for Martin Randall Travel which runs fascinating (but expensive) short tours. Dr True claimed that "the full sweep of Roman history can be enjoyed in one snapshot from a corner of the Pincian Hill, beneath the canopy of Rome’s distinctive umbrella pines (seemingly pruned by a breakaway Medici giraffe), close to Villa Medici."
As I had thought that walking the seven hills of Rome over the seven days we are here might be a good plan, Dr True's suggestion had merit.
So we used a new app called Maps.Me (no data usage) and set off on foot towards Villa Medici.
On our way up via Veneto, we spotted this salubrious doorman who copped a great deal of good-natured bantering from the school group of Italian teenagers walking ahead of us.
About 8 kilometres later, having circumnavigated the whole Pincian Hill, and having not located the entrance gate, we dispensed with Maps.Me and followed our intuition to find what Dr True claimed to be "the greatest view of the greatest city man ever made".
Hmmm. Looking into the western sun I wasn't convinced that this view was all that was claimed, although the landmarks on the horizon were pretty significant. That is St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican you can see on the far side of the Tiber.
So feeling a little underwhelmed with the view we proceeded to the next vantage point - that's the big white Victor Emmanuel 11 monument that Italian's call The Typewriter and non-Italians call The Wedding Cake - and then dropped down the Spanish Steps and across to the Trevi Fountain.
Looking down the Spanish Steps into the piazza below.
Looking back up the Spanish Steps.The steps were first given the name Trinità dei Monti, after the church at the top and the upper piazza. Later, they were renamed to the current name after the lower piazza – Piazza di Spagna; The Spanish Square. The square itself was called the Spanish Square because the Spanish Embassy to the Holy See was located nearby. The steps are only 294 years old, constructed in 1725.
Down a narrow road and round a corner is the Trevi Fountain, one of the oldest water sources in Rome. The fountain dates back to ancient Roman times, part of the construction of the Aqua Virgo Aqueduct in 19 B.C. that provided water to the Roman baths and the fountains of central Rome.
This is 6.30 pm on a Monday evening in April, the shoulder season. Imagine the peak in summer.
We dropped in at a supermarket on the way home to collect our staples - beer, water, wine, olives, tomatoes, coffee, salami, apples and bread.
By the time we reached the southern end of our little street we had walked nearly 12 kilometres. Not bad for Day One although I'm not so sure my plan to walk all of the seven hills of Rome is one of my better ideas.
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