Rome – An afternoon Tour

For our last afternoon in Rome I had arranged a private tour with Valeria, a guide from “With Locals”, to take us through the Jewish District, along the Tiber River and into Trastevere. We were to meet at Piazza Margana in front of the tower at 5:00pm; as always I prefer to be early, much to the chagrin of my hubby, so what does one do with 30 minutes to fill on a lovely afternoon in Rome?…. Why of course find a place to sit and enjoy a glass of Chianti.

The next few photos were shot as we walked the streets of the Jewish Ghetto. When I was doing research on the area I found a very informative blog, My Adventures Across the World, that briefly explains the history of the area, I highly suggest you check it out.

The Turtle Fountain (Fontana delle Tartarughe). Brief history…The original fountain design called for bronze dolphins supported by the upraised hands of the four young men. Because of issues with water pressure the dolphins were removed leaving the hands holding seemingly nothing. The turtles were added during a restoration of the fountain between 1658 and 1659. In 1979 one of the turtles were stolen, after that incident the 3 remaining turtles were removed and replaced with replicas.

Disclaimer: I have researched and found numerous variations of the story on this fountain, since I am a photographer and not an historian, please do not hold me accountable for any misinformation 🙂

Bar Toto. Open every day, except the Sabbath, the Toto matriarch Emilia is behind the counter of this unique restaurant. Unfortunately, we were there on Saturday, so we weren’t able to experience Kosher Roman food.

The Theater of Marcellus (Teatro di Marcello) appears to be very similar to the Colosseum. This structure was started by Julius Caesar in 27 BC but completed by Augustus in 17 BC. It is sometimes referred to as the Jewish Colosseum.

The Stumbling Stones (Stolperstein). These small brass plaques are the work of German artist Gunther Deminig, to commemorate the Jewish victims of persecution during WWII. They are part of a larger Europe-wide network of 70,000 stones.

We arrived just in time to be able to walk the grounds. This was built between 27 and 23 BC, it was restored in 203 AD. I still cannot get my brain around the fact that structures built 2000+ years ago still stand… Not to get philosophical here…I get excited when I find a home 300 years old, maybe we could learn a thing or two about longevity from our ancestors!

This street sign, in front of the Portico d’Ottavia, marks the place from which many of Rome’s deportees were held before deportation to their deaths.

The Great Synagogue was built in 1901 – 1904. This is not only a place of prayer but also serves as a cultural center for the community. As I found at so many places in Rome, there is restoration underway, so scaffolding is becoming part of my images.

Anyone that knows me knows that I LOVE to capture doors. I have to say this is the most beautiful door I have ever seen!

Time to look at and cross the bridge over the Tiber… If you see what appears to be an unfinished structure on the very left of this photo…That is the “Broken Bridge”. The Pons Aemilius is the oldest Roman stone bridge in Rome.

My final image for today is this lamplight that caught my eye against a beautiful puffy cloud. We walked through Trastevere and enjoyed the sights. As I did quite a few time during this trip to Italy, I put down the camera and really just enjoyed what was in front of me, rather than looking at it through the lens. Yes there may be some shots that I would have liked to share, but sometimes they are best in memory.

Next Stop is Florence…see you all soon