In planning our stay in Rome, William and I decided to stay in Trastevere.  Trastevere means the other side of the river.  It is actually one of the liviest neighborhoods in Rome which is located on the opposite bank of the Tibre River.  It lies just steps away from the river and all the major attractions so every morning as we left our apartment we had the joy of seeing this beautiful scene of the Ponte Sisto Bridge with St. Peter’s Basilica in the background.

The Pantheon is one of Rome’s best preserved monuments and is over 2000 years old.  Originally it was a temple but became a Basilica and houses the world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome.

As we walked this morning searching for the Pantheon, we actually stumbled upon the back side of the Basilica which I found quite striking itself.

Down just a few lanes we found Trevi Fountain.  This fountain was built in the 1700’s and is one of the most visited areas in Rome.  This is where tourists toss coins into the fountain to ensure their return to the Eternal City of Rome.  Officials remove 3000 euro daily from this fountain!  

A little further north of the Trevi Fountain we found the Spanish Steps.  The steps were undergoing a renovation so we could only snap a photo.  The steps were built in 1725, designed by an Italian, financed with French Money and named for the nearby Spanish Embassy.  There are 135 steps and it is the place where model’s would hang out in hopes to be hired for paintings.

After leaving the Spanish Steps we came into Piazza Colonna.  It featured a huge second century column which depicts victories over the Barbarians.  

This column was built in 180 AD.  I could not believe the details that went from top to bottom of the entire column.

The final monument we saw this day was Rome’s National Monument located in Piazze Venezia.  It was built in honor of the First King of Italy and also houses the unknown soldier and eternal flame.  It is Rome’s largest monument.

It was a very long day of sight seeing.  William’s iPhone app measured over 12 miles of walking for us.  We got lost at almost every little lane but still had an amazing day!  We took a quick nap and then emersed ourselves in the night life at Travestere.  The Piazza’s come to life  with singing, dancing and performers, as abundant as Rome is with Mounments and churches.