David and I often like to find local gay guides for tour when we travel. It supports the local entrepreneurs, helps us really get to know an area, and is definitely more fun than a group. I poked around online and got a referral for someone named "Marco" that showed us around.
Our first day was an approximately 4 hour walking tour of the center of Rome. We started in the Jewish Quarter, wandered through to Campo dei Fiori, Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, and ended on the Spanish Steps.
It was a lot to take in and Marco had many stories to bring it all back to life.
I didn't take a picture of the Turtle Fountain, but it was something I had never seen before and I fell in love with it. If you go to see it, keep in mind that it was built without turtles. Bernini added the turtles later and they look they had just been flung onto the edge of the fountain. It's very typically whimsical of Bernini and typifies a lot of what I love about Rome.
We spent a lot of time in Piazza Navona. Marco had asked us at the Fountain of the Four Rivers why the head of the statue representing the Nile was covered. I blurted out "BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW THE SOURCE OF THE NILE!" I thought I was being really smart for figuring that out, but I later suspected that Benji had told me that originally and I was just remembering.
There were "Carabinieri":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carabinieri all around Piazza Navona. Rome had been having a lot of protests lately and that day was scheduled for a protest about the government's change to higher education. I don't know all the details. It was a little intimidating to go up to a group of Carabinieri and ask if we could pass, but they were very gregarious once we asked. The officer started waving us through and shouting "Pass! We lay out the red carpet!" (in Italian, of course).
Marco pointed out a church for Sant'Eustachio. You recognize his symbol as a stag with antlers. He is apparently the patron saint of adulterers. How Italian that even adulterers get their own saint. Across the street from the church is a legendary espresso shop and we came back here later for cappuccino and pastries.
My friend Robb also suggested that we try to see "Pozzo Corridor" which is a brilliant trompe l'oeil hallway off of the Church of the Gesù by "Andrea Pozzo":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrea_Pozzo. It connects the monastery to the church and is well worth a visit. Our guide had arranged a time for us to visit. I'm not sure if you can just walk in and see it. Not only was the hallway beautiful, but we got to see St. Ignatius' living quarters. They are very modest and tranquil. An old monk let us in to the living quarters. There is something about old Italian men - they talk and talk. They don't care if you can't speak Italian, they will keep talking and will you to understand. I don't quite know how I was able to understand him, but he was saying that it is important to say prayers in this room because it is a very holy place - being where St. Ignatius lived and died. He asked if we had any young relatives and insisted that we pray for them in this room. I prayed for Lorenz when Marco and David were out of the room.
While in the Church of the Gesù, I stumbled across a stand of postcards and there was a very odd looking piece of artwork on one of them. I asked Marco where it was in the church. We asked one of the monks there and he gestured for us to follow him. He took us down a couple of corridors and pointed us to the painting. It was a Japanese painting of the arrival of the Jesuits in Japan. I can't find a picture of it online, but if you take me to Rome I'll lead you there.
After that, we went to the Trevi Fountain (always beautiful) and then to the Spanish Steps. The rest of the day we did on our own.
