Day 5, The Borghese (9/18)

One that The Vatican Museum did not have that most other museums seemed to have was a camera ban. On our fifth day in Rome we went to the Galleria Borghese, home to several of Raphael's works as well as Titian. More notably, it houses three stunning sculptures by Bernini, including his take on the David theme, as well as my absolute favorite, the Apollo and Daphne. Unfortunately photography is not allowed in the Borghese. Up side? Far less photo sifting and editing for me later. I'll bet they sell a lot more guide books that way, too. I know we brought one home.

The Galleria Borghese is in a villa that was once the home of Cardinal Borghese. The villa is surrounded by a large park. We followed our visit to the museum with gelato (in which Calvin lost a tooth), and a stroll through the gently rolling hills and. The park is refreshingly green and wooded. It's big enough to be hiding a theater, a few fountains, and a zoo. We watched pairs of rose-ringed parakeets building nests high in the evergreens near the exit before we continued on toward home. The rest of our walk took us through the Piazza del Popolo and a number of high end shopping streets, plus a stop for some wine before we called it an afternoon.

This was our last day in Rome, and I think at least some of us were reluctant to say goodbye just yet, so after dinner, those of us without a bedtime took one last walk along the Heart of Rome tour walk to see all the sites in their after dark glory. The moon was nearly full, the night was mostly clear, and the experience is one I will not soon forget. The next day we were up early to catch our train to Venice.

Outside our aparment on our fifth day in Rome

Pigeons in odd places

Last picture ever with both top baby teeth

Seconds later with one of those teeth missing

Rose-ringed parakeets building a nest

Senatus Populusque Romanus (The Senate and people of Rome)

Mannequin delivery (looked a lot like statue replacement part delivery)

Spaghetti and clams

Spanish Steps at night

Trevi Fountain at night

Pantheon at night