Roma, Italia

"Oh, the streets of Rome are filled with rubble
Ancient footprints are everywhere
You can almost think that you’re seein’ double
On a cold, dark night on the Spanish Stairs..." ~Bob Dylan

A breakfast buffet running the gambit from eggs, yogurt and muesli, to ham, house-made cheese and fatty cuts of bacon- not to mention espresso and thick, Italian coffee- awaited us on our first morning in Rome. The staff kindly opened an emergency exit for Emily to roll through to the dining room, and we were greeted with smiles and hearty "bongiorno's!"

After eating our fill, we struck out on via Cavour for the sights. A word about wheeling through Rome: regardless of your wheelchair, bring a lightweight travel ramp. There are some cut-corners on the curbs, but not enough to matter. Additionally, most stores and restaurants have a 2"-4" step up, so we were very glad to have brought our folding ramp, which hung neatly off the back of Em's power chair. Several times, as we negotiated a crossing or curb, locals would gaze over, usually with stubby cigarettes hanging from their lips, and nod approvingly at our little system.

Just around the corner from Massimo D'Azeglio...

The Roman empire's spread across the Mediterranean and beyond... the original over-achievers.

Via Cavour brought us south, curving along busily, which was good because only the larger road had constant sidewalks for safer walking. A slight detour off Cavour took us to the Coliseum- and pictures cannot do it justice. We wandered around it on the modern, paved paths, noticing the large stones making up the ancient road; they were roughly hewn, but the centuries had softened and polished them like a giant’s skeletal teeth embedded in the clay. Still fairly early in the day, the smattering of tourists lined up for tours, but as we only had one full day in which to explore, we took it in and moved along.

Back on Cavour, we passed monuments with fading Latin engravings, metal statues of men and their horses, weapons in heroic stances. Via del Corso split the sights, with the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps to the east, and the Pantheon and Forum to the west. All along, small cafes and bars had tempting sweets and meats and oddly shaped bottles luring from the windows; the smell of Halal street food mixed with the remnants of European breakfasts, bread baking in ovens. The Forum- mostly in ruins- was framed by modern buildings along the block, nearly all named after the place where their Roman ancestors had entertained. The Pantheon, only minutes away, was a slate grey monolith that anchored the pretty piazza it shared with a magnificent fountain, rimmed with cafes. Four Euros bought us a birra- nameless, though most likely Peroni- and an iced coffee Americano. The mixture of Italian, German, various Asian languages and a small bit of British-tinged English was like jazz, softly adding to the relaxing spot our corner table provided. After soaking in that atmosphere of relaxed modernity in the shadow of the Doric Pantheon, we pressed on, the narrow streets beginning to fill with tourists.

The alleys- which we shared with dare-devil scooters and the occasional pushy Mercedes- seemed to change names every block, with a piazza here and there. Piazza Navarro, a wide open space with yet another tremendous fountain highlighting the exploits of gods and their minions, was sprinkled with street vendors and buskers. We perused the art- mostly reprinted watercolors of the sort one finds in finer motor courts- and decided to hike north a ways to the Spanish Steps, stopping along the way to look in the windows of small shops hawking flavored salts and pastas, Italian books and religious knick-knacks; needing a little bite to fuel our way, we grabbed a salty roll filled with warm ham and a tart cheese… delicious.

In a few hours time, after the families and older tourists had gone, the square at the foot of the Spanish Steps would be raucous with late-night revelers, local and foreign alike. When we found it in the afternoon heat, it was filled with people old and young, most with maps and cameras, cranky from the heat. Pushing through, dropping and rolling over our ramp every third corner or so, we too became tired and slightly impatient with the pressing tourist herd. We found a gelateria off Via Propaganda, and enjoyed strawberry gelato- una fragola. Camera battery now dead, and wheelchair battery at half-steam, we beat a trail back through the sidestreets, along Via Sisterna eastward, passing the National Gallery and a few other sights that will have to wait for next time (a recurrent theme, we’re finding…).

After a nap and shower back at Massimo D’Azeglio, we crossed stumbled around the neighboring blocks, watching as the streets filled with beggars in rags alongside portly map-waving tourists, African immigrants vending cheap glasses and beads next to petition tables run by fast-talking Italians wanting to decriminalize drugs (…I think) and all the while the smell of garlic rose in balance with the setting of the sun. Several cheesy accordion players roamed, and I will readily admit, that when we found a place to eat- Ristorante Etella- they were not an unwelcome sound.

Called in by the type of waiter that gave rise to the stereotype of boisterous, flamboyant Italian restaurateurs, we sat at a table on the sidewalk and perused the extensive menu. The Insalata Elettra- greens with pickled artichoke, tomatoes and cheese, followed by a porcini mushroom lasagna, was just the ticket; we chatted with our neighboring table, a nice middle-aged couple from Montreal, Canada, and thoroughly enjoyed the hesitant way our French and their English did not intersect- two couples from the same continent far away, both enjoying the foreign beauty of Rome, and the company of strangers.
This, our day in Rome, was exciting, busy, challenging and unforgettable. We will go back soon, and for longer, I hope- and can only end by saying that at no time did we feel out of place, unwelcome or unsafe, the pretty girl in the wheelchair and her sweaty husband, and cannot wait to return to explore this incredible city again.