"Who can ever be alone for a moment in Italy? Every stone has a voice, every grain of dust seems instinct with spirit from the Past, every step recalls some line, some legend of long-neglected lore".
Margaret Fuller
The Spanish Steps - or Piazza Di Spagna E Scalinata Della Trinita Dei Monti - built in 1723. They get their name from the piazza, on which the Spanish Embassy once stood.
The fountain dates from 1627, and is referred to as "the sunken boat".
The monument below stands at the far end of the piazza, but I do not remember what it commemorates.
These photos were taken at about 9pm on a weeknight. Apparently, the steps are never without people on them; it is a favorite place to meet, for Romans and tourists alike.The building at the top of the steps, with scaffolding, is the church known as Trinita Dei Monti. We did not climb the steps, due to the construction on the church.
I did not know it when we were there, but the building to the right of the steps is where the poet John Keats died in 1821.
The street known as the Via Condotti, where all the famous clothing designers have their shops, enters this piazza perpendicularly. Tomorrow, I will show you some of their windows. Later in the week will come the Vatican, St. Peter's, the Sistine Chapel and the Fontana de Trevi.
13 comments:
Ah, lovely time of the day for your pics, love the warm colors! We spent more than a couple of hours sitting at the steps, watching people (and resting our feet, lol!)
Did you have a chance to go to the Cafe Grecco at the Via Condotti? that was my most expensive coffee ever!! Looking forward to your pics!
I just love getting this special tour, Judy! The crowds of people on the Spanish Steps is unbelievable! I wonder if it like that at 4 am in the morning! (lol)
More gorgeous photos! What an amazing adventure you had!!
And I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the jack o'lantern ideas! Those are GREAT!
All those people sitting on the steps remind me of a commercial of a man proposing to his wife for the second time around.
I want to go to Rome!!! All your fault
I could have stayed the whole day in the Sistine Chapel. As it was we sat along the wall, just quietly (as quietly as you could with so many people walking through) taking it all in... the magnificent talents that went into the paintings, the deep emotion that went into them. They are very strict about cameras and video there, so only postcards came home with us.
All the step sitting seems a very reasonable way to live. :>
Great shots, and wonderful travelogue.
I just wouldn't be happy unless I had a balcony window.
I wish I had seen how they got the guy in the wheelchair down the Spanish Steps!
The monument in your picture is an ancient pagan column made of cipolline marble. It was outfitted with a bronze statue of Mary, the Blessed Mother, and erected in the square in 1857. It is the Colonna dell' Immacolata. At the base, there are statues of Moses, David, Isaiah and Ezechiel.
The light and time of day are extraordinary. Stunning photo of the steps and surrounding. Wow.
Looking forward to tomorrow's pix.
~S :)
Beautiful pictures and I also love the lighting! Looking forward to your pictures of the Vatican..
im happy for you to have this great trip!
These images have a wonderful glow to them. Such a warm place to be - and it has little to do with the temperature.
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