“It is the singular charm of Rome that, turning a corner, one comes suddenly face to face with something beautiful and unexpected which was placed there centuries ago, apparently in the most casual fashion. Rome is a city of magic round the corner, of masterpieces dumped, as it were, by the wayside, which lends to the shortest walk the excitement of a treasure hunt.” H.V. Morton
I couldn’t agree more with the above sentences written by Morton. Rome is a beautiful eternal city. In my lonesome travel wandering around Rome, I often (too many times) get lost. I am very good at getting lost >< but I ended up unexpectedly seeing another historical sight which is amazing and I wouldn't get there by purpose if I hadn't get lost ^^ or sometimes when I got into wrong bus direction, I just sat down very calm enjoying the view during the ride. I have this thinking if I don’t know which direction I should go and am too lazy to figure it out I just jump on a bus that came first. If it’s in wrong direction, I can always jump off and go the opposite direction, lol. Not a good idea if you are in a hurry :p I figured it out now that actually it isn’t that difficult to know the bus direction, you can see it on the yellow board where the bus stop. So, don’t be too hurry to jump on a bus until you are sure. Unless you wanna spend your time to enjoy the city view, then, do as I did *grin*.
There are many famous tourist spot in Rome, and the good thing is most places are located in the center of Rome and close to each other. So, you can kill two birds with one stone! You can reach several places in one day just by walking! yep, you will walk a lot in Rome so better use comfy shoes, high heels are not recommended! If you took Metro line A you can stop at Flaminio (Piazza del Popolo) station. After getting out from the station exit, you can see the gate which leads you to Piazza del Popolo (People’s square). From here, the long walk starts.
There are three main streets, if you want to visit Piazza di Spagna first, you can take the left one and walk through the street. Walking in this area is worth it because there are many interesting shops inside the artistic building on your right and left side. You may also passed through a beautiful church along the way until you arrive at Piazza di Spagna. The first thing you see at the bottom of the Spanish “hardly seen” Stairs (because most of the time people are occupying the steps, lol) is the famous Barcaccia Fountain or Fountain of the Old Boat. The fountain is beautiful and you can drink the water because it comes from the Aqua Virgo, the same water source for Trevi Fountain. Then if you take the steps, you will find Trinità dei Monti, a white glowing church at the top.
Piazza di Spagna (Spanish Stairs)
The next place to be visited is Pantheon. Just walk straight from the front of Piazza di Spagna going through Via Condotti to reach Via di Corso, the main street in the center. For shoppers it could be a real temptation as you walk through this street with so many branded shops. As you walk further, you can see the sign that leads you to this ancient Pantheon. You arrive at the right place if you see a building with large granite Corinthian columns under a pediment and if you go inside, you can see the concrete dome have a central opening to the sky so you can see the sun lights goes through it.
Pantheon
Pantheon Dome
From here I recommend you to try the real Italian Gelato at Giolitti. They have the best gelato in the world. Sorry for being exaggerated but the taste of their gelato is so delicious. You shouldn’t leave Rome or even Italy without trying it. It’s a sin *grin*
Giolitti, Italian Gelato Shop
From the Pantheon you should return to the main street of Via di Corso and you can go to Piazza Navona in the left side of Via di Corso. It’s such a romantic place where in the center you can see the famous Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or Fountain of the Four Rivers.
Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi, Piazza Navona
You haven’t visited Rome before you visit the infamous Fontana di Trevi. It’s very close to Piazza Navona. This fountain is the largest Baroque fountain in Rome and most famous of it’s Coin Throwing myths. If you throw the coin into the fountain, one time it means you will return to Rome. If you throw the second coin it will cancel the first one and if you throw the third coin it means you will settle down in Rome ^^ So, which one would you prefer? Unfortunately when I visited this fountain, it is under renovation. Well, that’s ok because I can return anytime to take the picture, just hoping that the renovation will be finished before I leave Rome.
Fontana di Trevi under renovation
At this point, maybe you will feel tired already but I guess the excitement will push you to visit one more spot before going home. The last destination after Fontana di Trevi is Fontana del Tritone which located in the Piazza Barberini. The fountain has a base of four dolphins that entwine the papal tiara with crossed keys and the heraldic Barberini bees in their scaly tails. After visiting this fountain, it’s very easy to go to your home since this fountain is located next to the Barberini Station, Metro line A.
Fontana del Tritone, Barberini
Yet there are more places to be visited, not to mention, the famous Rome (Italy) landmark, Colosseo, but I guess I will post it for another blog entry ^^
Huge and gleaming in the sunset sky.. this is the Paris center! I walked to the bridge of Seine river and then took a night shot of Palais Bourbon and Musee du Orsay..from there I could see the Eiffel Tower laser show.. It was very windy that night but I was happy because the small and handy tripod I brought could work very well even in the strong wind ^^ The next place I visited is Musee du Louvre.. one of the world largest museum and become even more famous because of the Da Vinci Code movie 
