Roman Apartment House

Nestled against the west side of the monument to Victor Emmanuel II in Piazza Venezia is the site of an ancient Roman insula, or apartment house. Excavated in the early 20th century, it is possible to identify all five floors of this 2nd century AD building that contained the apartments for about 380 people.

Two levels below the current street level are visible, exposing original Roman street. The street level of the building contained shops. The apartments of the store keepers were on the floor above. Further up you can identify a bell tower from the medieval church of Saint Biago. In the 17th century another church (dedicated to St. Rita) was built on top of everything. This church was removed in 1927 during the excavations.

Saturday Field Trip

Last Saturday I took students from my class on an "optional" field trip. We visited the Monument to Victor Emmanuel II, the king who was responsible for the unification of Italy.We climbed 124 steps in front of the Church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli to reach a glass elevator that took us to the top of the monument.

When this equestrian statue was completed there was a celebration with 20 people sitting down to lunch inside the horse.

SPQR: Flag pole in Piazza Venezia

Last week I saw SPQR on flag poles in Piazza Venezia.

Senatus Populusque Romanus

"The Senate and the People of Rome"

It originally referred to the government of the ancient Roman Republic, and used as an official signature, appearing on coins, civic inscriptions, and on the standards of the Roman legions. Today, SPQR is the motto of the city of Rome and appears in the city's coat of arms, the city's civic buildings, manhole covers, billboards and even on flag poles!

September 11th

Last year Rome erected a memorial to the victims of 9/11, using two ancient columns in a small rose garden at the east end of the Circus Maximus.

This is the memorial tablet in front of the columns

This view also shows the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.

SPQR: September 10

Today I noticed a new plaque with SPQR near the Colosseum.

It commemorates the victory of Abebe Bikila, the Ethiopian Marathon winner of the XVII Olympiad, held in Rome 50 years ago. The world watched as this champion ran barefoot through the streets of Rome.

Senatus Populusque Romanus

"The Senate and the People of Rome"

It originally referred to the government of the ancient Roman Republic, and used as an official signature, appearing on coins, civic inscriptions, and on the standards of the Roman legions. Today, SPQR is the motto of the city of Rome and appears in the city's coat of arms, the city's civic buildings, manhole covers, billboards and even on commemorative plaques!

Mazara del Vallo

Mazara del Vallo is one of the most important fishing centers of Italy, located on the southwestern coast of Sicily.
During our recent trip we enjoyed some time at a beach popular with kite surfers and wind surfers.
During the evenings we enjoyed delicious seafood dinners. One night we experienced an unbelievable seafood soup with couscous.
On another evening we went to the Trattoria delle Cozze Basirico. Frommer's 2010 guide gives this description:
Set on the southern outskirts of the town of Mazara del Vallo, about 5km (3 miles) from the center, this restaurant might remind you of an oversize railway car that just happens to serve vast amounts of seafood to hundreds of diners every night throughout the summer. Don't expect grandeur; this is a gutsy, two-fisted place whose walls are open to the sea breezes. The overworked staff is coyly clad in exaggerated sailor costumes. There are no printed menus here: A fast-talking waiter will tell you that the only options are selections from the buffet-style antipasti table, several different preparations of mussels, and steamed octopus in either lemon or tomato sauce. Drinks of choice include wine or beer, a suitable accompaniment for the restaurant's widely acknowledged specialty, mussels.

For the antipasto we each had a steamed octopus in tomato sauce,

served on the plate looking up at us.

For the "primo" we had gamberini pasta (shrimp).

We shared a spada steak (swordfish) for the "secondo."

Two bowls of muscles, one in lemon sauce and the other in tomato sauce, brought our meal to a conclusion. We had no room for dessert! (Well, we might of had a gelato on the way back to the hotel!)

Satiro Danzante - Dancing Satyr

The Dancing Satyr - Satiro Danzante is a 4th Century BC bronze statue that was found in 1998 off the port of Mazara del Valo, at a depth of 500 meters in the Strait of Sicily, by a local fishing boat. The statue is believed to have been sculpted by the Greek artist Praxiteles and is now on display in a special museum in the ex-church of Sant’Egidio.

Brief History of Mazara del Valo:

Mazara del Vallo is in southwestern Sicily, in the province of Trapani. It was founded by the Phoenicians in the 9th century BC, with the name of Mazar (the Rock). Over the centuries it came under the control of Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Vandals, Ostrogoths, and Byzantines, before being occupied by the Arabs in the year 827. During the Arab period the city was an important commercial harbor and center of learning. In the middle ages the city was conquered by the Normans and then passed to the Spanish. During this time the city declined. In 1713 it was ruled by the House of Savoy, then the Austrians and finally the Bourbons. In 1860 the city was conquered by Garibaldi and his 1,000 men and joined the newly formed Kingdom of Italy.

The sculpture is celebrated in the town with tile murals and wall tiles.