there were two people who met, fell in love and got married. Instead of presents, they asked for help honeymooning in Italy. This is our site all about our families adventure. We hope it will inspire you to love Italy just as much we do!

When in Rome.

No day in Rome would be complete without the world's best gelato. Gelato is the Italian version of ice cream, in case you were wondering. We had some delicious Gelato at a secret little shop, tucked away near the Fountain mentioned below. In the photo above of us in Rome, you can see us holding our Gelato cups. On this page I get to amaze you with my knowledge of Roman Architecture and history. So if you are like 90% of the people who just don't care when they built the stuff, jump ahead to day three.

The Pantheon

One of the oldest standing buildings in the world, the Pantheon, is now a Catholic Church. Originally built as a temple to the Roman Gods. Pantheon means “Temple of all the Gods.” The vaulted ceiling is capped with a round open space.

The interior of the dome roof may been built to symbolize the arched vault of the heavens. The Great Eye at the dome's top is the source of all light and is symbolic of the sun. The original, circular, bronze cornice remains in position. The oculus also serves as a cooling and ventilation method. As wind passes over the dome of the Pantheon, it is accelerated and creates a negative pressure zone called the Venturi effect. This pulls air out of the oculus at the top of the dome, drawing more air in from the portico entrance.

The interior features sunken panels (coffers), which originally contained bronze star ornaments. These sunken panels are not only decorative, but also reduced the weight of the roof, as did the elimination of the apex by means of the Great Eye. The top of the rotunda wall features a series of brick-relieving arches, visible on the outside and built into the mass of the brickwork. The Pantheon is full of such devices, but all these arches were, of course, originally hidden by marble facing.

The Trevi Fountain

The Roman's have a custom of building a fountain at the endpoint of any aqueduct. This magnificent fountain began its life as a simple fountain to herald the reopening of the aqueduct in 1453. In 1629, Pope Urban VIII, finding the earlier fountain insufficiently dramatic, asked Bernini to sketch possible renovations, but when the Pope died the project was abandoned. One change that he had in mind was completed before his death, Bernini supervised the fountain being moved to the other side of the square so it faced the Quirinal Palace so the Pope could look down on it from his window.

Architectual competitions had become the rage during the Baroque era, the project of designing fountains, and even the Spanish Steps were fought over. In 1730, Pope Clement XII organized a contest which Nicola Salvi actually lost - but was awarded the commission for the Trevi Fountain anyway. Work began in 1732 and the fountain was completed in 1762, long after Clement's death, when Pietro Bracci's “Neptune” was set in the central niche.

Salvi died in 1751, with his work half-finished. The Trevi Fountain was finished in 1762 by Giuseppe Pannini, who substituted the present bland allegories for planned sculptures of Agrippa and “Trivia”, the Roman virgin.

The Coliseum

The Coliseum was started in 72 A.D. next to where Roman emperor Nero had a giant statue of himself erected. The statue was called Colossus by the Roman population. This led to the name of the amphitheater by association. The Gladiatorial schools and other support buildings were constructed nearby.

The Coliseum had been completed up to the third story by the time of Architects death in 79. The top level was finished a year later, 8 years after its beginning, and the building was inaugurated by his son. One Roman historian recounts that 11,000 wild animals were killed in the one hundred days of celebration which inaugurated the amphitheatre. A gallery was added to increase sitting in the amphitheater.

Gladiators

The last gladiator fight was held in 435. Animal hunts continued until at least 523. Severe damage was inflicted on the Coliseum by the great earthquake of 1349, causing the outer south side to collapse. Much of the tumbled stone was reused to build palaces, churches, hospitals and other buildings elsewhere in Rome.

A religious order moved into the northern third of the Coliseum in the mid-14th century and continued to inhabit it until as late as the 19th century. The interior of the amphitheatre was extensively stripped of stone, which was reused elsewhere. The bronze clamps which held the outside marble in place were pried or hacked out of the walls, leaving numerous pockmarks which still scar the building today.