We arrived at Termini station in time to dump our things and rush out for lunch, on our way to Villa Giulia.

Given my first name, the recommendation of Sora Margherita was a no-brainer. It’s in the Jewish quarter and charming.

We both had the Carciofi alla Giudia (best yet) and pasta. House red, a giant portion of Tiramisu (pannacotta for Roger) and no pepper grinder in sight. The Tiramisu probably had too much chocolate to be considered traditional, but it was the best I have had on this trip – evidence of soaking in strong coffee and nice layers.

Villa Giulia is the mother-load of Etruscan remains. Not only is the building itself amazing (again), these old palazzos really do impress,

but the collection is huge. There are rooms and rooms AND more rooms of Etruscan stuff, plus some finds from the Vestini (another pre-Roman culture). Occasionally we saw things that reminded us of more Eastern cultures (as in, India?).

There were remnants of temples, lots of jewellery and pottery, metal-work… Too much – we just couldn’t take it all in.

Monday we briefly visited Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore (which we had visited previously but as there was a service we couldn’t wander around). The shape is congruent to some of the churches we saw in Ravenna and, interestingly, it had originally been tiled (built in the 5th century, so another similarity to those in Ravenna).

Some of the original tiling remains – the arch, not in the dome however – but most has been lost.

The Ara Pacis also got a second look. Two fun facts: it was originally painted and Mussolini used it as propaganda as he saw himself as Augustus’ ‘heir’.

Mostly we just wandered around, had fantastic pizza for lunch at a restaurant called (funnily enough) San Marco (Via Sardegna).

And we have just enjoyed the things that make Rome, Rome.

Like drinking fountains:

Randomly parked cars on corners:

Odd things in the river:

The eclectic reuse of materials and the contrast between the old and the new:

It’s been great and we have learned that there is a lot more to early Italian history than the Romans and Greeks. AND we have conclusively confirmed that the overly large pepper grinder is most definitely NOT an Italian custom.

Who knows why every Italian restaurant in the UK does it?

There will be a break until our next trip. Service resumes with Madeira January 2024.