Rome!

I'm sure the Rome tourist board is not going to send me any thank-you gifts after reading my first reactions to visiting Rome, but I was reminded of New York City, pre-Giuliani days.

It was crowded.

There was grafitti everywhere.


The streets were full of litter.

The Tiber River was a murky green -- not suitable for drinking or swimming.

Beggars (some of whom had phony* ailments) interrupted travelers.

            
                                       
  *When people weren't watching, some of these folks suddenly straightened up, stopped shaking, and walked briskley toward their new begging spot, whereupon they took on the character of a disabled person again.                          
                                       
Oh, how the mighty have fallen when SPQR* was stamped into the sewer grates!  
                       
    *SPQR stands for Senatus Populusque Romanus
("The Senate and the People of Rome), referring to the government of the ancient Roman Republic, and used as an official signature of the government.		      
                       

In fact a lot of the city was "ruined".

But lest you think the whole visit was a bust...

...let me tell you about the good parts of our journey.
 
The four major basilicas...                        
                     
                                 
   
St. John Lateran
  
and of course,
Saint Peter's
St. Mary Major
St. Paul Outside the Walls
 
Now if you click on any of the churches, you can see a bit about them, but I'm warning you...there's a LOT to see in each of these church and if you think there are too many photos of church and art here, you're only getting a very small sample of what's to be seen here.