I once had a friend who'd moved with his parents from Rome to Canada in the mid-50s. I thought he was being rude when he told me that as a 10 year-old, he thought he'd died and gone to a cold, cold hell, as his and his parents' train chugged west across the Great-White North. I can see now that he wasn't trying to be rude at all.
 
After Elenka and I had visited the obligatory sights of Rome we settled back with a cold beer and a sigh of relief. But we'd have no rest. It was now time to experience the beauty of this city of art. During daylight hours, the opaque reds, blues and yellows of the buildings grab hold of your senses. When the sun goes down the colours blend together. Every cobbled street leads to another one that's just waiting to be explored. And almost every street has a large or small church sometimes awkwardly fitted in amongst its homes or shops. After dark, we picked an area just out of people-sound reach. It was here, where Rome and the night became magical - a veritable paradise for the romantic and urban hiker alike. 

Correction: The below statement regarding the Christ's crucifixion is wrong.The painting of the crucifixion that stands behind the altar of Sant Andrea della Vella is actually a depiction of the crucifixion of Sant Andrea.  
 
Rome's fourth largest domed church, the Baroque Sant Andrea della Vella sits with greenery growing from its roof at the corner of our street. We went in and when I approached the altar I couldn't believe my eyes. Instead of a crucifix behind the altar - which most Catholic Churches have - there was a painting of the crucifixion. And Christ had been depicted differently than I'd ever seen. He was heavy-set, older, had a receding hair-line and big bushy white beard. He was tied, not nailed, to the cross. And the cross wasn't a cross at all. It looked as though it was two logs fashioned together in the form of an X. His arms were tied to the upper part of the X, his legs to the bottom. I don't normally take photos in churches, but this was an exception. Oh, Popes Pius II and III are entombed in this church on the corner of our street. I don't think Toronto has even had two popes come for a visit.   
    
I've just taken pause after writing the above. I think if someone were to ask me what there is to do and see in Rome, I'd suggest they pass on the obligatory sights altogether. The magic is everywhere and far less crowded.   


Internet access has been sporadic. There are some shots of San Juan, Puerto Rico and Funchal, on the island of Madeira, mixed amongst the attached photos of Rome.