Climbing the Hills of Rome

Well, it looks like the postcard scavenger hunt has made it onto both my best and worst moments of the week.  How did that happen?

Last Friday, my roommate and I were in Rome for the weekend, while everyone else was in Florence.  So, with some free time, I suggested that we go exploring and try to cross one more place off of my postcard scavenger hunt.  On the list for the day is the Aventine Hill, in the southern part of Rome on the eastern border on the Tiber river.  There is located a picture perfect view of St. Peter's Basilica. 
I am so excited for adventure, and eager to get going and view the scene that looks magical even on just the postcard.  It is raining as the two of us depart to catch the 906 bus that will take us to the metro station.  So we reach the bus stop and wait.

Cue my idiotic moment that puts this day on my worst moments list.  It should actually go more on my moments where I lost all common sense for whatever reason. In my defense, it was a dull Friday, with no one around, and I really wanted to get out and explore.  But yeah, that still doesn't justify standing in the cold and dreary rain for an entire hour waiting for one little bus.  Yes, I stood with my roommate in the rain for an entire hour waiting for a bus.  By that time I suppose we could have walked to the nearest metro station, but there is a complex rule about waiting that says the longer I wait, the closer the bus is, so why leave when it gets closer every second that goes by?  Finally, my roommate had more sense than I and we retreated back to campus, where both of us curled up in blankets to get warm and dry. Note that I did suffer the consequences of my stupidity with a newly acquired head cold that lasted the majority of the following week. 

In the evening, when the rain stopped, we did end up going to the Aventine Hill area, but by the time we got there, it was getting dark, we were starving, there were very few restaurants, and neither of us had any really clue as to where this exact view was.  After 30 minutes of wandering around the hill, I gave up on finding the picture.  It really was not the most productive day, and I went to bed in a depressed mood.

Just four days later, my roommate and I find ourselves in a similar situation, with a completely free day and lots of time to go exploring.  After doing some shopping and visiting the English Poet John Keat's museum, we have an entire hour left to spare, so I decided to take another courageous stab at the Aventine Hill.  I'm in a good mood again, and did a little more research, so I know generally where on this hill the view is located.

The walk from the metro station was more torturous than I anticipated.   All uphill, and we were again hungry because it was getting close to dinner, and the entire day of exploring was taking its toll.  The hill itself was indeed beautiful, and walking up it revealed rustic red buildings all around.  The walkway followed a red stone wall, which had some openings in it, one of which I thought was where the view was, but it proved deceiving.  I had no idea where we were going, and there was nothing even remotely promising anywhere in the random neighborhood we trekked through. 

Five more minutes of walking up this aimless hill and no sign of any of the trees or little path that were in the postcard.  I finally take a desperate last glance through another one of the several gates along this wall, and almost collapse with surprise.  Right through that gate was the postcard, displayed out in perfect detail before my eyes. 

Besides the fact that the walkway was more beautiful than anything expected, the tall trees pointing towards the jewel of St. Peters, the view was astounding.  I could see all of Rome in one sweeping glance.  The setting sun made the city glow with a shine as if the city was made of gold, and I loved it.  But I had already seen good views of Rome.  What made this one so different?  It turns out that this view came with its own paradise.  Orange trees and rose bushes speckled this small park, no bigger than a little league baseball field.  Red stone walls enclosed the entire area, and stone benches and two stone walkways completed the little square.  There was a peaceful atmosphere surrounding the entire area, which not the noise of the streets nor the bustling of the city were able to puncture.  I didn't feel like I was in Rome anymore.  Rather I was in a place full of peace and full of God's beautiful creation.  I felt almost at home in this little area.  I could come here often, to study, to meditate, to just sit with God in this glorious pocket of creation, reserved in a hard to find spot just for anyone to stumble upon its beauty.  My roommate and I just happened to be two of the lucky people to do so.

Was all the effort worth it in finding the Aventine Hill? Absolutely.  I rank this place above the Pantheon, above the Colosseum, up to the same level as St. Peter's Basilica.  This is one of the hidden gems of Rome.  I never expected this picture to be one of my favorite places in all of Rome.  I thought it would be a simple little view that I would find and walk away within five minutes.  However, this experience proves that the best places are sometimes the places that no one knows about, aren't in any guidebook, and are in the middle of what seems like no where. 

So here
is the official #4 find of the postcard scavenger hunt: The Aventine Hill!  I can't wait to see what wonders I can dig up for next week!