The superb Christmas trip in Rome

罗马的超凡圣诞之旅

Giuseppe Verdi – Aida – Marcia Triunfal

This christmas holiday, I have spent 8 days in Italy. That is a great experience for me. I have played the game Roma Total War before and I really enjoy it so Rome has always been a city that I dreamed of. I went there by the high speed train Frecciarosa, it is really fast. Since there are too many places to visit, I will only introduce the most important ones.

这个圣诞节假期,我在意大利待了8天。对我来说这是一次很棒的经历。我以前玩过罗马全面战争的游戏,我特别很喜欢它,所以罗马一直是我梦寐以求的城市。我这次是坐高铁Frecciarosa去的,风驰电掣一般的感觉。因为罗马有太多的地方可参观,我只会介绍一些重要的。

The story of the founding of Rome city comes from Romulus and Remus, twins who were suckled by a wolf as infants in the 8th century BC. This statue shows this story. Another stories say that the Roman people are descended from Trojan War hero Aeneas, who escaped to Italy after the war, and whose son, Iulus, was the ancestor of the family of Julius Caesar.

罗马城建立的故事来自于公元前8世纪被狼哺育的双胞胎罗慕卢斯和罗姆斯。这座雕像就诠释这个故事。另一个故事说,罗马人是特洛伊战争英雄埃涅阿斯的后裔,埃涅阿斯战后逃到意大利,他的儿子尤卢斯据说是凯撒家族的祖先。

Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore 

This was the first place I visited after I left the station Roma Termini because it was near the station. The church of Santa Maria Maggiore is the largest Catholic Marian church in Rome. It was built under Celestine I (422–432). Vatican City still fully owns the Basilica although it is in Italy territory.

这是我离开罗马火车站后参观的第一个地方,因为这座教堂火离车站很近。圣母玛利亚主教堂是罗马最大的天主教堂。它是在塞莱斯汀一世(422年-432年)统治下建造的。尽管它在意大利领土内,梵蒂冈教皇国却完全拥有这座教堂的主权。

Piazza dell’Esquilino

This is the view of the church from backside, from the Piazza dell’Esquilino. There is an obelisk on the square. This kind of building could be found in many squares of Rome.

这是从Esquilino广场看到的教堂背面。广场上有一座方尖碑。这种建筑在罗马的许多广场上都能看到。

Piazza Venezia

After 10 minutes walk, I arrived at the most beautiful place in Rome, the Piazza Venezia. It is located at the historical center of Rome. On this square, we could see the Palazzo Venezia and the statue of Victor-Emmanuel II who was the first king of Italy and get the panaromic view of ruins of ancient Rome. Piazza Venezia was named after the Cardinal Venezia, who ordered the construction of his own place, Palazzo Venezia, in 1455.

步行10分钟后,我来到了罗马最美丽的地方威尼斯广场。它位于罗马老城区的中心。在这个广场上,我可以看到威尼斯宫和意大利第一任国王维克托·伊曼纽尔二世的雕像,并可以看到古罗马遗址的全景。威尼斯广场是以红衣主教维尼西亚的名字命名的,红衣主教在1455年下令建造自己的住所威尼斯宫。

There are three important main roads around this square, la via dei Fori imperiali, la via del Corso and la via del Teatro di Marcello. As the idiom said, all roads lead to Rome. We could find many statues of goddess here. The 16 scupltures of pediment marks the regions of Italy and the two fountains represent the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Adriatic Sea. The Romans call this building as “the cake of mariage” due to the shape of the building.

广场周围有三条重要的主干道,即帝国大道、科索大道和马赛罗戏剧院大道。就如谚语所说条条大路通罗马。我们可以在这个广场看到许多女神像。16个三角墙雕塑标志着意大利的地区,两个喷泉代表着伊特鲁里亚海和亚得里亚海。因为这座建筑的形状,罗马人把这座建筑称为“结婚蛋糕”。

This is the statue of Vittorio Emanuele II who leads the unification of Italy. Italiens respect him much, as the father of the country. The base of statue is made of marbre, built by Giuseppe Sacconi on 19th century.

这是维托里奥·伊曼努埃尔二世的雕像。他是意大利祖国之父领导了意大利的统一,意大利人非常尊敬他。雕像底部由大理石制成,是朱塞佩·萨科尼于19世纪建造。

Also we could find a monument in the square as a memorial to the death solders. This is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

我们还可以在广场上看到一座纪念碑,纪念意大利的阵亡战士。这是牺牲的无名战士的陵墓。

Forum Traiani

On the east side of the square, the Forum Traiani could be seen clearly with three relics Basilica Ulpia, Colonna Traiana and Macellum Traiani. This forum was built on the order of the emperor Trajan due the conquest of Dacia, which was done in 106. There is a long post with 38 meters length. That is the famous Colonna Traiana, i.e Trajan’s Column. The column is most famous for its spiral bas relief, which artistically represents the wars between the Romans and Dacians. The whole history of Roman empire was the history of conquest and war.

在广场的东侧,可以清楚地看到图拉真广场上的乌尔皮亚大教堂,图拉真之柱和图拉真市场三处遗迹。这个广场是按照图拉真皇帝的命令建造的,源于106年完成的对达西亚的征服。广场上的一根长38米的长柱,这就是著名的图拉真之柱。这根圆柱以其螺旋形浅浮雕而闻名,它代表了罗马人和达西亚人之间的战争。整个罗马帝国的历史就是一部战争征服史。

On the terrasse of the square staring far away, the major historical building of Rome and the skyline could be oberved, like the Colosseo, the Roman theater, the Roman forum. At the moment of watching the beautiful scenes , it was really difficult to describe it with just several words. It is as if all the scenes in the game of Rome Total War suddenly becomes reality and the history of thousand years’ fall and rise of Roman empire flashes into my eyes like replays of movies.

在广场的天台上放目远眺,罗马的主要历史建筑,如竞技场、罗马剧院、罗马广场以及天际线尽收眼底。在观看露台上美丽景色的那一刻的感觉,千言万语都显得如此苍白无力。好像罗马全面战争游戏中的所有场景突然变成了现实,好像罗马帝国千年的兴衰史如同电影回放一样历历在目。

Macellum Traiani

The Macellum Traiani is a ruin of Roman market located on the Via dei Fori Imperiali built in 100-110 AD by Apollodorus of Damascus. It was the world’s oldest shopping mall. The shops were built in a multi-level structure and it is still possible to visit several of the levels.

图拉真市场是古罗马市场的遗迹,位于罗马帝国大道上,由大马士革的阿波罗多鲁斯于公元100-110年之间建造。它是世界上最古老的购物中心。这些商店建在一个多层的结构中,现在仍然可以参观。

Fontana Del Tirreno

Rome is famous for beautiful fountains. This is one fountain located at the corner of the square, Fontana Del Tirreno. This fountain represents the Tyrrhenian Sea.

罗马城以美丽的喷泉而闻名。这是位于威尼斯广场一角的一个喷泉,叫做蒂雷诺喷泉。这座喷泉代表着伊特鲁里亚海。

Trevi Fountain

Not far from the square, in the north of the square Venezia, there is one famous fountain attracting many tourists around the world. It is designed by Italian architect Nicola Salvi and completed by Giuseppe Pannini and several others in 1762. Standing against the Palazzo Poli, it is the largest Baroque fountain in the city. The fountain represents the ocean and there is the statue of the god of ocean Neptune in the center of the fountain. It is heard that if you want to return to Roma, you should throw a coin to the basin. Of course I did it, and made a wish for the upcoming new year.

距离广场不远,在威尼斯广场的北边,有一个著名的喷泉,特莱维喷泉,吸引着世界各地的游客。它由意大利建筑师尼古拉·萨尔维设计,由朱塞佩·帕尼尼和其他几个建筑师于1762年完成。它与波利宫相对,是罗马最大的巴洛克式喷泉。喷泉代表海洋,喷泉中心就是海王神的雕像。听说如果你想再回到罗马,就应该把一枚硬币扔到水池里。我也这么做了,并为即将到来的新年许下了一个愿望。

Panthéon 

Next I went to a magnificant building with many large granite Corithian columns. The Pantheon is a former Roman temple, now a church. It was completed by the emperor Hadrian. It means relating to all the gods. The temple Maison Carré in Nimes looks similar with this one but this one is bigger. After the Battle of Actium (31 BC), Marcus Agrippa started an impressive building program including the Pantheon. There is Latin words on the front of the temple which reads: M·AGRIPPA·L·F·COS·TERTIVM·FECIT. It means “Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, made [this building] when consul for the third time.

接下来我到了这座宏伟的建筑面前,它有许多巨大的花岗岩科林斯圆柱。万神殿以前是罗马神庙,现在是教堂。它是由哈德良皇帝完成的。它象征着所有的神,所以叫万神殿。尼姆的方形神庙看起来和这座很相似,但这座更大。在阿克提姆战役后(公元前31年),马库斯阿格里帕开始了一个万人瞩目的建筑计划,其中就包括万神殿。神殿正前方有一串拉丁文单词,上面写着:M·AGRIPPA·L·F·COS·TERTIVM·FECIT。意思是“卢修斯的儿子马库斯阿格里帕,第三次当执政官时建造了这座建筑。

Piazza Navona

On the west of the Pantheon, it is the Piazza Navona, built in the 1st century AD, and it has a long oval shape because it was once the site of the Stadium of Domitian where festivals and sporting events took place. There are three fountains on the square. Surrounded by the restaurant, this is a pleasant place to have a drink or meal.

在万神殿的西面,是建于公元1世纪的纳沃纳广场,它是一个长长的椭圆形,因为它曾经是举行节日和体育赛事的多米蒂体育场的所在地。广场上有三个喷泉,餐厅林立,很适合在这里喝一杯或吃一顿。

Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi

In the center of the square, it is the famous Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or Fountain of the Four Rivers (1651) designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini. The Fountain of the Four Rivers depicts Gods of the four great rivers in the four continents as then recognized by the Renaissance geographers: the Nile in Africa, the Ganges in Asia, the Danube in Europe and the Río de la Plata in America.
Each location is represented by one characteristic sculpture. The Ganges carries a long oar, representing the river’s navigability. The Nile’s head is draped with a loose piece of cloth, meaning that no one at that time knew exactly where the Nile’s source was. The Danube touches the Papal coat of arms, since it is the largest river closest to Rome. And the Río de la Plata is sitting on a pile of coins, a symbol of the riches America might offer to Europe.

广场中央是著名的由吉安·洛伦佐·贝尔尼尼1651年设计的四河喷泉。四河喷泉描绘了当时文艺复兴时期地理学家所认识的四大洲的四大河神:非洲的尼罗河、亚洲的恒河、欧洲的多瑙河和美洲的拉普拉塔河。

每个有特征的雕塑代表着每个地方。恒河有一个长桨,代表着这条河的适航性。尼罗河的头部覆盖着一块松散的布,这意味着当时没有人确切知道尼罗河的源头在哪里。多瑙河与教皇的盾徽相接,因为它是离罗马最近的最大的河流。而拉普拉塔河正位于一堆硬币上,象征着美洲可能给欧洲带来的财富。

Fontana del Moro

Another is the Fontana del Moro with a basin and four Tritons sculpted by Giacomo della Porta in 1575 and Bernini added a statue of a Moor, wrestling with a dolphin in 1673.

另一个是1575年贾科莫·德拉·波塔雕刻的带有水池和四个海神之子的摩罗喷泉,1673年贝尔尼尼添加了一尊摩尔人与海豚搏斗的雕像。

Largo di Torre Argentina

In the south of the square Navona and west of the square Venezia, there is one square with four Roman Republican temples and the remains of Pompey’s Theatre. Julius Caesar was killed in the Curia of the Theatre of Pompey. This should be the place where he had been assassinated.

在纳沃纳广场南部和威尼斯广场以西,有一个广场,这里有四座罗马共和国神庙和庞贝剧院的遗迹。凯撒大帝在庞贝剧院被杀,所以这个遗址应该是他被刺杀的地方。

Palazzo Venezia

After I walked along the road eastward, I went back to the Venezia square and discovered the Palazzo Venezia. There are many palms planted in the garden. This building could trace back to 15th centuary and used to be the residencial place of pope. In 20th centuary, it was occupied by Mussolini. Mussolini used it as the regime’s main palace, with its balcony, famous for being the place from which war was announced.

沿着这条路往东走,我回到威尼斯广场,发现了广场边的威尼斯宫。花园里种了许多棕榈树。这座建筑可以追溯到15世纪,曾是教皇的住所。在20世纪,它被墨索里尼占有。墨索里尼把它作为政权的主要宫殿,这里的阳台就是以宣布法西斯战争的开始而闻名。

Piazza del Campidoglio

In this area, there are many ways leading to the Via dei Fori Imperiali. I chose another road with steps instead of the main road. This road leads me to the Piazza del Campidoglio (Capitole square). There is the statue of Marc Aurele in the center of the square. Marc Aurele was the Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good Emperors.

在这一地区,有许多途径通往帝国大道。我选择了一条有台阶的路,而不是主路。这条路通向议会广场。广场中央有马克·奥雷尔的雕像。马克奥雷尔是161至180年间的罗马皇帝,是一位斯多葛学派哲学家。他是罗马最后一位被称为好皇帝的统治者。

Via dei Fori Imperiali

The most magnificant place of Rome certainly is the Via dei Fori Imperiali which means the road of empire. This is a long road connecting Piazza Venezia and the Coliseo. Along this road, all the Roman relics could be seen and you will feel that you are walking on the street of Roman Empire. The Coliseo of course is the icon of Rome. It was built of travertine limestone, tuff (volcanic rock), and brick-faced concrete; it was the largest amphitheatre ever built and held 50,000 to 80,000 spectators. Its construction began under the emperor Vespasian in AD 72 and was completed in AD 80 under his successor Titus.

罗马最壮观的地方当然是帝国大道。这是一条连接威尼斯广场和竞技场的长路。沿着这条路,可以看到几乎所有的罗马遗迹,你会觉得你走在古罗马帝国的大街上。竞技场当然是罗马城的标志。它是由石灰岩、凝灰岩和砖面混凝土建成的;也是有史以来最大的圆形剧场,可容纳5万至8万名观众。它于公元72年在维斯帕西安皇帝统治下开始修建,在他的继任者提图斯治下于公元80年竣工。

The Colosseum is just east of the Roman Forum. The forum is a rectangular square surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings. I have seen many cute sea gulls in the square, they like to land at the places with many people. They are really friendly with the visitors.

竞技场就在罗马广场的东边。罗马广场是一个长方形的广场,周围是几座重要的古代政府建筑的废墟。我在广场上见过许多可爱的海鸥,它们喜欢在人多的地方降落,对游客很友好。

Arco di Settimio Severo

Along the Via dei Fori Imperiali, I could see clearly The Arch of Septimius Severus (Arco di Settimio Severo) at the northwest end of the Roman Forum; it is a white marble triumphal arch to commemorate the victories of Emperor Septimius Severus and his two sons, Caracalla and Geta, in the two campaigns against the Parthians of 194/195 and 197–199.

沿着帝国大道,我可以清楚地看到位于罗马广场西北端的Settimio Severo拱门;这是一座白色大理石凯旋门,用来纪念塞普蒂米乌斯·塞维鲁斯皇帝及其两个儿子卡拉卡拉和盖在194/195年和197-199年两次对帕提亚人的战役的胜利。

 Templum Saturni 

The temple of Saturn is the temple dedicated to Saturn built at the beginning of Rome republic. In the forum of Rome there are many remnants of the bases of temples or basilique and it is difficult to distinguish them but this one is quite obvious. In Roman mythology, Saturn ruled during the Golden Age and he is associated with wealth. His temple housed the treasury, the aerarium, where the Roman Republic’s reserves of gold and silver were stored.

土星神庙是罗马共和国初期建造的供奉土星的神庙。在罗马广场上,有许多寺庙或教堂的遗迹,很难分辨,不过这个神庙很明显。在古罗马神话中,土星神统治着黄金时代,所以把他和财富联系在一起。他的庙宇里也就是罗马共和国储存金银的地方。

Along this road there are some statues of Roman leaders for example Julius Caesar; also we could find the S.P.Q.R on the statues and many places in Rome. This is the symbol of Roman Republic and represents the political power of Rome. In movies and games, we could see the S.P.Q.R symbols on the flag of Roman armies!

沿着帝国大道可以看到一些罗马领袖的雕像,例如尤利乌斯·凯撒;我们也可以在雕像和罗马的许多地方找到S.P.Q.R的字符。这是罗马共和国的象征,代表罗马的政治权力。在电影和游戏里,我们可以看到罗马军队旗帜上的S.P.Q.R的符号!

Piazza del Popolo

After one night’s rest, I started my trip from the Piazza del Popolo. It is a square with style of neo-classic. It is the important starting point of via Flaminia leading to the north of Italy. Before the period of railway, this is the first view point seen by the visitors when they arrived at Rome. The cathedrales on the square is totally symmetrical, a strange design.

休息了一夜后,我从人民广场开始了我的旅行。这是一个具有新古典主义风格的正方形广场。它是古罗马弗拉米尼亚大道通往意大利北部的重要起点。在铁路时代之前,这是游客到达罗马时看到的第一个景点。广场上的大教堂完全对称,设计独特。

Piazza di Spagna

Walking along the Piazza del Popolo southwards, there is another romantic square, the Piazza di Spagna. One scene of the famous movie Roman Holiday is taken here. Audrey Hepburn was eating ice cream together with Gregory Peck at the step of the square.

沿着人民广场向南走,有另一个特别浪漫的广场,西班牙广场。著名电影《罗马假日》的一幕就是在这里拍摄的。奥黛丽·赫本和格利高利·派克一起在广场的台阶上吃冰淇淋。

Piazza Cavour 

Next I moved towards the direction of Vatican city. On the way, there is a beautiful square Piazza Cavour. The building on this picture is the palace of justice of Italy.

接下来我朝梵蒂冈城的方向走去。在路上,有一个美丽的卡武广场。这个照片上的建筑是意大利司法宫。

The statue on the square is the Count of Cavour who led the movement toward Italian unification. After the unification of Kingdom of Italy, Cavour took office as the first Prime Minister of Italy.

广场上的雕像是领导意大利统一运动的卡武伯爵。意大利王国统一后,他就任意大利的第一任首相。

Ponte Sant’Angelo

The Vatican city is at the west side of the Tibre river. To cross the river, I needed to cross the Ponte Sant’Angelo. It was a Roman bridge completed in 134 AD by Roman Emperor Hadrian to span the Tiber from the city centre to his newly constructed mausoleum, the Castel Sant’Angelo.

梵蒂冈城在台伯河的西岸。为了过河我必需要穿过圣天使桥。这是公元134年由罗马皇帝哈德良完成的一座古罗马桥,横跨台伯河从市中心到他新建的陵墓圣天使城堡。

Castel SantAngelo

The Castel Sant’Angelo was built starting from 123-125, ending in 139, designed to be the mausoleum of the emperor Hadrian. It is a very large castle but I did not enter it due to a long queue. On the top of the castle, there is a statue of Saint Michel with swords in the hands.

圣天使城堡建于123-125年,完工于139年,是哈德良皇帝的陵墓。这是一座非常大的城堡,但由于排队太长,我没有进去参观。在城堡的顶部,有一尊手持圣剑的圣米歇尔雕像。

Plazzo Saint-Pierre
San Pietro in Vaticano

Vatican City is the smallest country in the world which is located at the west side of the Castel Sant’Angelo. It is the main travelling site for every visitors. Huge amounts of tourists come so it took me 2 hours for the queue of visiting the Basilica Saint-Pierre which is the largest in the world. It is also listed as the world heritage by UNESCO. It was built under the order of Constantine 1st, finished on 1626. The tourists could only visit the museum and the basilica but could not access to other parts of the country.

Constantine I was the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. From that time, Christianity has become the dominating religion in Europe.

梵蒂冈城是世界上最小的国家,位于圣天使城堡的西侧。它是每位来罗马游客的必玩之地。我花了2个小时在人山人海中排队参观了世界上最大的圣皮埃尔大教堂。它被联合国教科文组织列为世界遗产。它是在君士坦丁一世的命令下建造的,完成于1626年。游客只能参观博物馆和大教堂,但不能进入该国其他地区。

君士坦丁一世是第一位皈依基督教的罗马皇帝。从那时起,基督教成为欧洲的主要宗教。

The basilica has a big dome and the decoration inside is beautiful including many pictures on the wall and dome. It is highly recommended to visit it despite of the long queue. The building itself is like a masterpiece of arts. Outside the basilica, there is one post office. Visitors could send postcards with postmark of Vatican City.

教堂有一个大圆顶,里面的装饰很漂亮,墙上和圆顶上有许多画。尽管排队很长,但强烈建议去参观。这座建筑本身就像一座艺术杰作。大教堂外有一个邮局。游客可以寄出带有梵蒂冈邮戳的明信片。

Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere

After I left the Vatican City, it was afternoon, and I had to be on my way to the train station. This basilica is a famous one. It was bult under Calixte 1st, and became the first place of Christian religion that is open to the public.

我离开梵蒂冈城后,已经是下午,我必须赶去火车站了。这座大教堂也很有名。它是在卡利克斯特一世统治下建立的,并成为第一个向公众开放的基督教场所。

Sainta-Maria in Cosmedin

When the sun started to go down, I visited the last site of my trip in Rome, the Sainta-Maria in Cosmedin. It is a common church but many people come here because of the Bocca della Verità.

当太阳开始下山的时候,我参观了在罗马旅行的最后一个地点,科斯迈丁的圣母玛利亚教堂。这是一个普通的教堂,但许多人来这里是因为著名的真理之嘴。

Bocca della Verità

Bocca della Verità means Mouth of Truth. It is a marble mask in the corner of the Sainta-Maria in Cosmedin. It weighs about 1300 kg and depicts the face of the sea titan god Oceanus. Many visitors will put their hands in the mouth and it was said that if you were talking the lies, the mouth of truth will bite your hand. Very interesting!

真理之嘴是一个大理石面具坐落在圣母玛利亚教堂的角落。它重约1300公斤,描绘的是海洋泰坦神的面容。许多游客都会把手伸进它的嘴里,据说如果你说的是谎言,真理之嘴就会咬住你的手。非常有趣!

I would end my travel by the mouth of truth and I hope I will always be on the way of pursuing the truth. Rome is a fantastic city with so many relics, architectures, statues in the periods of Roman Empire, and it is really worth of visiting. I hope the Trevi fountain could bring good luck to me in the new year 2020 and I will come Rome next time!

我将在真理之嘴结束我在罗马的旅行,也希望我在追求真理的道路上一直走下去,路漫漫其修远兮吾将上下而求索。罗马是一个非比寻常的城市,有众多罗马帝国时期的遗迹、建筑、雕像,非常值得一游。我希望特莱维喷泉能在2020年给我带来好运,并且下次还会再来罗马!