"Rome in spring" a Rome Travel Page by FletchInEuropeYahoo

To walk in the footsteps of Hadrian, Caesar, Marcus Aurelius, emporers, slaves, statesmen...the antiquity of Europe is amazing to me but more so Rome than anywhere else.

The Baths of Caracolla were fantastic...and free! To think of this 2nd century facility in it's heyday: library, gymnasium, the three different temperature baths themselves, the park. The mosaics that have been excavated are beautiful. It boggles the mind to think of the level of civilization in that era.

Although we read in guide books that to rent a motorscooter in Rome is suicide, we did it. My husband has ridden motorcycles all his life and is skilled; however, it took both of us to manuever. I watched for traffic lights (on the side of the road, not above), called out, "Watch out for the horse manure", and warned him of approaching vehicles on the right and left. It was not fun for me but he had a great time.

We went to the Villa Borghese and the park that surrounds it. The museum is amazing, the ceilings in the building were as fantastic as the artwork under them. I was in a wheelchair (temporary condition, thank God) and so twisted my neck about staring as we entered each room.

The park was huge and has a zoo. There were feral cats about who let us pet them. We love cats so this was neat - they spoke Italian.

We took the bike back after 6 hours, about the time rush hour began. Cobblestones were nerve-wracking as I was waiting for us to skid on them but we didn't. At the rental company they wanted to know why we brought it back early. We said, "Mama mia! Loco!" But I will certainly never forget the experience.