In between burying my nose in Rick Steve’s Rome guide book (btw I am never traveling anywhere without him again – Godsend!) to dish the facts about this, that and the other ruin we were standing in front of, Ben and I took the time to appreciate how unique the city of Rome really is.
Take for instance, its doors.
Yes, Rome’s doors! Ben still doesn’t quite understand my fascination with these babies, but I found it utterly fascinating that every door in Rome – whether it led to an apartment building, a bank, or other business – is completely different… and BEAUTIFUL!
Some doors are new, while others are old.
Some are HUGE,
while others are small. ;)
Many channel other continents and time periods,
but no matter what, each one has its own identity.
I never saw a single one that looked like the other!
Come on – you think it’s interesting…don’t ya’?! ;)
Whenever we’d see someone about to head in, we’d hang back to catch a peek of what was inside. A lot of times they’d reveal a lovely courtyard…
while other times they’d open up to the most wonderful sights in the city!
The thing that charmed us the most about Rome was that behind each door, and around each corner, there was a new and interesting view.
There was no shortage of “what the??” exclamations as practically every other turn produced a massive and intricately carved building!
No clue as to what these buildings are used for, but they’re HUGE and they’re EVERYWHERE!
We assume that many are used by the government – but who knows?!
Arguably the most impressive buildings we stumbled upon were the hundreds of basilicas created over dozens or hundreds of years, sprinkled generously throughout the city.
Each one was absolutely breathtaking,
and filled with so many details it’d take you YEARS to pick them all out.
Other times the shout was “ohhh!” as the beautiful street views never failed to wow us.
I think the reason I kept feeling like I was on a movie set, as we walked through the streets of Rome, is because everything I’ve ever seen on tv or in the movies about Italy – the crumbling brick,
the romantic street lights,
and the hidden trattorias, are REAL!
Another thing that is evident no matter where you are in the city, is the ruins.
If Rome cashed in a mere fraction of the thousands of marble columns from hundreds and thousands of years ago, scattered ALL over the city, they’d be the next Dubai…before the bust…
The city has truly built itself up around the ruins – which is so incredible.
Seriously – this building was over 1,000 years old and I walked next to it. I TOUCHED IT!
How’d you like to live across the street from Cesar’s old palace?!
The great thing about the ruins is that they’re accessible. If this were in America, there’d be armed guards, men in lab coats and a DO NOT TOUCH perma signs over the entire city.
The people in Rome though, respect the ruins. They’re allowed to enjoy and live amongst them without restriction. I think that’s AWESOME.
Hope you enjoyed a peek into the unique city of Rome! :D
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I love your photos. I just got back from three weeks in Italy on the 1st and it was so amazing! I could live there, easily! I also am fascinated with the doors! I probably have 100+ photos of just doors in all the different cities we traveled. I already miss it and want to go back! Thanks for the fun pictures to remind me of my trip!
absolutely incredible! I find the doors SO interesting! And the ruins, for reals!
I’ve always wanted to go, but you’ve made me want to go more than ever now! So awesome!
the doors were very reminiscent for me, i took a lot of pic of different doors in italy as well. Everyone i was with thought i was weird for doing it.
I too share your love for doors. I have walked around my very own city (The south end and back bay neighborhoods specifically) taking pictures of just doors. For sure fascinating, and glad to know I’m not the only one….
ROME is gorgeous. You captured it unlike anyone I’ve ever seen!! I had no idea the ruins were so intertwined like that and people can wander about them. That is so very cool and fun!!
how beautiful! my mom loves doors so i’ll have to email this to her :)
Beautiful! My favorite city in Spain that we visited in February was Toledo, and the doors were so similar! All different, all beautiful. We took a ton of pictures of them, too!
Wow – you must’ve fallen in love with it – thanks for sharing these!
Loved your photo tour of the doors. I would never have thought to consider how different doors can be! I’m enjoying your vacay recaps. It makes DF and I so much more excited about our mini 4-day vacay! =)
If you will print up a set of note cards with those wonderful doors on them, I guarantee you they will sell and I will be one of your first customers! Spectacular. You are a very good photographer with an eye for detail. Thanks so much for sharing.
Beautiful Photography! Rome seems breathtaking! Those doors are so cool!
Great pictures! It is amazing to look at the ruins and wonder how many people have marveled at the same sights over the years.
Wow.. so amazing and beautiful. It REALLY reminds me of my visit to Ireland earlier this summer. They had the COOLEST doors in the cities! They were all different colors and many the doorknob in the middle of the door, instead of on one side. We heard a story that the doors were painted different colors because there was a husband who was drunk one night (you know the Irish love their beer ;) ) and got confused and went in the wrong house! True? I dunno, but it’s cute!
And you would see just random ruins of castles EVERYWHERE and it was so bizarre! Especially next to these brand new buildings! It really wakes you up to how YOUNG the U.S. is!
I actually have a print in my foyer called Dubuque Doorways. (sample at The photographer is local and did at least 3 others: Linn County, Galena and Door County. Very cool picture. I gave it as a going away present for someone and liked it so much I framed one for myself!