We added Rome’s ancient Forum to our walk-about where we visited the Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon. I’m still tired! Today concludes the Rome section of my adventure travel series from posts I did in 2015. Next up will be Florence.
While much of the Roman Forum is in rubble, the temple of Antonius and Faustina still stands proudly… fortunately. The striations around the columns were caused by someone trying to cut them down.
At the height of the Roman Empire, around 100 CE, Rome ruled from England to the Persian Gulf. The Mediterranean Sea was considered a Roman pond. The Forum, located next to the Colosseum, was the site of Rome’s government. Julius Caesar was killed here on the Ides of March, after which Mark Anthony gave his famous speech: “Friends, Romans and Countrymen, lend me your ears.” The following photos are from the Forum.
Excavating the Roman Forum is still very much a work in progress, as this photo shows.I found the simple elegance of this single column outlined against a cloudy sky to be quite beautiful.These columns were once part of Caligula’s Palace. Caligula, who enjoyed torturing people, built his horse a house and planned to appoint him as a Consul. It was around that time that Romans decided to assassinate the infamous emperor.The building on the lower left covers the site where the body of Julius Caesar was burned. Above it, to the right, was the Temple of Vesta, attended by the Vestal Virgins. Their job was to stay chaste for 30 years and attend the eternal flame. Being bad got you buried alive. Flings were few and far between. Palatine Hill, where the wealthy lived and cavorted, is in the background. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)The Arch of Titus commemorated the Roman victory over Judaea in 70 AD. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)While Peggy was capturing photos of important historical sites, I was busy with the local cat.What remains of the massive Temple of Constantine, the Emperor who made Christianity the official religion of Rome. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)This impressive six-story arch commemorated the victory of the African born emperor Septimius Severus in far off Mesopotamia. BTW, it was the booty from these Roman victories that helped build the arches.Speaking of aches, I like the perspective of their photo taken by Peggy.Do you think the Latin says park bench? I was tempted.For my last picture on my Forum post, I chose this magnificent boar. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)
In my last post we stood in St. Peter’s Square and looked at St. Peter’s Basilica. This time we go inside plus visit the Vatican Museum as part of my armchair travel series. This post is based on a 2015 post.
One of the world’s best-loved works of art, Michelangelo’s Pieta, is located in St. Peter’s Basilica.
St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome is one of the world’s great churches. It is simply breathtaking. Walk inside and you are ready to join the Faith… whether you are faithful or not. The church was built during the Renaissance utilizing the greatest artists of Italy when Italy had the greatest artists in the world.
Visiting, you might say, is an indulgence of the highest order. In fact the church was built on indulgence… or, more correctly, indulgences: lots of them. Let’s say you committed a very, very BIG sin. No problem, if you were very, very wealthy. The church was willing to sell you forgiveness, an indulgence if you will. It was a guarantee you’d make it through the Pearly Gates.
The practice was so widespread, and so profitable, and so corrupt in fact, that it led a relatively unknown monk by the name of Martin Luther to tack up a list of 95 demands on the doors of a German church and kick off the Protestant Reformation.
But that is all far behind us in the very distant past. I, for one, am glad that the Pope found a way to pay for his splendid monument. And, I suspect, given a few minutes alone with Michelangelo’s Pieta, the most protesting of Protestants would agree.
Bernini’s ornate seven story high bronze canopy oversees the simple altar where the Pope holds Communion.Looking up past Bernini’s Canopy at Michelangelo’s dome, which towers 448 feet from the floor.This photo of the nave of St. Peter’s Basilica gives an idea of just how big the church is. 60,000 people standing shoulder to shoulder could stand inside.
If St. Peter’s isn’t enough to pull you into the Vatican, its magnificent museum with over four miles of art should. The tour ends with the Sistine Chapel where Michelangelo spent four years on his back filling 5900 square feet with art.
Our tour of St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museum was far too short. Even cutting out half of the museum, I felt like an Olympic sprinter. Give yourself a couple of days to explore these outstanding treasures.
The collection of the Vatican Museum ranges from ancient Egypt to modern times. This is a statue, I believe, of the Egyptian God Anubis who had the body of a man and the head of a jackal.I was quite taken with this lion in the Vatican museum. Note the eyes. Man’s best friend! Woof!Finally, I wanted to emphasize how incredibly ornate portions of the Vatican are. This was the ceiling of the map room. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)
Today we will visit St. Peter’s Square as part of my armchair travel series for the Age of Coronavirus. This is based on a post I did in 2015 after a visit to Rome.
Cloudy skies provide a colorful backdrop for St. Peter’s Basilica with its magnificent dome designed by Michelangelo. This photo is taken while standing in St. Peters Square. Look closely, and you will see ant-like people waiting to enter. Our turn would come.
Our hotel in Rome, the Giulio Cesare, was within a mile of the Vatican. We walked over twice, getting mildly lost both times. It didn’t matter. Rome is chock-full of fascinating architecture and tantalizing history.
The first time we went via the Tiber River, passing by the Castle St. Angelo and its neighboring bridge, the Pont St. Angelo. Eventually this brought us to the broad avenue leading up to St. Peter’s Square and Basilica. Mussolini built the avenue to provide visitors with a better view of the church. He also gave the 100-acre Vatican its independent nation status. Today the Vatican serves as the religious center for some one billion Catholics.
The Victor Immanuel Bridge reflected in the Tiber River of Rome.Peggy, her brother John and his wife Frances stand in front of the Tiber River and the Pont St. Angelo (the Bridge of Angels). The bridge was once the Bridge of Emperor Hadrian and dates from the Roman Empire.Pont St. Angelo received its name during the Renaissance when Bernini oversaw a project to line the bridge with angels reminding the faithful of Christ’s crucifixion. This one carries a lance representing the spear used by a Roman soldier to jab Christ in the side. The rounded Castle St. Angelo stands next to the bridge. Built originally as a mausoleum for Emperor Hadrian, it would later become a prison and then fort. Today it serves as a museum. St. Michael stands on top of the castle with sword drawn to fight off the plague.Hmmm, I wonder if he would take on Covid-19? (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)A view of St. Peter’s Square featuring a portion of Bernini’s Colonnade. Statues of 10 foot tall saints line the top.Another perspective of St. Peter’s Square. This is taken from the Basilica looking back. The boulevard built by Mussolini is in the distance. Bernini’s Colonnade opens out, welcoming the faithful.This obelisk, seen in the previous picture, dominates St. Peter’s Square. Once upon a time it resided in Egypt, but its home in Rome predates that of the Vatican when it stood over Nero’s race track where Christians were persecuted and Peter was crucified upside down.The top of St. Peter’s Basilica, like Bellini’s Colonnade, features saints. The saint on the left is Simon the Zealot. You can tell your saints by the tools they carry. Simon was a carpenter and is shown with his saw. Simon was called the Zealot because he left his wife and kids to follow Jesus. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)This lamp from St. Peter’s Square is here because I like it. You’ll see it peeking out on the left hand corner of St. Peter’s Basilica at the beginning of this blog.I took this photo of the massive columns in front of St. Peter’s Basilica because I felt they provided an interesting perspective on the size of the church. We will be visiting the Basilica in my next post.No blog on the Vatican would be complete without showing the changing of the Swiss Guard carrying pikes. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
Today, I am continuing to dip into my archives as part of my armchair travel series in the age of Covid-19. On Wednesday we visited Rome’s impressive colosseum. Today, Peggy and I go on a walk-about visiting various historic sites and dodging pickpockets. In terms of coronavirus, I had an amusing thought: It must be much harder for pickpockets to work when 6-foot social distancing is being practiced!
One of the joys of walk-about is you come on treasures you might not see otherwise. This delightful elephant carved by Bernini is located near the Pantheon. It serves as the base for an obelisk.
If you’ve been following this blog, you know we like to walk extensively when visiting a new city. It’s a good way to become acquainted with the region and its people. Plus it’s great exercise. While Rome is huge, the historic section is confined to a relatively small section. It was large enough, however, that we used mass transit for longer distances.
There were two challenges. The first was figuring out the where and when of catching a train in a language we didn’t speak. The second was that the subway is a great place for pickpockets, especially during rush hour. Rick Steves, in his book on Mediterranean Ports, was constantly admonishing us to be on theft alert.
Peggy, who is more paranoid than I, is always urging me to transfer my wallet to my front pocket when we are in a crowd. Sometimes I even comply. Once, she didn’t even have to ask. We were in Amsterdam and the city had put up huge banners across the streets warning people about thieves. Neither did I require urging in Rome. Folks in Southern Europe were suffering from serious Euro Deficit Dysfunction. Times were tough. We both wore money belts.
The stories are legendary about various scams. Travelers love to share tales. One of my favorites is a woman will ask you to hold her baby while her compatriots grab your wallet. No way was I going to hold a stranger’s baby. Heck, I’ll hardly hold the baby of a woman I know. Babies are known to burp and pee on you. Can you imagine the insult added to injury if a baby was burping and peeing on you while someone was stealing your wallet?
While the stories are fun, the problems are real. A man staying at our hotel lost 2000 euros. A woman told us she was waiting at the airport when a nicely dressed couple told her something was sprayed all over the back of her jacket. The woman took it off. Sure enough, the jacket was covered with green goop. While her husband took the jacket to the restroom to wash, the couple kept her company. They left when her husband returned. Only later did she realize that her purse left with them.
We were at the Termini, a major transfer point on Rome’s transit system, when our turn came. It was at the peak of rush hour and the train was crammed full. John, Peggy’s brother, and his wife Frances had climbed on first. Four little kids, maybe eight years old, jumped on in front of us. Peggy and I were squeezing in when John shouted. He had felt someone reaching in his back pocket. Meanwhile, the four little kids were trying to jump off the train. Peggy, being the ex-elementary school principal she is, thought the kids were confused and tried to shove them back on. The little pickpockets, of course, thought she was trying to collar them. They managed to escape just as the doors were closing. Fortunately, John was also wearing a money belt. He kept his euros and we had a story to tell.
Besides our experience with the pickpockets, we had managed to visit Trajan’s Column, the Trevi Fountains and the Pantheon on our day’s walk-about.
The emperor Trajan apparently had lots to say about his victorious Dacian campaign circa 103 AD. He told it on the bas-relief making its way up the 140-foot column— in a cork-screw fashion. See below for details. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)This photo shows how much detail is included on Trajan’s Column. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)The Trevi Fountain has always been worth visiting on its own but its popularity got a significant boost by the 1950’s movie and theme song, “Three Coins in a Fountain.” Sinatra sang the song. The coins are for wishes. The first gets you back to Rome, the second helps you find true love, the third sees you happily married. Or so they say. The Pantheon is one of the world’s most famous structures. It was built to honor Rome’s numerous gods. Its dome has served as a model for domes ranging from St. Peter’s Basilica to the US Capitol building. Peggy’s brother John and his wife Frances made it into the right corner of the photo.The interior of the Pantheon is quite striking.It was common practice for the Catholic Church to take over sites that had been used to worship Roman gods. It was a clever ploy that the church also used for other local gods as well.A final view of the Pantheon’s dome from outside.This fellow was attached to a carriage out side the Pantheon. I liked its ear covers. A horse approach to ear muffs! Or maybe just decorations.Peggy found this door knocker intriguing. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)And this dragon lamp. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)A final street scene from our walk about through Rome.
NEXT POST: No trip to Rome is complete without a trip to the Vatican.
I’ve been reading Mary Beard’s history of early Rome, “SPQR,” so I had fun going back and revisiting Rome with my posts from 2015. In fact, I had so much fun, I’ve decided to share them with you as part of my armchair travel series. We will go on a walk-about where Peggy and I barely avoid pickpockets, visit the ancient Forum, stop off at the Vatican, and take a trip to Rome’s grand Colosseum where I met a ghost of the great cats that once fought gladiators.
Rome’s Colosseum is lit up in the evening.
I first viewed Rome’s grand memorial to gladiators in 1967 on my way home from serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in West Africa. I was as impressed with the number of feral cats living in the ruins as I was with the structure. Massive renovations have taken place since then. Today’s Colosseum is crowded with tourists instead of cats. We joined the throngs.
This is the one cat I found in the Colosseum. I am sure it had aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, kids somewhere. But check out the stance— ears back, paw posed to strike. He was ready to take on a gladiator, or at least a camera toting traveler.
Originally the Colosseum was known as the Flavian Amphitheater, after the family of emperors who built it. Nero, who had a bad case of self-adulation, built a huge statue of himself nearby. It was known as the Colossus. At some point, the name was applied to the Colosseum. A later emperor removed the head from Nero’s statue and affixed his own stone likeness on top. Why pay for a whole statue? It became the custom with each succeeding emperor. So much for everlasting fame…
When completed in 80 AD, the Colosseum could seat 50,000 screaming people. During its 100-day inauguration, some 2000 gladiators killed each other and 9000 animals.
While their taste in entertainment left much to be desired, the Romans’ engineering abilities were superb. The Colosseum is high testament to this. Modern stadiums are still built on a similar model, designed to move large numbers of people in and out quickly. I was amused to learn that the Romans called the entrance/exit passages vomitoria– hence our word, vomit.
Spectators were issued tickets on pottery shards that listed their entrance gate, section, row and seat numbers. The higher your rank, the better your seat. The top rows were saved for slaves, foreigners and women. Some people, such as actors and gravediggers, weren’t allowed in the Colosseum at all. Now actors are idolized and even elected as presidents and governors. Gravediggers still dig graves.
A number of illustrations are found in the Colosseum that reflect what it was like at the Colosseum in Ancient Rome. This one of the nose-bleed section reminded me of a tailgate party. Cooking, eating, drinking, fighting and betting were all part of a typical day. As was carving graffiti on the benches.
The top could be covered for bad weather by a large canvas awning that was put up and taken down by sailors from Rome’s navy. The true gem of engineering was the floor, however, which covered a network of tunnels and cages where wild animals and props were stored. Eighty different elevators operated by pulleys served to bring scenery and wild animals to the surface. You might be in the middle of an African jungle for one scene and a Greek city the next. Imagine the job of being prop master! The floor could even be flooded for sea battles.
Here’s an illustration of what the cover looked like.This illustration from the Colosseum shows a cutaway of the floor with its elevators, wild animals and gladiators.
You never knew when or where the next wild animal might pop up, which could be bad news for gladiators. Cats at the Colosseum then meant lions and tigers with long claws and sharp teeth. There were also elephants, rhinos, hippos, crocodiles and even giraffes— although I can’t imagine why or how you would fight a giraffe. I once chased a herd across the Serengeti Plains in a Volkswagen beetle, however.
Gladiators came from the ranks of slaves, poor people, and criminals. (Contrary to legend, there were very few Christians.) The most successful earned fame, fortune and freedom. Rick Steves, in his book, Mediterranean Ports, reports they even gave endorsements. I can see it in neon lights, “Barbarian Bob eats at Papa’s Pizzeria.”
Looking down into the basement of the Colosseum where wild animals, props and scenery were stored.I took this photo from the opposite end of the Colosseum. It provides a perspective on what the floor might have looked like. Only about a third of the original Colosseum remains. While earthquakes have done their share of damage, much more was done by Romans taking building blocks and iron supports for use in other construction throughout Rome.We started our tour on the upper level of the Colosseum. In addition to providing views into the arena, the walkway provided views of the surrounding city and Rome’s ancient Forum area, now covered with trees. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)Peggy took this photo from the lower level looking up at the upper level. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)A closeup view of the basement. Imagine it filled with lions, hippos and giraffes.A final view of Rome’s Colosseum in the evening. I took this photo when we were seated outside a small restaurant eating the most expensive gelato I have ever eaten. Sock it to the tourists! But it was worth every euro.
Meet Jaws. I met him at Barcelona’s public market.
Barcelona’s public market, La Boqueria, was on our must-see list when we visited the city in 2015. It’s rightfully famous for its size, variety of food, tapa bars and number of tourists. Not surprisingly, Catalans have become a bit grouchy about the latter. “Buy fish, don’t take photos!” one yelled at me. Little did he know that I was helping him out. If more people featured ugly seafood in their photos of La Boqueria instead of chocolate and oranges and mushrooms, and peppers, and corn, and garlic and strawberries, and cheese, and delightful tapa bars, fewer people would visit. Heck, fewer tourists would likely come to Barcelona. Problem solved.
So think of this as my campaign to help the Catalans who are hoping that the tourist numbers don’t climb into the stratosphere again when the coronavirus ends. The slogan for the campaign is, “Barcelona: Stop and Smell the Fish— but Don’t Let Them Bite You!”
While Jaws won the contest as poster child for the campaign, Ugly was a close second.I don’t want to discriminate against other forms of seafood. This squid was hardly cute.It’s hard to qualify shrimp for the campaign, but…I’ll conclude with this photo, also a serious contender for poster child. I don’t have a clue what it is but I would be hard pressed to identify it as edible! Maybe some of the folks who follow my blog can identify it. Maybe they will even declare it is absolutely delicious!
“Curt,” Peggy called, “come here quick! There is something small moving through the grass.”
I hurried over to the window. You never know what new animal, bird, snake, lizard, etc. is going to drop by for a visit. This time it turned out to be a fawn, probably on its first venture out from wherever it had been hidden by mom. The doe had just jumped over our fence, leaving her baby behind. Peggy’s mother-instincts kicked in. No need, the fawn easily crawled through the fence.
Peggy started snapping photos. So did I but my camera was beeping at me. I’d forgotten to put the memory card back in after downloading photos. Oh well, Peggy took enough for both of us. It was our first fawn of the season.
The fawn had crawled through the fence and was looking for mom. It is one of the smallest fawns we have seen. And, of course, cute. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)I’m coming, Mom! (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)And I know right where I am going. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)Ah, there is nothing like fresh milk. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)If, I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a dozen times: Stop pulling so hard! (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)Wait, did I just hear a door opening? (Peggy and I were caught as we tried to sneak outside.)We got the ‘Leave my baby alone’ look while the fawn hid behind mom and peered out. “What are those strange two legged creatures, Mom?”
And now for the bear.
Peggy and I came out of a deep sleep at 2:30 am yesterday. Something was crashing around outside our bedroom window. “Bear!” we simultaneously exclaimed! Our neighbor Bryan had texted us on Wednesday to tell us that a large, black bear had rummaged through his garbage the night before. Apparently, it was our turn!
I jumped out of bed without getting dressed, grabbed our heavy duty Mag-lite and made a dash for our patio door. Bears can do a lot of damage in a short time. I threw the door open. Nothing. Our garbage can was my next thought. I had spotted fresh claw marks on it a couple of weeks earlier. I ran though the kitchen and threw open the back door. Again, nothing.
Then I heard a crash on our porch. Damn, the bear is going for the grill, I thought, and went charging through the kitchen, dining room and library. We had already had one Weber grill tipped over and damaged by a bear. I didn’t want to see it happen again. I threw open my third door of the night, this time shining my light on the grill. It, too, seemed fine. Then I noticed that the bird feeder was swinging back and forth and been turned into a crooked parody of itself. The bear had been playing tether ball with it! I pointed my flashlight up our driveway to see if the bear had taken off. He hadn’t.
He was standing 30 feet away staring at me. And he was big, as in BIG. I had only seen one that was larger, and given that it was standing on its hind legs with its feet and claws raised above its head growling at me, I may have exaggerated its size.
“What are you staring at Bear?” I asked. “Haven’t you ever seen a naked man before?” And then I yelled. He leisurely turned around and ambled off up our road. I prefer that my bears run.
I’m sorry I don’t have any photos for you. My mind was a bit preoccupied. He really was a magnificent creature. I suspect we will have more opportunities for photo ops. But here are three pictures for perspective. I’ll close with a final ‘cute shot of mom and baby.
This is our bird feeder after I bent it back into shape. And our back porch. The grill is just off to the right. I had come out the door and was standing on the porch. The bear was standing where I took this photo from.The sound we heard next to our bedroom window was this patio chair being moved by the bear. I’d set my ground squirrel trap earlier in the day and left some sunflower seeds under the table. Apparently, the bear really likes birdseed!And garbage. This is a close up of our garbage can and the claw marks. We will be moving the can into one of our sheds until the bear goes away. I will also take the bird feeder in each night.So I don’t leave you with a vision of a bear slashed can, here’s a final shot of mom and baby as they headed out. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
NEXT POST: I’m assuming it will be on the fabulous market in Barcelona unless the bear comes back or more fawns show up. (Grin)
My blogging friend Kelly at Compass and Camera posted photos a week or so ago that showed stained glass windows and reminded me of Gaudi’s masterpiece cathedral, Sagrada Familia. The soaring faith required to imagine and build this beautiful sanctuary in Barcelona is a reminder that faith and hope together have tremendous power, enough to build a soaring cathedral— and enough to get through the darkest night, which is a comforting thought given the troubling times we have experienced the past few years and are especially experiencing now. (These photos were taken on a visit that Peggy and I made to the Cathedral in 2015.)
The front of Sagrada Familia reflects Antoni Gaudi’s love of nature and is sometimes described as looking like a melting cake. My thoughts are more like melting ice cream cake. The church is a work in progress. The towers are the first of 14.
Barcelona arrived in the Twentieth Century with its own brand of Art Nouveau, Modernisme. Combining whimsical and practical with a healthy dollop of nature, Barcelona’s Catalan artists and architects did a makeover of their city. Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926), the best known among the Modernistas, added strong religious belief to his work and became the architect of Sagrada Familia, the Church of the Holy Family.
Started in 1883, the church continues to be a work in progress today. Like the great cathedrals of the Gothic and Renaissance periods, it is a work of generations, and like the great cathedrals of Europe, is a masterpiece of art and architecture. Peggy, our traveling companions, and I walked inside and could only stare in awe at the beauty. I’ve selected the photos for this blog to provide a sense of why.
Just walking around the church is inspiring. This sculpture found outside is one of many included in Joseph Marin Subirach’s story of Christ’s death. I found the modern sculptures both powerful and moving. You can feel the grief here.To get a true feeling for Sagrada Familia, you have to go inside, however. The columns in the church range from 36 to 72 feet tall. The ceiling vault reaches a height of 200 feet. The final tower, which will rest on the beams and ceiling, will soar 560 feet into the air, making it the tallest church steeple in the world.Another view looking up. I had a sense of a white bird soaring over and looking down.This picture provide a sense of the soaring columns. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)Stained glass windows adorn the great cathedrals of Europe and Sagrada Familia has its share of beauties as this photo and the following three show.Photo by Peggy Mekemson.Photo by Peggy Mekemson.Photo by Peggy Mekemson.Every inch of the cathedral shows close attention to detail and creativity, like this wall.I really like this photo by Peggy that combines the pipes of an organ with the stained glass windows. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)The crucifix hanging above the altar serves as a symbol that brings Christians together from throughout the world, but the Cathedral speaks to me of more than religious faith. It speaks to a faith in humanity that goes beyond religious creed, race, nationality, sex, or any of the other differences that tear us apart and are exploited by self-serving, unscrupulous demagogues to a belief/hope that working together we can build— have to build— a better world for our children, grandchildren, and future generations. And for ourselves. Let’s make the world great.I’ll close today with a final photo of Sagrada Familia.
It’s time for more nature tales brought to you by the wild animals that live on our property and entertain us continually by doing what comes naturally.
Let’s start with a very pregnant Floppy. This is what she looked like last week when she was grabbing a snack. I’d meant to catch her with a mouth full of oak leaves, but she’s fast when it comes to scarfing down food. It seems that the twigs sticking out of her mouth were dessert. She waddled off searching for more.Here she is on Monday! Notice the difference! Our very pregnant deer had become svelte! She has had her fawn, or fawns. Don’t expect to see it for a couple of weeks, however. It is carefully hidden away in our canyon. Babies are born virtually odor-free so predators can’t smell them. Ask a coyote. They also know how to freeze in place. I’ll do one of those ‘cute’ posts if and when Floppy brings her fawn or twins around.
Our property is a regular herpetarium. We have wall to wall lizards ranging in size from tiny babies that have hit the ground running up to foot-long alligator lizards that can scare the heck out of you. We also have skinks, beautifully iridescent lizards with bright blue tails.
Fence lizards dominate, however. You can’t go outside without seeing dozens at this time of the year. They are fun to watch as they scamper across our yard in search of bugs. And they are even more entertaining when they try to impress another lizard by doing push-ups and puffing up their bodies to almost twice their normal size.
They are also quite curious. Or at least they seem to be. Anytime I am outside working around the house, they show up and watch me, often choosing a high perch for a better view. If I do something that chases them away, they’re back in a minute or two. The fellow below came out to watch me when I was building a brick planter around our yellow rose bush earlier this week.
I was curious about the white spot on the back of its head and did some research. I learned that it is called the parietal or third eye. While the lizard can’t ‘see’ out of the eye, it is light sensitive. When a hawk flies over, it skedaddles! A kid’s hand poised to catch it has the same result. The eye is connected to the pineal gland and helps control circadian and seasonal rhythms.
I think we have seen all of one wren since Peggy and I moved here. But a couple of weeks ago, a pair showed up looking for a home. It was pretty funny. The male wren, it turns out, is responsible for house hunting and nest building. The location may be a tree cavity, a birdhouse, a drain pipe, etc. Even an old shoe will do in a pinch. Once he finds what he considers the ideal site, he fills it with twigs and invites his lady love over to check it out. She’s the one that makes the ultimate decision about his nest finding abilities. I can see where she might be concerned if he has picked an old shoe. The poor guy may find himself building 3 or 4 nests before she finally says yes.
I think ours must have been on number four— or maybe five— when he showed her our bird house. He seemed very eager, or maybe he was nervous, like a real estate agent about to close or lose a big sale. He talked and talked and talked. Finally, she hopped in to take a look. And immediately hopped out with a feather in her mouth that she spit out. I could almost hear the discussion. “You are trying to sell me a used house!” “No, no sweetie. Think of it as an already feathered nest.” Whatever he said, she went back inside and came out with another feather. This time she ate it! Apparently that meant yes because the little guy started hopping around and talking twice as fast. Then he zoomed off to pick up some grass to add to the nest. Soon, they were both busy at work.
Here’s the new home. BTW, the fence you can see in the background was what the fox was climbing up.The female pokes her head out to take a break from sitting on the eggs.And the male drops by to visit with a typical wren tail flip. Soon he will be busy helping with feeding responsibilities.Peggy put this unique bird house on top of one of the 10-foots posts surrounding our garden. She thought of it as a decoration…But a pair of tree swallows thought otherwise! Now, Peggy is scolded any time she works in her garden. I could watch these birds forever as they perform their incredible aerial acrobatics. They arrive here in March and will leave once their babies can fly. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
I’ll close today with a few more photos of the deer herd. Do you remember when I did the post on young buck and his fearless leaps over a wall and a fence to get at our honeysuckle and native shrub garden? Well, it turns out he isn’t so young…
You have to have some years behind you to grow a rack like this. He will be at least a three pointer and possibly a four pointer. If you have ever had the feeling that someone or something is watching you…Here he is under the madrone in our backyard. His antlers will be in velvet and continue to grow for at least a couple more months. The rounded knobs suggest that each of the top four antlers may split again. If so, he could be a five pointer!The bucks hang out together at this time of the year. While the older fellow stretched out beneath the madrone, the kid stopped for a drink of water in the bird bath. He also had a message… Be sure stop and smell the flowers.
A while back I posted a photo essay on Pompeii that many of you would have seen. This post will include some of those photos but the focus will be on the Roman gods (adopted and adapted from Greek gods) that were a daily part of Pompeian life before Mt. Vesuvius blew its top. Once again, I am traveling back in time and pulling up a post from my archives for my armchair travel series in the time of Covid-19.
I liked this view of the Temple of Jupiter in Pompeii with its stair-step columns. A massive earthquake had destroyed the temple in 62 AD. It was still being rebuilt in 79 AD when Mt. Vesuvius erupted.
It is impossible to visit the ancient cities of the Mediterranean without thinking about the importance of the all-too-human early gods.
Back before they were relegated to the status of myths, they were as alive and real to the people as say Christ might be to today’s faithful Christians. A primary difference was their misbehavior. They became involved in feuds, had affairs, became jealous, drank too much, etc. Other than the fact they were immortal and extremely powerful, they might be your neighbor.
If they liked you, they could be your best buddy. Make you healthy, wealthy and wise. But if they disliked you, watch out! They were like the little girl who had a little curl right in the middle of her forehead. “When she was good, she was very, very good, but when she was bad, she was horrid.” (From a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)
So it isn’t surprising that the ancient folks of the Mediterranean spent a great deal of energy and money trying to stay on the good side of their gods. Some of the world’s greatest art was created in their honor and whole herds of castrated animals were sacrificed and cooked to keep them smiling. Interestingly, the smoke from the cooking meat seemed to satisfy the gods. Mere mortals consumed the flesh. As the old saying goes, “Man is nothing, if not practical.”
The Romans, who lacked Greek creativity, obtained their gods wholesale from Greece, only changing their names to sound more Latin. Zeus with his fiery lightning bolt became Jupiter, his wife/sister Hera, became Juno, and his daughter Athena, who sprang fully armed from his head and gave him a headache, became Minerva. And of course there was a whole pantheon of other gods.
Each of these gods had a role to play. If you wanted to kick someone’s tail, Zeus was your ‘man.’ Juno could help you through a difficult childbirth. If you needed more wisdom, and who among us doesn’t, Minerva was there for you. There was no one stop shopping like today’s church goers enjoy.
The gods did gain more power as they aged, however. They took on the roles, and sometimes personalities, of the earlier gods they replaced. Juno, for example, was responsible for both “loosening a bride’s girdle” and protecting the money of the Roman Empire. In her latter role she was the patron Goddess of the Royal Mint.
Mt. Vesuvius provides the background for this photo of Jupiter’s Temple, which he shared with Juno and Minerva. The arch on the left was built to honor the Roman Emperor Tiberius (14-37 AD) (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
This view of the right side of Jupiter’s Temple in Pompeii shows the arch of the Roman Emperor Nero, known for fiddling around while Rome burned. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
A final photo of Jupiter’s Temple, which I liked because of the massive, almost brooding feel, it gave to the columns.
Jupiter, Juno and Minerva were worshipped as a triad in both Pompeii and Rome. Possibly it saved time and money. There was also a temple to Mercury in Pompeii. His earlier persona had been that of the super fast Greek God Hermes who carried messages for the gods and had wings on his feet. He was also the god of getting rich, luck, trickery and thievery. Hmmm. Sometimes a fast get-a-way is critical.
Dark clouds hover above Apollo’s Temple caught in the sunlight. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
I’ll close today with this fun perspective by Peggy. Apollo seems to reach out and grasp one of the columns in his temple. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
Wandering through Time and Place 