In Medias Res:


Coming out of the facilities at the Villa Gregorio (which were sparkling clean, and supplied with both toilet seats and paper) we head down the verdant path towards the main trail, and I remark that this is the most lovely bathroom detour I believe I've had. And then I am struck by how naturally we have moved through this charming town, drawn inevitably to the most pleasant experiences, and I realize: we are on a dérive! We've been on one all day! And there is so much more beautiful wandering still to be done.


Ab Urbe Reliqua:

My summer semester *finally* done, I was in desperate need to get out of the city for a bit. Tivoli is a day trip I'd been meaning to take since arrival, and with my lovely friend (to be called Amica until she joins the game herself) embarked on a little adventure to previously unexplored Metro stops and successfully navigated the bus station. A bit over an hour later we arrived, not knowing exactly where to get off. We had no map and no real plan other than going to the Villa D'Este, which I read has pretty fountains and some sort of hydro-powered organ.

The first bus stop didn't look quite right, because we were expecting quaint and old, but then the next stop looked just as modern-day, and we figured the following stop would take us straight on to the next town. So we disembarked, picked the direction that felt most promising of old quaintness, and stumbled upon it:

Oh, yes, this was looking perfect.

In no hurry, we ambled along window-shopping and wandering into interesting stores. Amica liked the looks of a Persian carpet shop, so we went in and struck up a conversation (in our impeccable Italian) with the owner, Karimi. Since this was our first time in Tivoli, and Karimi has a deep love and knowledge of his town, he closed down the shop for a few minutes to walk us around and show us ancient things and give us a bit of history.



(Karimi is on the left)
He then re-opened the store (which is on the ground floor of what was once a guard tower way back in the day), rifled through his papers for a tourist map, told us to be sure to see the Villa Gregorio (waterfalls!) as well as the Villa D'Este (fountains!) , and gave us the card of the best restaurant in town after we politely declined his offer to cook us pasta in his home.

Oh, the beautiful serendipity of it all. We headed in the direction of the Villa Gregorio, and on the way felt inspired to channel our inner italianità:

(Note the cigarettes and the air of nonchalance.)

Then came a stroll through a delightful open-air market selling everything from scissors to antique globes to armoires to truffle sauce (the free sample sold me), and an amble across a little bridge overlooking several waterfalls, and there we were at the Villa Gregorio. This is not so much a villa as a valley filled with waterfalls and grottos and pretty trees. See the pictures below for everything - there are so many I'll stick with the highlights here...

Oh, beauty. Early on we saw a sign for a Sirens' Grotto, which was clearly on the agenda. But when a fork in the path came, we both felt the need to explore the waterfalls first. Have I mentioned that there were many waterfalls, all around? We wanted to some how get to the bottom and swim, so getting as close as possible to the big waterfall was the next best thing.

After the waterfall and on the way to the Sirens' Grotto there was a clearing with pedestals. So we were goddesses:


From there we found a sort of cave-like building which we went inside (it was nice and cool and musty), and eventually came to our coveted Sirens' Grotto:

Where we waited for the family with little children to leave, and then became sirens:


Finally, on the climb up to the Temple of the Sybil, we passed by Neptune's Grotto (where we were water nymphs) (these and more of our other incarnations below). I was excited that we found the path to go to the Temple, since I saw it from the bridge and wondered how one might get there. This day was really providing.

Here is the temple where we exited the Villa Gregorio, and then gorged ourselves at Karimi's recommended restaurant (though we were too shy to name-drop):

Now, we still did not know precisely where the Villa D'Este was. So, deliriously full of pasta, we headed back through town. The map gave us some help, but there were such small little streets that it just kind of pointed us in a direction. Then we turned a corner and saw the coolest sculpture ever, which was also a fountain. Success!

The actual villa part of the Villa D'Este had very lovely frescoes on every fresco-able surface, but we were in this for the fountains. We arrived just a few minutes before the organ fountain was set to go off, so that (of all the many, many, many fountains in the gardens behind the villa) was the one we sought. The organ itself was rather underwhelming - I was expecting some sort of water show, with fountains rising and falling with the music, and Amica was hoping for David Bowie to spring forth in his Labyrinth costume, so we were bound for disappointment. Nevertheless, a very nice organ. Oh, and did I mention fountains? So many! Some of which were tucked away in little underground nooks and mercifully provided coolness (it is very, very hot this time of year).

The view from the organ fountain:

This is just a bit of it. And every time we turned a corner, there was another fountain! Pegasus and Artemis with all the lactating boobs and crazy faces and scary-looking dogs with dolphins and even a wooden boat with water coming out of it, flanked by Minerva and the she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus.

We wove through the gardens, admiring the sparkly water but growing increasingly urgently thirsty. Signs promised drinking fountains, which proved to be both elusive and nonexistent. So we made our way up to the back of the villa where a pricey bar overlooked the gardens. I made the guy give us ice (it was really non-negotiable at this point), and we dragged a table into the shade. There we sat with our citrus-flavored sodas, chewing on the deliciously cold ice, and meditating on the incredibly organic and pleasant manner in which our steps and day had progressed.

This seemed like the right time to wander around in search of the bus stop. The first part of the ride back into Rome is beautiful - up in the mountains/tall hills with a landscape that looks strikingly like California: yellow grass, rolling hills, dark green trees.

On the way home I got off one Metro stop early to swing by the supermarket and get some luscious chocolate soymilk. As I walked down the street I happened to glance into the international calling store (I don't know what else to call the places you go to make international phonecalls) and caught a glimpse of dvds piled on shelves behind the counter. I stopped. I looked at the door and yes, those were posters with Shah Rukh Khan on them. Good lord, I'd found the Bollywood in Rome! It was one euro to rent and only three to buy. I bought a dvd with SIX movies on it! Oh, oh, oh the joy. The store was out of my soymilk, but its attraction had led me to something far more deeply satisfying.

(Note to Bex: This has Mujhse Dosti Karogi sans subtitles - so you can watch the ending at long last. Also Hum Tum (I cry every time) and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (I started crying at the beginning and kept right on going) and Bunti aur Babli (the audio is about 30 seconds out of synch with the video, alas).)