Okay this really is pushing the "around Roma" thing because Tivoli is its own city, but its still the most popular daytrip destination from Roma. And I went. It really cheap too, just 20 minutes by bus for like 2 Euro each way and they don't even check the tickets anyways. Now that I think about it my memory from Tivoli is kinda hazy except for the gardens of Villa D'este, or Summer Villa. I have 143 pictures from Tivoli so I'll just choose the best ones like always (a lot of the pictures are just multiples of the same stuff anyways). I'm surprised now that I got that many pictures; I had mastered using my camera by then, and this was mid November so pretty much like 2 or 3 weeks until the program ended.
Basically when I got there I went straight to Villa D'este because after a short walk it is close to the main city center square area, and I don't remember going to anything else so that had to be the only place. Only later when I read a tour book did it say to just rush through the actual Villa and stay for the magnificent gardens. I took my time through the rooms of the Villa and I might have rushed the gardens. But since I had to shell out like 14 Euro for that I was going to take my time. Well here we go (at least the gardens only)...
Well it turns out I'm actually doing this in reverse order because the palace comes before the gardens. So after I exited the palace there was a walkway and this set of stairs (and another one to the left too) that led down to the garden. Down there in a small room is a water fountain with l'acqua non potable, or non-drinkable water. The sound of running water is really pleasing so that was cool. But where to next?
When it turns out that before I went down the stairs there was a view of the garden from the horizontal pathway and I saw this. What mysteries await us in the gardens? Is it like Alice in Wonderland? Is it filled with profound surprises and mystical sights? There's only one way to find out...
Well when you go to the left of the horizontal pathway that exits the palace you get this view from a small cafe area. There is a partial garden down there, and remember where that is because we might visit it again. But now onto this mysterious garden, which is one of the most luxurious and beautiful gardens in all of Italia...
Here's a nice little fountain that barely has any water in it. I was expecting more than this even though it is a mosaic, which is kinda cool. But is that all there is to it? Looks can be deceiving at first...
Now THIS is the actual fountain after I walked up to it. From the the downstairs view it looks like...
BAM!!! (a la Emeril). Its pretty huge but not even the nicest fountain here. I sat in the rim too; its pretty cool.
Now downstairs is another horizontal pathway that connects the two sides of the garden. this one has water on all different levels, which is something you don't see everyday.
The thing with this blogger program is that they updated it so the big pictures above are from the new version and the smaller pictures below and on previous blogs are from the old program, but it won't allow you to change the old ones with their maximum size below to the new ones with the larger sizes. So thats why all the pictures are now smaller. Oh, and this is another fountain, more specifically the fontana di Tivoli, or Tivoli Fountain itself. Kinda big and kinda important, and really well done especially since the green with the slits behind them is a room that goes around and behind the fountain. The fountain was built between 1566 and 1570 and designed by Pirro Ligorio. Its part of the larger network of fountains in this garden that metaphorically represents the nearby landscape. How exactly? Practice your Italiano and go ask Pirro, although he might be dead by now...
This is another picture I took of the fountain that looks cool with the foliage as a foreground. With all these pictures you naturally try different things at least when you're taking tourist pictures of stuff and not of friends. According to the sign on the statue "The structure consists of a large oval pool housed in an ample exhedra with arches and niches in which ten statues of nymphs in peperino support vases from which jets of water escape". I couldn't have said it better myself.
Well how did this picture come about you might say. It doesn't look like anything shown previously. Well you're right then. Let's see where this comes from...
And what's this? Is it related to the previous picture? As with many things here, you have to look at it from a far angle and see it from more than one story...
Now this impressed me. And you can see the mini towers right next to the large water columns shooting up. Well when you go there on a sunny day in November 2009 you get these pics upcoming (no need to caption the upcoming pictures because that would ruin the pictures)...
And here we go, like a ride at Magic Mountain...
And when you go upstairs to the top of the fountain there's a room with as shell thing that is its own water fountain. Quite a peaceful and tranquil sound in a secluded room. And a cool picture too...
And while I was walking there was a nice view back of the palace, with some fruit in the foreground...
This is the last set of fountains all the way to the left where the path earlier led to and where it looks out at the landscape. This one represented how the Tiber goes into Rome or something like that. I really don't remember but I think the pathway with the different levels of water leads is the Tiber River leading to Roma, or this garden. I think...
Well here it is complete with a headless statue too. You don't see this in your backyard in a family barbecue.
And here is some ship thing that has been turned into a fountain. Shiver me timbers...
And this is the pathway that leads to the view of the landscape. Not bad for a standard run-of-the-mill garden...
Well thats all for Tivoli this post. The sun setting means its time to go...
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