Day 98
Location 18: Rome
Feb. 6, 2023
The first day in Rome was touristically productive—my eyes, like the Romans, conquered much of the ancient city. It's like traveling through time to walk over stone and touch statues that were once walked over and touched by gladiators or emperors or Joaquin Phoenix while shooting Gladiator.
We visited the world-famous Trevi Fountain. The site is so ubiquitous that it was difficult believing this was the real one. It instead felt like an attraction at Disney or Las Vegas—maybe that's because there's a replica of the Trevi Fountain at Caesars Palace in Vegas.
We also visited the less-famous Spanish Steps. Which were more like the Selena Gomez Steps—in that they're Spanish in the name more than anything else. (Note: Selena is actually Italian and Mexican.) (Also Note: much like Selena's music, the steps were underwhelming.)
One of Rome's architectural marvels stands like Squidward in that acid-trip-inspired Spongebob episode where he breaks the space-time continuum: alone. The Pantheon has a massive dome with a permanent hole at the top. So when it rains, the Pantheon floor glistens with water. And when it's sunny, the Pantheon is flooded with sunlight.
I entered the Pantheon with my middle-school best friend, Nick Caldari. Nick's dad, Jerry Caldari, is the co-founder of a prominent New York City architectural firm, Bromley Caldari Architects, PC. The other co-founder, Scott Bromley, is well-known for designing the notorious 70s club, Studio 54, famous for its celebrity frequenters, rampant club drug use, and open sexual activity.
Unlike Bromley and Caldari, I have no architectural training. So I'm forced to rely solely on raw talent to create a miniature model of the Pantheon.
Left: The Pantheon | Right: My Pantheon