Rafting on the Tiber

Minor errand

A friend E arrived to stay with me, knocking on my door at 0130.  His flight had been delayed by an hour but he made good time getting off the plane onto the last bus at 0030 to Termini.

We slept in till 0900 and headed out around 1030 to the area around the Vatican City.  E had been charged with buying some religious garments and we made good progress there.

Back in Termini station, we ate at the food hall.  E loves artichokes so we had a few servings of that before returning to the room briefly.

Rafting on the Tiber

E had seen people rafting on the Tiber on a previous trip and invited me to join him.  We left the hotel around 1430 to ensure we weren’t late for the 1515 at Porta del Popolo.

We were met by Faku, a young Argentine rafting guide who had worked only in South American till now.  He walked us to the launching point under a bridge where his assistant was waiting in their tiny car, with all the equipment such as hard hats, life jackets and paddles.

We were given a briefing on paddling techniques, safety tips and what to do if we should fall out (specifically, never try to stand up but just lie and float and wait to be rescued).

On the 2h route, we passed Castel Sant’Angelo and saw the dome of St Peter in the distance.  We passed under a number of bridges along the way.

The journey time included lots of stops where we were given time to appreciate the view, learn about each sight or bridge that we passed.  We also had a snack of pizza and water.

It wasn’t exactly arduous work and the hardest part was sitting sideways for the entire trip without having a chance to straighten up or swap sides.

Towards the end, there were two rapids and we had our phones stored in a dry- bag before tackling them.

When we reached Ponte Garibaldi, the river is split into two by Tiber Island.  We took the left branch (facing somewhat south or downstream) and this is where we met our first rapid.  We crouched down towards the centre of the raft and held our paddles up when we heard the “Get down” command (which may also be “Oh my god”).

The second rapid came shortly after beside Tiber Island.  For this one, each side paddled in opposite directions, putting us into a spinning motion before the “Get down” command was issued again.

Both rapids were Grade 1.5 rapids which looked low and harmless but we still got drenched up to the shoulders.  For me, it was an excellent introduction to rafting.

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We finished just short of Ponte Sublicio where we ran the raft aground and we helped pull it up to the track where the little car was parked.  They quickly deflated it as part of the routine for taking it back for the next outing, but today we were the last ride.

We returned to the hotel to wash and dry our clothes before heading out in the evening again.

Victor Emannuel II monument

We headed out around 1900 and I let E guide me around as he had lived in Rome before.  I requested to see the Victor Emmanuel II monument, knowing that it would be good in the evening light.

We got there a tad late at around 2015 but the light was still good enough and it meant that we were able to see sunset here without waiting forever.

Much of this monument to honour the King which united Italy and also serves as a war memorial to the unknown soldier, is free of charge.  The chargeable part was to go to the top of the “wedding cake” as it is also called.

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St Ignatius of Loyola church

E loves the church of St Ignatius of Loyola and wanted to take me there, through a specific route so I could be hit by its beauty as the church was revealed suddenly coming through the alleys.  Unfortunately, I had been to the church from the outside already and the “wow” factor didn’t come.

Actually, the “wow” factor did come when we walked inside.  The church has one of the largest frescoed vaults in the world.  To me, it ranks up there as one of the most stunning.

A magnifying mirror was on hand to help visitors appreciate the ceiling but there was a queue for it.

There is also a faux dome, painted on with stereoscopic effect, but it wasn’t illuminated.

Stepping back out, E pointed out that the view of the three buildings that faced us were symmetrical.

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It was nearly 2200 and we hadn’t eaten dinner.  I didn’t want a sit-down dinner and tried to get a sandwich but the selection at the supermarket was sad, so I settled for a salad to eat back in the room.

I went to bed ASAP as I had the alarm set for 0300 as E had an early flight to catch back home.