Roman Water

 Hi everyone! So, I was planning on posting as soon as I got home . . . but there were too many pictures! There are still too many pictures, but I came up with a plan. Instead of overwhelming you all with dozens of pictures, I'm going to do a few at a time on a topic, and share some of what I learned.

For those of you who don't know, my sister and I just spent a week in Rome! It was partially research for a book character, partially inspiration for more articles, and partially, just a vacation. It was an incredible experience and I would go back in a heartbeat!

Since water is essential, I'm told, we'll start there.

All over the city, there were these old water fountains. They came in all shapes, sizes, and styles. The first one we saw, I dubbed the 'Creepy Angel Fountain', and I refused to drink from it, because I wasn't sure it was safe. By the end of the week, that was one of my favorite fountains! The 'Faceless Fountain' pictured above, is the first one I actually drank from, and is located along the Appian Way.

Even in Pompeii, on our tour, we saw some of the same style water fountains, although these ones weren't running. Speaking of Pompeii and water . . . did you know that they had lead pipes in Pompeii before the eruption of 79 A.D. ? I saw them!

And speaking of water and Pompeii . . . This is by the Bay of Naples in the Mediterranean Sea, and in the background, you can see Mt. Vesuvius.

We've all heard of the Roman aqueducts, and how some of them date back to B.C., but did you know that Rome still uses them? I'm not sure how many are still in use, but we got to see one that's still in use. The famous Trevi fountain has water supplied to it by the aqueducts built around 19 B.C. Also, some of the drinking fountains around the city are still getting water from the old aqueduct system.

Speaking of the Trevi Fountain . . . Like everything in Rome, it's perfectly balanced. What's on one side, is reflected on the other side. Except for one thing . . .

This sculptured ball is not matched on the other side. According to the story, the architect was annoyed by a shopkeeper while the Trevi Fountain was in building. It took 30 some years to complete, and the shopkeeper was constantly complaining about the noise, and the workers, and insisting that the hype was misplaced as the fountain wasn't even going to be spectacular. Last minute, the architect added this sculptured ball in such a place that it blocked the view of the fountain from that shop. To this day, if you're standing by that shop, you can't see the Trevi Fountain.

And here's the "Creepy Angel", fountain that I actually learned to like! That fresh spring water is great!

They also had another style, pictured above, where if you want to drink from the fountain instead of filling a bottle, you just plug the bottom hole, and water shoots out the top like an American water fountain.

We walked by this little angel a lot, so it became a regular stopping spot.

And that's the water of Rome!