Roman Holiday - Biking on Appian Way

Our Roman holiday last November was more than churches, ruins, we also went biking, outdoor, on the Appian Way, on the last full day Rome. 

The Appian Way (Via Appia) is one of the earliest and most strategic Roman roads, built starting in 312 BC by Appius Claudius Caecus to connect Rome to Brindisi. It was designated as UNESCO World Heritage site. Today, at least portion of it near Rome serves as a park, an open air museum and bike trail.

After visiting the Forum at Rome, we took a bus from city center to the outskirt of Rome, and rented Bikes at Appian Way Tours & Bike Rental. I rented an electric bike, the rest of the group, mountain bikes. In total we biked about 2.3 hours for 10 miles (16km), including stops at a Castle, ruins, and waiting for a herd of goats to cross the trail,

Right out of the rental shop, there is a long uphill road - Lily did not gain initial speed when entering this section, she had to push the bike up. I, on the other hand, with the assistance from the electric motor, had no problems, easily passing everyone

Lily had to push the bike up 

Mausoleum of Maxentius

Passing through the regional Appian Way park, the first stop was, Mausoleum of Maxentius,  an open field with some ruins in it. We snapped a couple pictures and moved on. The trail then, becomes cobble stone paved, uneven, but not too bad. The second stop was Mausoleum of Cecilia Metella,  which is a Cylindrical-shaped mausoleum for a Roman consul's daughter decorated with a marble frieze. We got off our bikes, and paid for the entrance to go inside to take a look.

There is continuous playing a documentary in the basement of the tower. The daughter in the documentary told her story in the documentary. We then looked at the other side of complex. There is a basement there, where the consul's tomb is, and a documentary is playing continuously as well. It is the consul to tell his story, how he rose up in the rank, became top official for the area, and his eventual demise.

We also watched a VR movie about the history of the building complex, and Appian Way.

I don't remember any details.

stop for a museum

Our third stop was another ruin, we planed to visited. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovation,

looking inside through a bar wire fence

Beyond that point, the trail (road) becomes very rough, the fillers between cobble stones were washed away, the surface is so bumpy, we avoided the roadway, and biked on the walk path formed on either side of the bumpy road. 

By now, we were in rural area, open land on both side of the Appian way, trees, meadows, and some farmland.  When road surface was more manageable, at one point,  we were stopped by a herd of goats crossing the road. This was a welcome break for me, a change of activity from cycling to watching, from active pedaling to stand still.

When we reached 5 mile distance, we decided to turn around, in order to return the bikes before the rental shop closes. Right then I heard pleasant bird chirps, I looked and looked, finally spotted the small bird on a stump, it was an European Robin!

European Robin

Rough trail, open space, fresh air, and wildlife, it was a respite from staled air, mummies, tombs in the churches and ruins.