Visiting World Wonders: The Trevi Fountain

Let’s talk about the Trevi Fountain today.

For the previous post in this series, click here.

Hi, everyone! Today’s monument is considered to be one of the most beautiful fountains in the world and I’m writing to tell you, from experience, of course, that that is most definitely the truth. Today, we are talking about my experience with the UNESCO World Heritage site, world wonder and one of the most famous fountains in the world the Fontana di Trevi, or the Trevi Fountain as it is more popularly known.

The Trevi Fountain was our first stop in the city of Rome itself, after having been to the Vatican. The Trevi fountain is one of the oldest water sources in the city of Rome, existing since at least 19 BC and has over the centuries developed into a symbol of the city of Rome itself.

While we were walking to the fountain on a hot summer’s day through a delicious smelling street (They had roadside pizza. Italy, people. Italy knows what’s up.) the first thing that I saw were the statues on the top of the Trevi fountain almost glowing under the sun. Once we reached the end of the street, the grandeur of the Trevi Fountain hit us with full force. The massive facade of the fountains, the shining white marble, the pristine blue waters tumbling over the stone, the Trevi Fountain is, in my most humble opinion, the beauty of Rome exemplified.

For me, the Trevi Fountain had a certain aura of myth and mystique, from what I read about it and saw in various movies and books and I feel like in person, that the fountain takes that aura and multiplies it manifold. From the statue of Oceanus standing in the middle in all his glory,to the two divergent horses pulling his chariot,to the arch above them,to Triton blowing his shell to signal Oceanus’ arrival,to the intricate detail on every single other sculpture that adorns the facade of the Trevi fountain the one word that comes to mind is majesty. The fact that these majestic, massive, beautiful fountains, an actual work of art have been around exactly as I see them for nearly 300 years was so mind-boggling to me; that this kind of beauty just exists and for someone, this is just something they pass every day. It is easy to say that I was completely dazzled by the shine of the white marble( and the water) at the Fontana Di Trevi.

Once, I broke a little out of my daze and looked down at the clear pool of water, the glint of the coins at the bottom of the fountain caught my eye. That’s when I remembered the coin throwing ritual associated with the Trevi fountain. I took out my Euro and turned my back and threw the coin over my left shoulder with my right hand just as I had read it should be done. Legend has it, that ensures my return to Rome. If you throw 2 coins, it means you will fall in love with a gorgeous Italian. Throw three and you’ll marry them. I threw just the one because I had other ideas about finding gorgeous Italians to fall in love with that I’ll just get to.

I threw my coin and opened my eyes and I’m disappointed to say that neither was I mistaken for an Italian pop star and nor did any Italian pop stars ask me to meet them at the Trevi fountain the next day for a magical day in Rome. With the newfound wisdom that What Dreams Are Made Of are Lies my Lizzie McGuire Movie based childhood expectations were smashed to bits and that was about as magical as my day with the Trevi fountain got.

With that, we left the fountain soon after to continue with our day out in Rome. There’s a lot I can say about the fountain, but the truth is, just about all of it has been said already. I just hope from the bottom of my heart, that the legend of the Trevi fountain is true and that the coin I threw brings me back to the beautiful city of Rome because my mythology fanatic self has not had enough of the city and I hope it happens soon.

THIS POST’S QUESTION: Have you ever been to the Trevi Fountain? Did you find your gorgeous Italian? If yes,was it the coin way or the Disney pop star doppelgänger way? Comment below with what you think about it,I’d love to hear from you!