Tuesday 24 June 2008

Final Thoughts on Roman Fountains

One of the major things that I am going to miss about Rome is the public fountains. In a city where everything is extremely expensive, the Roman fountains have provided a convienent method of free hyrdration. There are fountains located all over the city, and no matter where you are, you aren't far from a fresh drink. Before coming to Rome, I was under the impression that the water would be unsanitary, and you would have to buy bottled water. This pre impression couldn't have been any further from the truth. The water that I have been drinking since coming to Rome, has been the purest water i've ever drank in my life. I love that there are no chemicals added to the water that comes from the fountains. The water back home in State College doesn't even taste like water it has so many chemicals in it. Not only am I going to miss the public drinking fountains, I am also going to miss the numerous decorative fountains located all over Rome. Many of them have been in place for hundreds of years. It is impossible to escape history in this city. Visitors, and residence of Rome are reminded every day when they take a drink, that their thirst is quenched by aqueducts built thousands of years ago. This fact fascinates me when I considering the places i've lived in the States weren't even founded 300 years ago, let alone their water systems. I'll think of Rome everytime I drink tap water back home, you can be sure of it.

images courtesy of (www.ancientsculpturegallery.com)

2 comments:

Jacmix said...

Roman Fountains..wow...hope i can see fountain in my city....

Whitney Pollett said...

That's fascinating!! These fountains are incredible. Rome is an amazing place huh.

And thank you for sharing your experience! I'm doing research on Rome and your personal experiences are so much better than any tourist site.