The official part of our tour ended before we could visit the Pantheon. So, our competent tour guide, Anna, pointed us in the right direction. I'm glad someone was able to understand her - she was a bit directionally challenged and would say go left when she meant right! Fortunately, Stan had a good sense of what she meant, so here we are, ambling down the narrow streets of the city. Along the way, there are lots of doors, so here's a sample of what I saw!
Finally, the Pantheon comes into view. It is an imposing building and it looks like it is very well-preserved. It's name literally means "temple of all the gods" and was meant to be inclusive of all religions. It was originally built by King Agrippa in 27BC but was destroyed by a huge fire (in Nero's time) in 80AD. It was totally rebuilt in 125AD by the Emperor Hadrian who added the text of the old inscription with Agrippa's name on it, to the new facade. It is the best preserved of all Roman buildings and perhaps the best-preserved building of its age in the world. It continued to be used throughout its history. Since the 7th century it has been used as a Christian church. It also holds the record for being the largest domed building in Rome.
As is the norm, a fountain occupies the central part of the square in front of the Pantheon.
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