Rome, Italy

Although the area around the fountain is super crowded, my sister was able to get a spot right up against it.  I have the obligatory photos of her throwing her coin over her shoulder.  I have no idea why I didn't just take a video!

The Trevi Fountain was a lot bigger than I had imagined, and not what I normally think of when I picture a fountain.  Instead of having a round or oblong fountain with a sculpture rising up from the center, the Trevi Fountain is more of a semi-circle with most of its sculptural elements at the back, and a fairly large "pool" area.  The only other fountain that I have seen like this, on such a large scale (that I remember!) is at Schonbrunn Palace in Vienna.  

Of course, as I did some research, it appears there are similarly designed fountains at Versailles, but it has been such a long time since I was there, I don't remember them.  Probably they are everywhere, and the Trevi was the one that made the biggest impression.  I think this calls for a fountain tour of Europe!

Fun Facts:

• Largest fountain in Rome
• Built in 19 BC
• It gets its name from the fact that it is located at the intersection of 3 streets, which is tre vie in Italian
• It is made of travertine, the same material as the Colosseum
• Legend has it that throwing a coin over your shoulder into the fountain will ensure your return to Rome.  Throw 2 coins if you are seeking love, and 3 coins for wedding bells
• Each day, around 3,000 euros are thrown into the fountain
• The coins are collected each night and donated to a local charity that runs a program like food stamps for those Romans that need hep buying groceries
• In 2007, a vandal dumped red dye into the fountain.  Luckily, the fountain was quickly shut down and drained, so there was no lasting damage to the fountain
• The fountain was closed and refurbished between June of 2014 and November of 2015.  The restoration cost 2 million euro, and was paid for by the fashion house, Fendi