I must apologize for the long lapse in time in my blog postings. I just got busy and then the holidays and going back the states crept up on me before I knew it. Hopefully, over the next few weeks I can get caught up on things. Meanwhile, back to our trip to Italy in October!
After a day of driving through the Italian countryside, we finally reached our hotel in Rome. When we got settled into our hotel, we ventured out for dinner at a nearby restaurant. The evening was very pleasant and we ate a relaxing meal outside enjoying our first glimpses of Rome.
The next morning we hit the streets touring Rome. With only a couple of days, we wanted to see all that we could see. We got tickets on a tour bus that you can get on and off throughout the city and sat back and enjoyed the sights of Rome. We got off at the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Forum. The next several hours were spent touring these magnificent sights and learning a little history along the way. It's hard to believe that these structures date back to before Christ. Photos certainly don't do the Colosseum justice and once you get inside you can feel this amazing structure come to life. Think about the movies you've seen depicting the Colosseum and you find yourself looking down into it and imagining the activities that took place so long ago.
I was amazed at Palatine Hill and the Forum. I must admit I didn't know much about this part of Rome. Our tour guide did a great job of portraying the historical role of the royal palace and seat of government and pointing out various historical structures within the grounds. It sits high on a hill overlooking the city and you can look down on the remains of Circus Maximus where the Chariot races were once held. It was a beautiful day to walk these ancient grounds and get a feel for life in ancient Rome and imagine the opulence of the palace and learn about some of the most amazing and advanced architectural designs for those times.
We ate lunch at an outdoor cafe and then continued our bus tour of the city. The city is full of beautiful churches and some of the most beautiful fountains I've ever seen. It's narrow streets and old buildings somehow give you a feeling of stepping back in time. In very hard to even judge the age of some of the structures. The Romans take great pride in the preservation over renovation of its beautiful buildings and structures. We finished the day off at another outdoor cafe for dinner.
On Monday we set out for Vatican City. The whole place is amazing from the first glimpses you get on the approach to getting up close to St. Peter's Basilica, St. Peter's Square, the Vatican obelisk, the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. There is a line painted in the street marking entrance into the Vatican City. You literally walk across the line from Rome into the sovereign state of the Vatican City and Vatican control! It has it's own government, military, police, bank and even it's own post office.
We opted to take a tour which bypassed a long line of people waiting to get inside the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. Our guide said there are days when people line up early in the morning to get inside these sights but never get the opportunity. Going with a guide is certainly the way to go. We toured the Vatican Museum and saw some amazing art work, sculptures and tapestries. It's hard to believe most of these beautiful art pieces have withstood time and are so magnificently preserved. The Sistine Chapel was indescribable. Although we were inside the chapel with hundreds of other people (they seem to get the maximum amount of people through each day) nothing could take away the effect of looking up at the wonderful works of Michaelangelo.
We opted to take a tour which bypassed a long line of people waiting to get inside the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. Our guide said there are days when people line up early in the morning to get inside these sights but never get the opportunity. Going with a guide is certainly the way to go. We toured the Vatican Museum and saw some amazing art work, sculptures and tapestries. It's hard to believe most of these beautiful art pieces have withstood time and are so magnificently preserved. The Sistine Chapel was indescribable. Although we were inside the chapel with hundreds of other people (they seem to get the maximum amount of people through each day) nothing could take away the effect of looking up at the wonderful works of Michaelangelo.
After the Sistine Chapel we toured St. Peter's Basilica. Even though I'm not catholic, I couldn't help but feel the holiness of this beautiful church and the square. The inside is beautiful and it was so touching to tour the catacombs and see the final resting places for St. Peter and popes and various dignitaries. It was so interesting to hear about the precise architectural design elements that went into constructing the basilica and surrounding structures. Aside from visiting Jerusalem one day, I would have to say that being in the Vatican City had to be one of the most holiest places I've ever been in and you couldn't help but feel it's holiness and your own Christianity all around you. The rest of the day was spent seeing more of the amazing Roman architecture, the Trevi Fountain and various churches and sites around the city. We topped the day off with dinner at another wonderful outdoor cafe in Piazza Navona.
Our final day in Roman was my birthday and Joe, Pete and Sandy let me pick our excursion for the day. I decided on the Angels and Demons walking tour which follows various sights and points of interest as mentioned in Dan Brown's novel Angels and Demons. It gave us an up close and personal look at various churches, including the Pantheon and background information on artists such as Bernini while enjoying a walk through the narrow and somewhat confusing streets of Rome. Our guide informed us that a wrong turn on the narrow streets of Rome can get you lost for hours! Our tour ended at the Castel St. Angelo that sits at the edge of Vatican City. There is a passageway leading from the basilica to the castel providing the pope an escape route if needed (one of many I'm sure). From the top of the castel we were given some of the most breath-taking views of Rome.
We capped off our day by having dinner with Ashley's brother Aaron, his wife, Jeanne and their little daughter Amira at Trastevere, a popular nightspot full of restaurants and sights. They are currently living in Rome. What an adventure that must be every day!
In our short time in Italy, we saw as much as we could cram into our days and we had some amazing food and wine. Words and photos just don't begin to describe all we saw in these few days. It's just something that has to be experienced firsthand. We still came up short on things to be seen in this amazing country: Pisa, Florence, Naples, Pompeii, the Amalfi coast, the Italian countryside and wineries. That will just leave us reason to come back again someday soon. Italy certainly had much more to offer than we had days to explore.
Below is a slide show of Rome. I have to admit that some of the photos are unlabeled. After seeing as many ruins, churches and fountains as we did, I found myself struggling to remember which was which, especially when it came to the photos taken on the inside of the churches. I hope you enjoy the beauty of these amazing places! Arrivederci Roma!
Below is a slide show of Rome. I have to admit that some of the photos are unlabeled. After seeing as many ruins, churches and fountains as we did, I found myself struggling to remember which was which, especially when it came to the photos taken on the inside of the churches. I hope you enjoy the beauty of these amazing places! Arrivederci Roma!
Next stop: London in a day!
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