This time in Rome, we opted to upgrade our originally reserved tent, into a lovely little cabin. Whereas we are now paying more, we have a kitchen with a fridge, so our saving instead of having to buy every meal. Cereal for brekky, packed sandwiches for lunch (no vegimite for me!!) and proper home cooked meals (tacos and stir-fry in Rome???...why not!). Our first day, we were up and out early to check out the Colosseum. A ride on the graffiti-covered subway. Which surprisingly, unlike almost every other city we've been in, do not give instructions in English in addition to their language. I would have thought that with the number of tourists here, they definitely would. As soon as we got out of the subway stop, BOOM, there was the ginormous remains of the Colosseum. It was so big inside, and yet so similar to any large stadium that you would walk through today. After touring through there, we walked down to the Pantheon. This building, although people have tried several times before, cannot be replicated today. It blows my mind that people so many years ago was able to create something that cannot be done with everything we have today. The oculus at the top (the hole that lets the light in) is 142 feet in diameter, and had to be made perfectly in order for it to survive it's almost 2,000 years. It's the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. We then stopped at Trevi Fountain, and each threw a coin in to ensure our return to Rome. Marnie actually threw in two, which means she's coming back to Italy, and falling in love there. Then, we headed to the Spanish Step's and ate our picnic lunch before heading to our meeting spot of our Rome Tour. If you go to Rome, I would really recommend this tour company. The founders of this company are an American and a Canadian, and it's been running for about 3 years now. They know their Roman history really well, and also compare past Roman Rulers and events, to modern ones that would be familiar to us now. Our tour guide was passionate and knowledgable about Rome's history, funny and entertaining. He was great, and re-hearing all of these stories that I'm sure I've heard before, everything seemed so much more real being in the city and around the buildings that they were talking about. Exhausted by the end of the day, as per usual!
The following day, we used the same tour company and took a tour of The Vatican. After we realized that leaving later meant a longer public transit wait, we decided to try to get a cab, but all lines were long. Finally, we were able to get one, and thanks to the craziness that is Italian drivers, and that our tour guide waited an extra long time for everyone to get there, we made it! Another great tour with stories that didn't feel like a painful history class. The highlight of the Vatican, of course, was the Sistine Chapel. The chapel is HUGE!!!! I can't imagine anyone painting this, so much!! The creation with God and Adam, is only one part of the ceiling. Another awesome part, is a portrait of Jonas and whale. It's painted on an arched part of the ceiling, but you would never be able to tell, with Michelangelo's genius ability. We also toured through St. Peter's Cathedral and walked around the square before heading back and getting things organized for our departure!
We had our last supper together as a little traveling family. Got all of our things organized and then played Uno around the kitchen table for a bit. An early departure in the morning. Marnie and Sally to Switzerland, and me back to the states!
The following day, we used the same tour company and took a tour of The Vatican. After we realized that leaving later meant a longer public transit wait, we decided to try to get a cab, but all lines were long. Finally, we were able to get one, and thanks to the craziness that is Italian drivers, and that our tour guide waited an extra long time for everyone to get there, we made it! Another great tour with stories that didn't feel like a painful history class. The highlight of the Vatican, of course, was the Sistine Chapel. The chapel is HUGE!!!! I can't imagine anyone painting this, so much!! The creation with God and Adam, is only one part of the ceiling. Another awesome part, is a portrait of Jonas and whale. It's painted on an arched part of the ceiling, but you would never be able to tell, with Michelangelo's genius ability. We also toured through St. Peter's Cathedral and walked around the square before heading back and getting things organized for our departure!
We had our last supper together as a little traveling family. Got all of our things organized and then played Uno around the kitchen table for a bit. An early departure in the morning. Marnie and Sally to Switzerland, and me back to the states!
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