When in Rome..

The Pantheon

The Spanish Steps

A few weeks ago API took us on a three-day excursion to Rome, it was amazing. When they say Rome wasn't built in a day so you can't see it all in one day, they aren't kidding. We started out with a walking tour of the city, running to the top of the Spanish Steps, making a wish in the Trevi fountain, and admiring the beautiful ancient architecture of the pantheon. There is so much history in one place it is just mind blowing. 

Our wonderful tour guide Giacomo ended the tour in the campo dei fiori, the local market, filled with fresh fruits, vegetables and handmade pastas. From there my housemates and I wondered off to St. Peter's square. Pictures and words cannot even begin to give this breathtaking church justice. Once you step foot into the square its perfection and beauty take over and you cannot help but feel lost in time. As the sun was soon setting we quickly went to get some Old Bridge gelato that is apparently the popes favorite, and now mine. I'd never had gelato until I got to Italy so I'm nowhere close to being an expert but wow, it was definitely in the top five best things I've ever eaten! Three flavors, bigger and creamier than a small at trails end--and all for 1.50 euro, almost better than the chocolate festival!

Castel Sant'Angelo

The next day was filled with more planned tours, we first checked out the Castel Sant'Angelo, which was a circular castle that overlooks all of Rome. Back in ancient times if the Vatican was attacked there was a secret passageway that the Pope could run through and stay safe in this beautiful castle. The castle had more defense mechanisms in place then I even thought possible. My favorite was the plan if attackers had breached the outside boundaries and reached the door, that didn’t mean much because above the door was a small hole which soldiers could drop large rocks onto intruders, quickly ending their plans to attack. The thought and planning that goes into each inch of every building is just astounding, no words can even explain it. From the top of the castle there was 360 degree of views of the intriguing city of Roma.

After the several photo-ops Giac took us to tour St. Peter's. I thought the outside was beautiful; I cannot even begin to explain the outstanding elegance found once you get through the crowded doors. Every inch is so delicately planned it blows my mind that a building with this much architectural and artistic beauty can even exist, and been around for centuries at that. Once I stepped inside the large doors I’m not lying when I say my breath was legitimately taken away. Even the floor has the most intricate decorations but it is nothing compared to the never-ending ceiling. I have never seen a place so stunning and divine in my entire life. The artwork that is found on every inch of the walls is just so interesting, it's almost like you can see every inch of effort, every drop of sweat and tears, and time put into each piece. The entire cathedral is truly a work of art made up of millions of separate masterpieces. What I enjoyed the most was you could truly feel the love and emotions put into the art around the church but into the entire church itself. Everything was so unique but so unified at the same time. It's fascinating to see such a impeccable structure filled with so much history and emotions, my descriptions cannot even come close to give this breathtaking church justice.

School of Athens, Raphael

From the amazement's of St. Peter's we continued to spend time in the Vatican, and we wondered over to the Vatican museum, stopping for gelato first of course! We were surprised to find no line, which was so lucky. We walked right into the museum and got right to exploring the ancient history and artwork of this captivating state of the Vatican. We admired several famous pieces of art that decorated the ceilings. It is just so unbelievable every time you see an image that is reprinted all over the place--The School of Athens for example, and then to finally be able to appreciate its beauty in person. Once we reached the Sistine chapel, it was like stepping back 500 years in time. I am so glad I watched a documentary on this monument before stepping foot inside because I would have been completely lost otherwise. It is so interesting to feel the change of atmosphere when you enter such a significant place rather than the rest of the museum. Nobody can help but be in complete awe of Michelangelo's work and attention to detail. There is a wonderful hush that hangs over the entire room reminding you of the perfection of this chapel but also to give the work the admiration and praise it deserves.

Victor Emmanuel Monument

After the museum, still on a roll we decided to walk over to the fascist monument on the other side of Rome. This white wedding cake building sticks out like a sore thumb around the famous ancient buildings and ruins. From afar you can catch a slight glimpse of the coliseum but that is an adventure for the next day. Anyways, this monument to Victor Emmanuel, the first king of unified Italy was completed in 1935, during the fascist regime. According to Giac this building outraged several locals because it tore apart the local ancient history attempting to bring the old and new together..
Our final day was reserved for the coliseum, but we had some time to kill before the tour so we figured we could try to see the Pope give one of his final public addresses. However we had to leave an hour early to make the bus in time so we just missed it...It was so intriguing to see all the signs and posters proclaiming people's love per il Papa. Since it is such a controversial topic it was nice to see that people still declared their love and admiration to the leader of the Catholic Church. It was amazing to just observe the strong emotions of all the Romans and visitors present in the square preparing themselves to witness a moment to be marked in history.
So we left in the midst of a historical blessing and made our way to the Coliseum. Seeing these true ancient ruins I felt like I had just stepped into my high school Latin textbook. This stadium is one of the coolest things I have ever seen, one of my housemates joked that humans could not have actually made this work of art it was really aliens. Seeing pictures of this place the joke does not make too much sense, but once you step through the arches it is seems impossible that this monument was built by ancient Romans. As we wondered through the several levels Giac told us all the stories of the Gladiators and the dramas that the fighting would ensue. After spending so much time learning about the ancient Romans in high school it was all coming to life in the Coliseum.

No matter how much my feet were killing after Rome, I was so glad I got the opportunity to explore this fascinating ancient city. There is no city in the world like Rome, that holds so much history but also so much mystery. I hope that one day I can go back and spend a little more time appreciating and understanding this marvelous and enchanting city.

San Pietro Square

Making a wish at the Trevi Fountain

Inside St. Peters