Rome

        Rome is a huge city compared to our tiny Montepulciano. We walked around 10 miles every day and I feel like I rarely saw the same stuff twice. Friday once we pulled up to the station and to the Termini, we dropped our stuff off and just went out for the day. First stop, the Coliseum. 

Stepping up and out of the metro terminal we were greeted by one of my favorite parts of the trip—-the pouring rain. I love the rain, I think it’s great and I kind of hate how now everyone always has some sort of technology on them that will get damaged so no one is willing to just run out in it. 

Granted, I had my rain jacket on me keeping my phone safe but still. It was so funny seeing everyone buying bright pastel ponchos to sport in the heavy downpour. I honestly think the pictures took in those are probably some of the best of the trip. I was also surprised to see that inside the Coliseum was not a big flat ground as I had expected, but more of  a small town of ruins. It really helps put into perspective how much has gone on inside of it, from the gladiators to shows and all the forms of entertainment once offered. I almost would have preferred a guided tour of the Coliseum as opposed to the forums next to the Coliseum. While they were cool they weren't anywhere near the scale of the Coliseum.

Saturday morning we all reluctantly pulled ourselves out of bed in order to get to Saint Peter’s Basilica before the line got too crazy. This would probably work fine with a group of 10 but I believe we’ve all adjusted to the relaxed Italian time  so by the time we made it inside of Vatican City, the line was massive. Now, I didn't want to fork over the energy and money to go up Saint Peter’s—although the view looked incredible as I saw in photos—so the girls and I hung back, opting for the church instead. I thought the Duomo of Orvieto was mesmerizing but it in no way prepared me for the beauty of Saint Peter’s. Holy wow—it was massive and every single inch of everything was covered in either gold or art or something mesmerizing. There was even a past Pope, buried within the confines of the church, kind of on display to the tourists. It’s a bit weird to say a body was on display—but he was inside a glass box against a wall, and lit up

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We then preceded to do a walking tour of the Vatican Museum. I may not be the biggest art fan in the world but there was so much incredible art inside that museum. I would have been happy spending all day there, looking at the paintings and sculptures everywhere. I was amazed to see certain pieces like ‘The Last Supper’—a painting I would never in my life have expected to see in person. We went through hallways and hallways of intricate marble statues, it’s almost unbelievable how many statues and statue fragments we saw. There were works by famous artists like Michelangelo, but also a lot of incredible impressive pieces without an artist or description with them—all of which could be considered masterpieces. I cannot fathom how difficult it must be to carve a creation out of stone because if you mess up and take too much off, the entire piece is ruined. The Sistine Chapel was beautiful all on it’s own. It’s so incredible that you’re not allowed to take any photos of it (everyone did) or even talk inside of it. 

Sunday was out last day in Rome and luckily we got to take it easy. The Spanish Steps was the final destination and while the 3o minute walk is horrible, it was definitely worth it too see more of the city. The Spanish Steps is this large staircase which stand in front of the equivalence of Rodeo Drive in Rome. In the area beyond the steps lie stores that I could only dream of affording—like 3 separate Louis Vuitton stores, as well as multiple Dior’s, Gucci, Prada, ect. Some girls has their eyes set on authentic Italian bags, bought in Italian at these Italian designer’s stores, but I cant even fathom spending so much on a bag. 

        So instead of shopping Yuval and I decided to meander away over to the Trevi Fountain, which we had yet to see. We made our wishes and tossed our coins into the fountain and I got to relive my childhood a little bit—by feeling like I was Lizzie McGuire on her middle school graduation trip. 

While Rome may have been one of the most exhausting weekends I’ve experienced thus far on the trip, especially following one of the most stressful weeks, I am so happy I got to go. I love our tiny Monte P, but the big city vibe was so comforting to experience. This only makes me more excited for Florence and Sienna and our future experiences to come.