Rome was amazing. 4 days of nonstop sightseeing, some of the best pizza and pasta I have ever had if not THE BEST, and 410 pictures of pretty much everything I saw.
I was looking at the pictures and I don't even know where to begin and what to include and not include but here is most of what I did, or at least the highlights
I just went with Jourdan but I knew of another girl from my IES who was going to be there, Ruthie, who we met up with, and another friend from Barcelona who we didn't end up seeing. Jourdan also had a friend studying in Florence who came to Rome for the weekend and met up with us.
To start the trip we had to take the nitbus to the airport at 3:30 in the morning. We had a very easy trip and got there around 9. Just for our arrival, the public transportation of Rome decided to go on strike on Friday so we were kind of stuck. With all of our stuff (not that much) and a map, we decided what to do for the day before taking a cab to our hotel. We basically just divided the map into 4 sections and tried to do everything. We went to an old aquarium, Basillica di Santa Maria Maggiori, Chiese Parr. S. Maria Degli Angeli, the Spanish Steps, and some more stuff day 1 but this was the cooler stuff. Here is a picture from the piazza Espedra
After a good amount of walking around it was about 3:30 and we were exhausted. We got a cab to the hotel and relaxed for a while before going to dinner nearby at 7:00. We both got pizza and some Bruchetta that was delicious.
We got free Wifi at the hotel so we sat down and figured out what to do the next day. We decided on the Roman Forum and the area around it.
We also bought the Roma Pass. For 25 euros you get free transportation for 3 days, 2 free museums, and your 3rd museum half off. So it is a great deal. We woke up pretty early on Saturday and went to the Treme di Caracalla. These are ruins of Roman Baths. It was pretty old and falling apart but I can't even imagine what this place looked like when it was in use. Murals everywhere, high ceilings, sculptures, pillars...truly amazing. Next we went to the Roman Forum which included the Colosseum. We were there for a while and it is a very large area. I have a ton of pictures and could explain everything in detail but instead here is a picture that came out very well
Inside the Colosseum was very cool. I had always wanted to go there and we just walked around slightly following a few tour groups in English. The coolest fact that we learned was that approximately 3 million people were killed in Gladiator fights and it was active for 300 years. The 3 million number is just unimaginable and ridiculous. But the 300 years...imagine if a stadium now was in use for 300 years? I would have loved to go to the Colosseum in its prime to hear the roar of 70,000 people and see people fight to the death. What a different world.
After that we wanted to get some lunch so we went to a place that looked really good, but it turned out to be a chain restaurant. It was still really good and cheap but I would have rather not gone to a chain restaurant. I got pizza, I didn't realize that I had gotten pizza at every meal, and Jourdan tried Gnocchi for the first time. It wasn't the best but still good. Our plan for the rest of the day was to go to 2 sites on the way to the Isola Tiberina. The sites were the Vittorio Emanuele Monument
and Campidoglio, which is a very famous plaza. I really like the Emanuele monument. On the right side all of the statues are about war or fighting, etc. and all of the statues on the left are about peace and love. I thought it was a cool contrast. Most Italians hate it though because it is huge and replaced a neighborhood.
While we were on the Isola Tiberina, Jourdan got a call from his friend who studies in Florence. He took us to the Trevi Fountain and then we hung out at Campo de Fiori for a drink. We got a liter of wine and some Buffalo Mozzarella with prosciutto. Once again the food was amazing. We hung out there for a while just talking about stuff. He and Jourdan got the chance to catch up and I found out that his neighbor is one of my friends at school, Sean Upton...very random.
We were planning on going to this restaurant called Perilli near the Roman Forum but when we got there it happened to be full for the night. I somehow had a conversation with the host in Italian and he recommended a place down the street. I got Salmon with a cream sauce that turned out to be very good. After that we just went back to the hotel and planned out the next day once again. I also got a call from our friend on our program in Barcelona, Ruthie. She wanted to know what we were up to and we planned on meeting the next day
On Sunday the first place we went to was the San Giovanni in Laterano. This was the first public Catholic church in Rome and it was just as grand as you would imagine. There was a service going on so we weren't there for too long. I noticed some people talking into some pillars and realized that the sound was bouncing off of one to the other. We tried it and you could whisper and clearly hear the other person about 30 feet away.
Our next destination was to go to the Piazza del Popolo. We went to an overlook and listened to a tour guide. We found out that this is where people entered Rome when coming from the North. Martin Luther came through this plaza when he came to Rome.
After seeing that we made our way down to Piazza Navona to get some lunch. I had pesto. This might have been the best pesto that I had ever had. I can't explain it but it was that good. My mouth is watering right now just thinking about it.
We then met up with Ruthie and her friend studying in Rome Katie. They both go to IC. We got Galato and went to the Pantheon with them and planned on meeting up for dinner because they were going home and going to the Colosseum. We also went to some shop where they gave out free samples of wine, sauces, and cheese. I got some gifts there but it is a secret.
Jourdan and I went to the Castle Sant Angelo while we were waiting. There was not much there other than a good view of the city. We planned on meeting at Trastevere for dinner which is where Katie lives and is the oldest section of Rome. On our way there Jourdan and I passed a tiny hole in the wall pizzaria and felt that we had to go inside. It turned out to be some of the best pizza I have ever had. I know I have said this a lot but I really think that this food is some of the best food I had ever eaten. We also took a picture with the chef
We met up with the girls for dinner and Katie took us to her favorite place. I forget the name but we got a liter of wine for the table, a fried artichoke (roman specialty), and some Gnocci. Once again the food blew me away.
To top it off, after dinner we went out for a chocolate shot.
It was a chocolate cup with Whisky, Bailys, whipped cream, and chocolate flakes on top. It was also called the one night stand in Italian. Some of the other shots were called the 69, the G spot, and the orgasm. It was also a book store which was a very interesting mix. We just went back to the hotel and caught the last metro at 11:15.
In the morning we woke up a little later and had reservations for the Vatican Museum at 11:30. The Vatican was pretty mind blowing. Then we made it to the Sistine Chapel. They didn't allow photos but I managed to get this one
This room was just so amazing. My favorite part was the creation of the world in 7 days. There was a picture of each day and the most famous one pictured here is when God made man.
We wanted to go to St. Peters Cathedral but there was a huge line and we also wanted to go to the Da Vinci Museum before we left. The Da Vinci Museum was small and really cool because you could play with everything. It was very hands on and we saw everything in about 30 minutes.
We also wanted to make our way back to the Trevi Fountain for some more pictures so we went there and then went to get a last bite to eat before taking the bus back to the airport
After such a great weekend in Rome, our trip back was awful. We had to take a 45 minute bus to the airport but the bus company had the crappiest system and we had to wait for a while and then rush to get onto the bus. We left Rome at 6:10. Then we got to the airport and had to wait in a long line to check in, and then the long security line. For some reason you couldn't actually go to the seating until your gate was called so there are just hundreds of people sitting on the ground and waiting. Finally at 9:30 we went through the gate and took off around 10:10. We wanted to take the train home from the airport but the last one was at 11:30 and we landed at 11:50 so we had to take the nitbus home which took an hour and a half. I finally went to sleep at 2 in the morning and had to wake up at 8 for class.
I didn't let a bad ending ruin my trip though. Rome was incredible and there is just way too much to do. I feel like you could spend a week there and not get bored. I will miss the amazing Italian food but luckily my food is great here. We also have a German student who just moved into our home stay, but she is only here for 1 week.
So long Rome, so long saying, and maybe we will meet again some day. Chao!!
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