Bon Voyage: Rome, Italy

Our first day in Rome was a bit hectic. We got to our wonderful hostel, which was more like a hotel, and settled into our 5 person bedroom, yet again, good luck on the accommodation.

Our destination after Rome was supposed to be Naples, a port that heads to the island of Capri. However, we had heard from many people (local Italians included) that it is super sketchy and we were even given a map from our hostel owner of place we shouldn't even walk in because of how unsafe it was. SO, being the smart study abroaders that we are, we panicked and decided to not stay in Naples for 2 nights, but rather stay in Rome an extra night (making that a 3 night stay) and Capri an extra night (another 3 night stay) So with the help of my wonderful dad, we got accommodation at a nearby Marriott for our extra night in Rome, and luckily, our villa in Capri was available an extra night, saving us the hassle/danger of staying in Naples! Still making sense?

So after that madness was taken care of, we headed to lunch (pizza, surprise surprise) and then to the Colosseum! It was within walking distance of our hostel, so it was a perfect afternoon walk with some gelato and the wonderful sun shining on us. The Colosseum was not as exciting as I was anticipating. It was large and amazing, but after about 2 minutes, I was over it and wanted to see something else! So, we did what any Roman would do and took a nap, and then went and got more food (and gelato)

The second day we were hating ourselves for wasting the afternoon napping, so we hit it into high gear. We took the Roman version of the tube to Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, Altare della Patria (tomb of the unknown soldier) and the Spanish stairs. All in all, about all of Central Rome. My personal favorites were the Trevi Fountain and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The fountain lived up to every expectation I had from pictures, and was packed! We had to fight for spaces near the water for pictures and making wishes (of course, I had to make a wish and toss a coin), but it was absolutely breathtaking! The tomb of the unknown soldier was huge, and really beautiful. There is an eternal flame that burns there with guards constantly surrounding it, so they are really strict about the monument being sacred and keep tourists in line with loud whistles.

The next day, we checked out of our hostel and headed across the bridge to the other side of Rome and our hotel for the night. After a terrifying taxi ride (Italians drive like mad men) we made it to the Marriott, which conveniently had a shuttle to Vatican City, our last stop on our Rome to-do-list! We had a quick lunch and then got in line with the million other people there to get inside St. Peter's Basilica. Since its a place of worship, we had to cover our legs and shoulders (in the million degree weather) and were finally in the church. Being a Catholic, this was the ultimate experience, and getting to pray and take communion inside St. Peter's was definitely one of the most memorable things I did in Rome. After a long tour of the Cathedral, we walked through St. Peter's Square and went to the Vatican Museum. The only reason we went here is to get to the Sistine Chapel. We had to walk through tons of Catholic artifacts, paintings, and random things in order to get there, but when we did, it was breathtaking. The room was crowded and everyone was being hushed by security guards, but the painting of The Last Judgement was absolutely amazing and made me appreciate the talent of Michelangelo even more (pretty cool that I got to see 2 of his works within a week) After hours of walking, we opted for dinner in the lobby of our fancy-schmancy hotel and an early night in.

Of course, it was all over the news about the Boston Bombings, so we all watched in shock as we saw fellow Americans grieving. So, so sad.

The next morning we checked out and headed to our next destination! The history of Rome makes the city that much more amazing and enlightening. Although parts were very touristy, the beautiful monuments we saw made up for the big price tags :)

Next stop: CAPRI!