When in Rome …

Our final stop in our Italian adventure was to the Eternal City, Rome. Although it got off to a rough start trying to find our way to the correct bus and finding our way to our hotel, we had three wonderful days in Rome. Rome definitely has a lot to offer over 2000 years plus of history. It’s a grand city, but definitely walkable and you’ll be able to navigate your way around the city in no time.

Day One: When in Rome

We decided the our first day in Rome would be dedicated to the Roman history. Our first stop was the to Colosseum, of course. Note: even if you buy tickets ahead of time, you’re still going to be standing in line for a while to enter the Colosseum. Yay security checks. There’s also people standing around asking you to do a tour with them. I think it would probably be worth it if you had enough money to spend, but we didn’t feel like spending the extra money.

It almost doesn’t feel real when you first see it. We’ve all seen the pictures so many times and it’s honestly hard to believe that it’s been standing for almost 2000 years. Here in Tarragona, we have a Roman amphitheater, and trust me, it’s in nowhere good as condition as the one in Rome. It’s nearly perfect except for some places at the top where treasure hunters have looted the stones. It’s hard to describe exactly how the Colosseum can make you feel. You think about all the gladiator fights and naval battles that happened there, how people died, how people were entertained. It’s what we’ve all seen in movies and read in history books, but when you’re there, you think “Wow! This was actual real life!”

With your purchase of a ticket to the Colosseum, you also get entrance to the Roman Forum (which also puts the Roman Forum in Tarragona to shame). The Roman Forum is where every day life happened in ancient Rome. There are houses, temples, columns … it’s basically what you imagine a Roman museum to look like. This is actually the burial site for Julius Caesar as well, which I didn’t know until later (because Yanna thought I heard the random tour guide). His grave is actually just a big pile of rocks with some flowers resting on top of it. Although why people would put flowers on top of his rock when he was a dictator is beyond me …

Right next to the Forum (and in the same site) is the Palatine Hill, where the rich people of ancient Rome held residence. It’s a very beautiful site and you can get some very good pictures overlooking the Forum and the Colosseum. If you have time, it would be a great place to have a picnic! It is a bit of a hike and we weren’t sure if we were climbing the right direction and we got lost coming back down, but it was spectacular. Plus, the weather went from being cold in the morning to warming up and being sunny just then.

After our ancient Roman tour and eating a delicious meal (more on that later), we went to the Capitoline Museum. It is home to much Roman and Renaissance art. There were actually some things there that I had learned about in my GART 100 class from college, like the Colossus. The most famous thing there, though, is the statue of Romulus and Remus suckling from the mother wolf. There is also a great place where you can look out over the Roman Forum. It’s a rather small museum, comparatively, but seeing some of the famous  sculptures and artwork was worth it.

Our final ancient Roman stop was to the Pantheon. Now, my friend went to the University of Virginia where the Rotunda is modeled after the legendary structure of the Pantheon after Thomas Jefferson visited Europe and fell in love with the classical structure of the Roman era. I asked her, “So … does it remind you of UVA?” Her response, “Yeah … except old and decrepit looking.” Facepalm. Sorry, Yanz, it’s only 1900 years old! Ok yes, it is extremely old looking, but considering it dates back to 118 AD, it’s in amazing shape. One cool piece of trivia about the Pantheon is that the circle in the middle of the ceiling is not covered, so when it rains, it rains inside the church, too. For this reason, the floors are slanted to help drain away the water.

At night, after we rested up a bit, we went to the Trevi Fountain. I was hoping for my Lizzie McGuire moment where a cute Italian came up to me there, but no such luck. Well at least he couldn’t trick me into pretending to be a pop star! Even at night, the fountain is surrounded by tons of tourists. It’s in an extremely touristy area, too, where people are constantly trying to sell you something. It is a bit hard to take a picture of the entire fountain without getting any other people in your photo, but it is still an amazing site to see!

Day Two: Day Trip to a Different Country

For our second day in Rome, we decided to go to a different country … the Vatican! Yes, I do count the Vatican as one of the sixteen different countries I’ve visited. This country within a city is home to one of the most well-known men in the world, the Pope. There’s no real markings that you are entering a different country, but you walk a good while in a straight line toward Saint Peter’s Basilica.

We went to the Vatican on one of the most important holiday weekends of the year for the Catholic Church, Easter. It was actually Good Friday when we visited. The hours were altered a little bit because the Pope had to plan for mass in the afternoon, but luckily we got there in time. It’s completely free to enter the basilica, but we waited probably about an hour to go through security and enter the church. Once inside, it’s kind of just a giant chaotic mess. There are lots of tour groups, lots of selfie sticks, everyone trying to get as many pictures as they can. I would love to visit when there are less people, but I don’t know if such a time exists, other than when it’s closed to tourists. My favorite part was seeing the tomb of John Paul II because he is my favorite pope. His tomb is a favorite among many tourists since he was loved by many.

After going for lunch, we had tickets to go to the Vatican Museum. This is where all the art is, including the famous Sistine Chapel. Once again, there are people and tour groups everywhere. We splurged a little on guides. They were helpful, but there was so much information it was a little overwhelming. The museum is basically many different museums in one. There are different eras of art, there are different types of room, it’s really a lot.

Now, I’m going to say something that probably won’t have a very positive reaction, but I was a little unimpressed by the Sistine Chapel. For one, it’s packed to the brim with people. You have to be silent and you can’t take pictures. But we all know the most famous picture from the Sistine Chapel, the one where God is touching Adam’s fingers … I thought this would be the main focal piece of the artwork, but if you weren’t looking for it, you could miss it. It’s no bigger or smaller than any of the other scenes on the ceiling. The really cool thing, though, is thinking of Michelangelo painting this by hand. The ceiling is very high. I wouldn’t want to do that myself!

Anyway, the museum was still really cool. Once again, I liked the hall of maps. It showed different parts of Italy and at the end there is how people once thought Italy looked and how it looks today.

At night, we decided to try to see the Pope. We weren’t completely successful about it, though. On Good Friday, the Pope does a service by the Colosseum on the Palatine Hill with a huge cross that is burning candles. Of course, I had a feeling we probably wouldn’t be able to get very close because everyone loves the Pope, but we did slightly see a white speck from far away. It was also really cool to see the Colosseum at night. Definitely a must-see.

Day Three: A Break from Art

“If I see a single piece of art, tears will start falling from my eyes.” – actual words said by me.

Yanna and I couldn’t take any more art. We had walked everywhere in Italy (except from city to city) and we needed a little break on our last day. So Yanna did some research and we went to the Villa Medici. As the name suggests, it was once home to the Medici family. We went on a guided tour through the house, about an hour long, and saw sculptures and rooms of this house. Less art. Although, I must say, my favorite part was ogling the incredibly preppy family on the tour with us. I literally did not know that there were people THAT preppy in the world. The Villa Medici is a good place to see something off the beaten path, but still beautiful.

We also walked to the Spanish Steps. Unfortunately, the Spanish Steps were under construction when we went there, so we didn’t get a very pretty picture. The area around the Spanish Steps is super posh, with lots of designer shops and lots of money floating around. We ate lunch here that day, but I caution against that. One bottle of coke was €7 … definitely not worth it.

Our final day was much more relaxed than the previous week. We were exhausted and we had to get up early (on top of it being daylight savings time) to get to the airport on time. I think it would have been cool to see Pompeii, but we were just so incredibly tired that Pompeii will have to wait for another time.

Food

Like I mentioned in my Florence post, I don’t remember exactly what I ate. But I can recommend one place. It’s called Angelino’s and it’s near the Roman Forum. We loved it so much for lunch on our first day that we went back for dinner there on our last night. The staff are super friendly and the place is really cute. Inside it looks pretty fancy, but outside there is seating and there are lights and everything. Super cute. The food was really good and really affordable. Plus, there’s wifi. So definitely go to Angelino’s if you are in Rome!

And of course, another place we stopped twice at was Giolitti’s for gelato. You have to buy a ticket ahead of time before ordering the gelato. We went once on Thursday night and it was pretty empty, but we went again on Saturday afternoon and it was packed with people. There are two types of gelato, the normal sweet kind and then the ones that are more fruit based. I, of course, go for the sweet, normal ones. They also sell different types of pastries and chocolates. Definitely a place you have to go!

Transportation

Like I’ve been saying throughout, we walked everywhere! We walked to the Vatican, we walked to the Colosseum … everywhere! It is a bit more spaced out than Florence, but I think it was better to walk than to try to figure out the bus routes. There is a metro, but there are only two lines (the third is currently under construction) and the metro is located mostly on the edge of the city. So just put on your walking shoes and enjoy the city!

Is it clean?

There are always the rumors that Rome is dirty. I won’t say it isn’t dirty, because compared to Spain it is. The trash cans are just a plastic bag hanging from a plastic piece that fall when it gets too heavy. I saw a bird eating out of it. But it’s also not like you’re walking through a dump. It is important to always keep an eye on your things. There are lots of people asking for money. They like to hang out around banks and churches so you won’t deny them money. Just keep walking and looking forward.

What else can I see?

We probably only scratched the surface. If you love art, there are so many places you can go. We couldn’t look at any more art without crying, so there were many things we didn’t see. There are also a lot of monuments that are around the city. There is the “Altar of the Fatherland” monument on the way to the Colosseum (which also looks beautiful at night) in honor of the first king of unified Italy.

There are also a lot of churches to see. We went into a few, but I’m on church overload, so I didn’t care too much, but my friend was interested. Behind the Spanish steps there is a small church that has some interesting art. There are also many just scattered around the city.

Whatever you decide to do in Rome, you will have a good time. So just enjoy the scenery, enjoy the culture, and enjoy the food!