ROMA - Part 2

ROMA! ROMA! ROMA! We woke up at a decent hour, I think 7:30 and got ready. We ate breakfast, and headed over to the train station hoping to find a train to Rome around the time we got there. We took the 9:30 train to Rome and got there around 11:15. Jerica had her travel book and everything planned out that she wanted to see. It was a lot to see and a lot of walking, but we got most of it in. First stop, Roman Forum. We didn’t go inside, we just looked at it and took pictures from the sidewalk. They were so impressed, but had wished that they knew what they were looking at, knew some sort of history. Then we went to the Coliseum. We were bombarded by tour guides. One guy was so persistent, he was annoying! We told him we didn’t want to hear what he had to say and he said, “Well I’m going to tell you anyways.” God, I wanted to punch him in the face. We had too much to do and see in one day to do a two hour tour. No thank you.


We walked to the Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon from there, but on our way we stopped at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (also known as the “Wedding Cake”) and took some pictures. We ate lunch at a little café on a street near the Trevi. Pizza and calzones. We saw an undercover cop looking for guys selling fake designer bags. The Trevi Fountain was packed with people, but we found a little spot on the side to sit at and take pictures. I had already been there, so I gave the three of them coins to throw in the fountain and took pictures of them. Jer wanted to get gelato, so we got some for our walk to the Pantheon.
When we got to the Pantheon, Jer was stopped by a guard working there and wouldn’t let her in because she had the gelato cone. We all went inside while she looked for a trash can. She’s missing for like five minutes and when she comes strolling in she told us that she couldn’t find a trash can and had to shove the whole cone in her mouth. Funniest thing I had heard the whole trip so far. We walked around inside, looked at the tombs, and the whole time my dad was just so impressed by the architecture. I taught them “Hands Up!” in the Pantheon, too. =)




On our way to St. Peter’s Basilica, we found a sports bar COVERED in Steelers memorabilia. We couldn’t believe it! We’re in Italy, in Rome, and we found Steeles gear. The bar was closed, but the owner let us take pictures of it inside and we got pictures of our reflections in the door, because the door had Steelers stickers all over it.
By this time, Carly and Jer’s feet were hurting. They were complaining of swollen feet. Carly’s hurt so bad she was walking shoe-less on the way to St. Peter’s! I got a picture of it, to document it! Haha. We made it to the church and everyone’s breath was taken away. They couldn’t believe how immaculate this church was! I told them the story behind it and the symbolism of the gold and silver keys. Most of the inside was blocked off though because of Easter. There was mass going on. We stood inside for a while, just taking it all in. I had already seen it, but I was so moved, just like I was the first time.


I was hoping to show them the Vatican so they could see the Sistine Chapel. I didn’t know where to enter though. I found two Vatican guards and asked them where the entrance was and they said “Here, but it’s private property.” I was so confused! I was inside it already with the school, and I told them that. I was like, “How do I go see the Sistine Chapel?” They probably thought I was the stupidest American ever. One of the guards had to get out his map and show me the overview of the Vatican property and I found where it said, “Sistine Chapel” and next to it was the “Vatican Museum.” I was like, “How do I get there?” They said, “You can’t. It’s closed.” It closed at 4:00 and it was 4:30. I was so upset. That was the one thing we didn’t get to see that day.
Last stop, Spanish Steps. I hadn’t been to them yet. We took a taxi and thought we were going to die on our way there. The taxi driver was CRAZY! He almost hit a woman with a stroller. When we got there I was in shock. I had never seen so many people, and they were all just sitting on the steps. We sat in the sun for a while, listened to a guy, who was trying to sound like Enrique, play guitar, talked to some locals, then walked back to the train station. We got lost on the way and had to ask a couple people how to get there, but made it in time, after a REALLY long walk.


By the time we got home it was about 9:30. I had to still go to my apartment and get clothes for the week. So Jer and Carly went back to the hotel and went to sleep, while me and my dad went to Capponi. When we got back to the hotel we went straight to sleep. We were exhausted after such a long day!