Roma

I have gotten a little side-tracked with the final recap of our Italy trip.  We went to Florence and then the Cinque Terre….and then got sidetracked with other things.  But I forgot Rome.  The third and final stop of our trip. 

We arrived by train from the Cinque Terre and took a taxi to our apartment in the Trastevere neighborhood.  Which was a less touristy portion of Rome. 

Our apartment was the smaller green door right at street level-

And then this street was our home base-

We had amazing pizza that night and then woke up the next morning to walk to the Coliseum and the Roman Forum.

It was amazing to think about the history and just how old it was.  And made me want to see the Gladiator again.  And again it was sweltering but by this point we were used to it.  Well as used to it as you can be.

The Pantheon was also awe inspiring.  And it was a free which was bonus.

In case you were wondering what the “crowds of summer” look like in Italy….this was the scene at the Trevi fountain.  Needless to say we did not throw a coin.  I wonder how many pickpockets were in that crowd….

Just walking around the city was gorgeous.

But the most amazing part of Rome had to be the Vatican.

Finding the entrance to the Vatican museum turned out to be slightly difficult…good thing I had my navigator with me.  We should have just looked for the ginormous line of people waiting in the sweltering heat.  The extra Euros we spent on a entrance time were priceless.  In case you are questioning the pants choice when it was 110 outside….St. Peter’s has a strict dress code…..no knees and no shoulders.

The Vatican museum and the Sistine chapel were amazing….but we followed the rules unlike some people in there and did not snap any photos.

And the size of St. Peter’s Basilica alone was jaw-dropping. 

We climbed the dome and got a chance to see the tiny mosaic pieces that made up the artwork up close.

We also attended mass there since it was a once in a lifetime experience.  Unfortunately some people that were in attendance were not very respectful and the constant taking of photos and video while walking up and down the aisle was incredibly distracting.  I am not a person that likes confrontation, but if we spoke the same language I probably would have said something.

Buy anyway the extra Euros for the dome climb was also worth it.

The climb to the very top was long, tiring, hot, smelly and not for the claustrophobic….but oh so worth it for the views and the breeze.

The final day we had in Rome we had plans to hit two more museums before packing up and heading home.  But when I woke up not feeling well, we decided not to push it and that after two weeks we were museumed out anyway.  So we spent the day in our little neighborhood and had a great time.  Then after eating more amazing pizza we went to bed before our incredibly long travel day back to the states. 

And as always if these pictures were not enough stop over here because of course I have tons more!