Roma

Last weekend we headed to Rome to take advantage of another three day weekend. I had been there before, but it was Nate (and Lando's) first time. Coming from easy-going Florence the weekend before meant that transitioning to this big, busy city was a little difficult. But it was a great weekend and we really enjoyed all the historical sites of Rome. Lucky for you, I'm not feeling too wordy so I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

We arrived in Rome on a beautiful Friday afternoon and headed straight for the Colosseum, forum and other ruins. We couldn't have asked for a nicer day:


The colosseum is always an amazing sight and it really sets your imagination on fire picturing the 50,000+ people occupying the space, the crazy "shows" that they were there to see, and the societal hierarchy, which were laid out in the many levels of the structure (of course the passageways on the bottom housed, prisoners, animals, and more that were used for the entertainment).

Imagine this place as it was in Roman times, with beautiful granite covering the structure:

The upper level seats were for the slaves and women. An interesting fact I learned was that there used to be a partial roof (knew that), but because it only went out so far, the lower class individuals in the upper level got to sit comfortably in the shade while the upper class (probably already in heavier garb) had to sit boiling in the sun. I love this little fact, for some reason.
After our tour of the Colosseum and other ruins, we did an across town walk to check out Trevi fountain. It's amazing how much of an attraction this fountain has become. The place was swarming with people all hours of the day.
After some rest, we headed to dinner and then fell somewhat exhausted into our beds for an early bedtime (have I mentioned traveling with a one year old while pregnant is tiring?? And I'm not the one carrying him on my back all day!).

Saturday we planned for our day at the Vatican. Our friend, Matty, had suggested we use a hop on, hop off bus (you know the double-decker buses that scream, "Look at me! I'm a tourist!") which normally I would say "No way" to, however, it actually proved to be practical, convenient, and completely economical. It also offered a way to see parts of Rome we wouldn't have otherwise seen. Nate and Landon enjoying the ride:
When we arrived we hopped into a group with a tour guide, which was a little costly, but well worth it. Our tour guide was extremely knowledgable and I enjoyed learning the ins and outs of the Vatican museum and St. Peter's Basilica.
The museum was beautiful and it's so huge that I felt like I didn't overlap much from the last trip I took to the Vatican.
Of course the climax is always the sistine chapel. The tour guide offered some interesting insight as to what the four-year process was like for Michelangelo (the job basically made the man go mad) and it's safe to say I'm glad it wasn't me.... But boy am I grateful he took the job. And of course, no pictures in the chapel.

After the museum we headed to St. Peter's Basilica. It is a beautiful church with a lot of amazing things to see.
What was one of my favorite parts of the church? The statues? The holy door? No, I happened to like the way the light poured in through the windows. It's the little things, I suppose.
And of course, any mother (or human being) likes Michelangelo's Pieta. Our guide offered an interesting view that the Pieta is not a statue of Mary mourning Jesus after crucifixion, but instead because of her youth and the emotion displayed on her face, it is in fact a statue of motherhood- Mary holding baby Jesus. Only the viewer is seeing the future. Anyway, you look at it, it is yet another amazing work by Michelangelo.
After the tour, we headed up St. Peter's dome. What is our thing with climbing hundreds of stairs? The prego... complimented at one point for my "great pace" up the stairs. haha.
This is the point in the weekend when our good camera ran out of batteries. Nothing like carrying a useless camera up 500+ stairs :/

Towards the top of the dome, the whole structure started to tilt. Triiiiipppy:
And the last bit was about as steep and compact as you can get. Luckily, both Nate and Landon had a good hold of the rope:
The view looking down on the key-shaped St. Peter's square:

Here we are:

The climb is always worth it:
Back down and enjoying being out of the bakcpack and free in the square, Lando!
Other sites we hit included: The pantheon:
The Spanish steps:
What was one of my favorite parts of Rome??? The fountains, of course!

(Check out the blockade in the back there.. It was the Rome marathon on Sunday. How sweet would it be to do that marathon?)

The fountains are even more breath-taking at night thanks to the addition of studio lighting. Trevi Fountain after dark:

In general, Rome is a must. It's historical value is boundless and it really is an extraordinary city. Was it our very favorite spot?! No. It felt too big city for us, and also felt a bit touristy (I can't imagine high season). We are enjoying living in Italy and really feeling part of the culture, so going to the touristy spots somewhat feels like a step backwards.

Also, what's Nikki's favorite thing? Food. And Rome just isn't the spot for the best. It's overtaken by tourist-trap restaurants heating up food in microwaves, which is just too bad. Of course, not all restaurants are this way, but in general, the food was lacking. And besides, we are spoiled here in Naples with absolutely some of the best food with the best ingredients.

This weekend we are looking forward to sticking around Naples and not traveling too far. But that doesn't mean we aren't getting anything done. Tonight is cooking classes with the gang and tomorrow, Pompei. Don't you worry, I'll have my camera handy :)