Ciaò Bella from Roma
We are now at our second stop in Italia…the beautiful city of Rome, or Roma as the natives say. We arrived here on June 12th from Florence. As soon as we stepped out, we were greeted by the warm Mediterranean air, which had a comfy temperature of roughly 80 degrees. We found our hostel at approximately 2:00 and decided we had better start the sight seeing off right away.
Our first stop was the immaculate Coliseum. This giant building was built around 80 a.d. and was used as a stadium for gladiator sports. It was kind of sad seeing the building because one can only imagine the full grandeur it once had before all of its outer marble had been stripped off to construct various building in the Vatican. We decided to take a guided tour to learn more of the history behind the Coliseum. While we were there we met some ladies who were organizing a pub crawl, so we kept that in the back of our mind all day.
From there it was already evening so we decided to get ready for the pub crawl and we head back to our hostel. Our hostel was conveniently located right next to Termini, the main train station in Rome. One funny thing we have observed about the train rides is that no one pays for them. They all simply board the train and get off whenever they please. There is no designated area to check tickets or anything…hey I’m not complaining! We met near a famous fountain and from there departed for a bar where we were given unlimited drinks for one hour. Throughout the night we hit four different bars and met tons of people from across Europe and the U.S. It was a great taste of Rome’s nightlife, but a lot of walking!
The next day we decided to go to Vatican as soon as we woke up, which unfortunately was really late…when we arrived at Vatican the Sistine Chapel/Museum was close. Luckily we were still able to view St. Peters Basilica. The basilica itself is huge and once you step foot inside it is truly a serene experience. Priests are chanting in pure Latin and there are numerous artworks and sculptures around you.
From there we visited the Spanish steps, which were constructed by a Spanish architect. This area is basically a big square full of fountains, street shops, street acts, restaurants and gellaterias, ice cream shops. It had a great ambiance full of Italian life and spirit. From there we walked to the majestic Trevi Fountain, where they say if you throw a coin in, you will one day visit Rome again. Needless to say we all threw in coins.
After all that walking we found a nice authentic Italian restaurant right around the corner from the fountain. This was a typical family style restaurant you would think of—we had 4 courses: appetizer, first course, second course, and dessert. We were stuffed…the meal took about 2 hours in its entirety. After that, since we received fruit salad for our dessert, we decided to indulge ourselves in some world famous Italian gelato. It was pretty much heaven in your mouth…best ice cream we have ever had! After relaxing for a bit we made the walk home and hit the sack.
The following morning, Anand left back to the states L…and then there were six. We decided to visit the rest of the Vatican we didn’t get to see. When we arrived the line was about half a mile long and we were to say the least, a bit discouraged. However, we decided to get in line and luckily we arrived at the gates to Vatican Museum in about an hour. We scoured what seemed to us as miles and miles of sculptures and artworks from the likes of Michelangelo and Raphael. After about 2 hours we arrived at the crown jewel…the Sistine Chapel. The ceiling was painted by none other than Michelangelo…they said no pictures but a few of us managed to sneak a quick video of the chapel which was truly breathtaking.
Our final sightseeing stop led us to the Pantheon. This architectural marvel was built even before the Coliseum. It was said to be Michelangelo’s favorite building in Roma. The top has an opening, but it is said that when it rains, the building is made in such a way that the rain evaporates before it hits the ground. Don’t ask us how this is possible, the experts are still trying to figure it out.
On the way home we stopped by for some authentic Italian pizza, which blows away pizza hut or domino’s. It’s also waaaay cheaper at one euro per slice, and they even make some pizza without cheese. Well, that’s Roma in a nutshell, tomorrow we leave for our final stop in Italy, Venice. Sorry for the lack of pictures, these internet cafe’s won’t let you upload pictures and if they do, it is a hefty charge. We promise to barrage you with pictures as soon as we can! Until next time…Ciaò.
The Eurotravelers
Our first stop was the immaculate Coliseum. This giant building was built around 80 a.d. and was used as a stadium for gladiator sports. It was kind of sad seeing the building because one can only imagine the full grandeur it once had before all of its outer marble had been stripped off to construct various building in the Vatican. We decided to take a guided tour to learn more of the history behind the Coliseum. While we were there we met some ladies who were organizing a pub crawl, so we kept that in the back of our mind all day.
From there it was already evening so we decided to get ready for the pub crawl and we head back to our hostel. Our hostel was conveniently located right next to Termini, the main train station in Rome. One funny thing we have observed about the train rides is that no one pays for them. They all simply board the train and get off whenever they please. There is no designated area to check tickets or anything…hey I’m not complaining! We met near a famous fountain and from there departed for a bar where we were given unlimited drinks for one hour. Throughout the night we hit four different bars and met tons of people from across Europe and the U.S. It was a great taste of Rome’s nightlife, but a lot of walking!
The next day we decided to go to Vatican as soon as we woke up, which unfortunately was really late…when we arrived at Vatican the Sistine Chapel/Museum was close. Luckily we were still able to view St. Peters Basilica. The basilica itself is huge and once you step foot inside it is truly a serene experience. Priests are chanting in pure Latin and there are numerous artworks and sculptures around you.
From there we visited the Spanish steps, which were constructed by a Spanish architect. This area is basically a big square full of fountains, street shops, street acts, restaurants and gellaterias, ice cream shops. It had a great ambiance full of Italian life and spirit. From there we walked to the majestic Trevi Fountain, where they say if you throw a coin in, you will one day visit Rome again. Needless to say we all threw in coins.
After all that walking we found a nice authentic Italian restaurant right around the corner from the fountain. This was a typical family style restaurant you would think of—we had 4 courses: appetizer, first course, second course, and dessert. We were stuffed…the meal took about 2 hours in its entirety. After that, since we received fruit salad for our dessert, we decided to indulge ourselves in some world famous Italian gelato. It was pretty much heaven in your mouth…best ice cream we have ever had! After relaxing for a bit we made the walk home and hit the sack.
The following morning, Anand left back to the states L…and then there were six. We decided to visit the rest of the Vatican we didn’t get to see. When we arrived the line was about half a mile long and we were to say the least, a bit discouraged. However, we decided to get in line and luckily we arrived at the gates to Vatican Museum in about an hour. We scoured what seemed to us as miles and miles of sculptures and artworks from the likes of Michelangelo and Raphael. After about 2 hours we arrived at the crown jewel…the Sistine Chapel. The ceiling was painted by none other than Michelangelo…they said no pictures but a few of us managed to sneak a quick video of the chapel which was truly breathtaking.
Our final sightseeing stop led us to the Pantheon. This architectural marvel was built even before the Coliseum. It was said to be Michelangelo’s favorite building in Roma. The top has an opening, but it is said that when it rains, the building is made in such a way that the rain evaporates before it hits the ground. Don’t ask us how this is possible, the experts are still trying to figure it out.
On the way home we stopped by for some authentic Italian pizza, which blows away pizza hut or domino’s. It’s also waaaay cheaper at one euro per slice, and they even make some pizza without cheese. Well, that’s Roma in a nutshell, tomorrow we leave for our final stop in Italy, Venice. Sorry for the lack of pictures, these internet cafe’s won’t let you upload pictures and if they do, it is a hefty charge. We promise to barrage you with pictures as soon as we can! Until next time…Ciaò.
The Eurotravelers
posted by Jay Tatachar at
3:53 PM
