Just ROME-ing Around

Due to our late train from Florence, we arrived in Rome late Sunday night and checked into our hostel around 1 am. To maximize our 2 days in Rome, we got up early and managed to be out the door after breakfast by 10 am. For the sake of length, I am only going to mention the big sites we saw because the amount of history in Rome is incredible. We started Monday morning at the Spanish steps- so named because the Spanish Embassy is at the base. At the bottom of the steps is a fountain by Bernini's father, "Fountain of the Old Boat". Rumor has it, this fountain contains the freshest water in all of Rome. At the top of the steps stands an Egyptian obelisk in front of the Holy Trinity Church. The views of the city from here were stunning

After visiting Plaza di Spagna, we walked down the street to Piazza del Popolo, one of the largest squares in Rome. The Plaza is centered around an Egyptian obelisk brought to Rome in 10 B.C. by Augustus. Another main attraction of the plaza is the twin churches on the south end. These dissect the "Trident" of streets that enter the plaza. After exploring around Plaza del Popolo, Haley, Tori and I headed to Vatican City along the Tiber River.

Since the Vatican was closed on Tuesday, we had to endure the hour and a half long line if we wanted to see the Sistine Chapel. The Vatican Museums were interesting, but the hoards of tourist groups took away from the experience. The main attraction, the Sistine Chapel, was actually not my favorite. The Chapel was not what I expected- much smaller and decked out in paintings from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. The "Creation of Man" was also much smaller than I thought. My favorite painting, though, was "School of Athens" by Raphael. I like it because Raphael painted the most famous artists into his work, including Da Vinci, Bramante and even himself. In fact, he included Michaelangelo after he witnessed the unveiling of the "Creation of Man".

After working our way out of the Sistine Chapel, we met up with Ben and Alyssa in St. Peter's Square. We took a quick look through St. Peter's Basilica, which was hands-down the most amazing church I have been in this entire semester. The outside was stunning, but the inside was even more incredible. Nearly every wall was covered in gold-trimmed artwork. The dome was massive, the tip being nearly 450 feet from the ground. If we hadn't been extremely tired from walking for about 7 hours, I would have taken much more time in the Basilica.

After the Basilica, the 5 of us grabbed dinner at an Italian trattoria. From here, we walked to Piazza Navona, where Bernini's "Fountain of the Four Rivers" is located. (Some of you may recognize it from Angels & Demons). After checking out this plaza, we walked down the street to the Pantheon. Despite being built nearly 2000 years ago, the Pantheon still has one of the largest domes in the world. It was pretty cool to be in the presence of this ancient building. From the Pantheon, we headed to Trevi Fountain, where we spent time sipping wine and winding down from a stressful day. After this we strolled through the Roman streets, catching sites along the way to our hostel. For one day in Rome, we covered a lot of ground, but the next day was still a full itinerary....