Ancient History to Papal History to 80s Music...

Well, have a little time before dinner tonight (it’s Saturday around 6p) and so thought I would try to get some more ‘down on paper,’ as it were.  I feel like we have done/seen so much in the past 3 days that if I don’t write it down (or type it, in this case) I will forget and I definitely don’t want to forget!!

One great and fantastic TV watching-experience I need to share is the show called “Bridal Boudoir” on the International Wedding Channel.  It is just amazing in such a frightening way.  It really has nothing to do with boudoir in the lingerie-sense of things, rather it is more like “Say Yes to the Dress.”  The only fantastic difference is that they offer hair and makeup services as part of their dress-finding experience, as well as there is a photo shoot in a non-traditional dress or outfit and then the unveiling of the actual wedding dress the client has chosen.  Leah and I watched 1 episode and this bride was having a ‘countrified’ wedding with hay bales and farm animals about.  The hairstylist decided to make her hair in the style of ‘burlesque’ and it was kind of dreadful (although her makeup and shoes were the best part in the end) and then when they unveiled her final look her dress was alright, not quite what we thought one would wear to a 'countrified' wedding, but the most awful part is they had her carrying a lacy parasol along with a more ‘cupcake-style’ dress (yes this is a technical description).  It was a fantastic show!!!  Check you local cable provider to see if it is an option for you at home.  ;)

Ok...day 2 in Rome (which was Friday, October 7th ~ I think!?!?)...

We decided after our wonderful 1st day of seeing so many great things to start out our Friday by taking the shuttle to the Piazza Barberini and then walking to the site of Ancient Rome.  We strolled along ~ past the Trevi Fountain, again ~ and made our way to a crowded corner in front of the largest, white marble building I have ever seen.  Leah described it best saying, “It looks like what the buildings would have looked like in Ancient times, except it was built in modern times.”  There are HUGE bronze statues of chariots with horses + riders atop the building on both ends and there must be 40-60 stairs to climb to reach the entrance.  We sorted out that it is the Ministry of Defense building...it is gi-normous!!  The funniest part of this building is the day prior when we were at the Castel Sant’Angelo we saw it across Rome and could not figure out what it was and then throughout each day we have been here we keep seeing from every corner of Rome we are exploring.  It cannot be missed!!

It's kind of giant.

So, it was a little cooler Friday morning and slightly cloudy, so we both had our umbrellas and a poncho that Leah found us in London on the Big Slow Bus.  We stopped by an alimentari (grocery/bar) and picked up a couple of waters + 2 panini for lunch. 

Hmmm...what to choose for lunch!?!?!?

After we got our lunch stored away in my satchel it started to rain/sprinkle, so the umbrellas were needed.  We started exploring the Ancient City ~ specifically the Forum site and it was amazing.  Again, like the Pantheon, it’s impressive how much is preserved and still standing and the grand scale and size of all of the pieces is so impressive.  Check out these photos!!

This was the Roman Forum.

Columns still standing...after all these years.

The Arco di Settimio Severo...celebrating the Romans victory over the Parthians in AD 203.

More discovered ruins in Ancient Rome.

We started up the hill toward some steps that gave us a view of the entire layout what was the Roman Forum.  We climbed some stairs, took some photos, climbed some more and walked all around the entire complex.  We made a couple of wrong turns, but got to see where all of the cars are parked and continue to be fascinated by how they park and how many little Smart car-type vehicles can be fit into such small spaces.  We then found a nice marble bench (no crappy metal here) and had a few bites of our panini, which were delicious!!

We found our way down into the ruins...meaning ~ we finally found the entrance.  I even got to use a little of my Spanish repertoire, as while we were walking I was approached by a gentleman and his wife asking ~ in Spanish ~ where the entrance is located?  I was able to not only understand him, but, in Spanish, was able to answer his question and tell him where it was!!  :)  All of these years of using my very limited Spanish skills with my little kiddos and their families has paid-off.  Yipee!!

While meandering through the ruins ~ Leah commented how when she was here about 18-19 years ago she could literally walk through the ruins, but now there are paths and places one can only look, not touch ~ it started to rain a bit harder and so we stood under a tree with several other folks to wait it out for a few moments.  There was a ladies room near by so I jumped in there for a moment.  When I was washing my hands, a lady approached me and offered me 10 Euro for my umbrella.  I thought that was funny.  I did not accept her offer, knowing I would need it off/on throughout the day, so hopefully she was approached by one of the ‘vendors’ outside of the city with an offer for either an umbrella or a lovely colored poncho ~ they had both readily available. 

The breadth and depth of the ruins in Ancient Rome was crazy...felt like we were walking through them for a couple of miles.  Then we started down an old ancient road descending toward the Colosseum!!  I am going to let a photo speak for itself...

Seems like it might have been a bit bumpy?

The outside was amazing and so intact and then we found our way inside.  We started on the main or street level and then were able to climb up to the mid-way point (likely about 3-4 levels up) via some extremely high and steep stairs.  Here’s what we saw...

The Colosseum...amazing!!

This is the 'underground' of the Colosseum...the 'floor' would have been on top of this.  It was also meant to be able to be flooded if needed, as it was connected to a main aqueduct in Rome.

Leah at the mid-level of the Colosseum.

Me at the same spot.

What a great experience!!  So happy to have seen this during this trip!!

We then were ready to hop-over to St. Peter’s Square and saw a taxi just up the stairs from the Colosseum.  We thought...let’s grab it and jump in!!  So we did...perfect for us right?  We later discovered that it’s apparently illegal for a cab to pick anyone up not at a designated taxi stand or from a Metro station.  No hailing cabs just anywhere here in Rome.  So, we got to St. Peter’s unscathed and without trouble, but this ‘cab rule’ would create some challenges for us later in the day...wait for it!!

Arriving at Piazza San Pietro (St. Peter’s Square) was quite amazing!!  My first thought was that when I have seen it on TV although it looks packed with people it doesn’t look that large when, in fact, it is really large and expansive.  They said Bernini designed the square to symbolize God’s arms wrapping around his flock, represented by the colonnades and (from the sky) keyhole shape of the Square.  It’s quite breathtaking.  Most importantly, too, is that there is an obelisk located in the center.  :)

St. Peter's Square...and the Obelisk

Bernini's 29m high baroque baldachin, which sits on the grave of St. Peter.

The center-point...goes down into the grottoes.

St. Peter's Basilica...the ceiling is beautiful!

We got in line for security, which was quite fast and orderly and despite the metal detector going off quite a lot, the guard seemed quite relaxed in his duties.  We then made our way up the stairs of St. Peter’s Basilica and it truly is just beautiful.  Leah and I both chuckled as we said now we understand what they meant about the ‘small’ church in the Piazza Navona.  Comparatively, it is a small church and St. Peter’s is massive!!

Here’s a couple of photos (above and to the left)...










From there we went to the Vatican Post Office and then decided to try and go to the Sistine Chapel from there.  We weren’t exactly sure how to get there, but started following the massive wall surrounding the Vatican (about 40-50 in height, at quite an angle to deter climbers) and kept walking, etc.  We finally found our way around it and found the Vatican Museum, which is the entrance for the Sistine Chapel.  Unfortunately, it was closed for the day...so what are 2 ladies to do...have a little gelato!!

My fave is definitely pistachio and Leah seems to like the chocolate.  Simply delicious!!

So...our next ‘task‘ was to find a taxi to take back to the hotel, because we were quite far away from the drop-off/pick-up point for the hotel shuttle and the Metro would not get us anywhere close to our hotel.  So, we looked in our travel books and that’s when we realized we needed to get to a Metro station or hotel to get a taxi and could not flag one down mid-street.  Truthfully, we did try to hail a taxi mid-street, but I got a finger wave (the index finger) from one driver, clearly indicating I was doing it wrong.  So we walked a bit, found a Metro station, no taxis to be found.  We walked some more...Leah used her limited Italian to ask a lady in a Pharmacy where we could get a taxi and she, of course, said Metro.  We then back-tracked to the other side of the initial Metro station we tried earlier and of course, no taxis.  So Leah called the hotel for guidance and while she was on hold, guess what!?!?!?  A taxi arrived and picked us up!!  Phew...

Our night ended with a little relaxation and then a lovely dinner pool-side in our hotel where we did the chef’s tasting menu.  Super-delish and the flavors and simplicity of the food was wonderful.  Our favorite, non-food, portion of the meal was the ‘live’ music being played across the pool on the other side from where we and others were dining.  The best part is that initially we thought it was via CD or perhaps a tape of old 70s/80s American music, but then Leah realized there was a guy playing the piano and singing each song.  He was really into it and was playing the craziest mix of music, from Caribbean reggae to Frank Sinatra to Ray Charles to Billy Ocean.  It was so funny and fun too. 

Well, time to get some dinner.  We’re off to northern Italy tomorrow, so I will get caught-up with my days very soon. 

xoxo
Stacy

P.S. ~ Just finished an amazing dinner!!  Will tell you more about it later.  :)  xoxo