All Roads Lead to Rome... and Home Again

I arrived in Rome at 10:15, the same time as my traveling buddies Emily and Cait, with whom I'd parted ways back in Milan. They were kind enough to let me tag along on their plans, and I didn't really want to go to Rome alone, so everything worked out. :)

Rome is a wonder. If I ever forget driving through the city and seeing the Coliseum for the first time, I will have lost one of the most poignant moments in my life. I can't describe what it's like to see that ancient structure for the first time, plopped right down in the middle of a modern, bustling city. People drive by and around it every day, as if it were not steeped in wonder and magic. But it is. It was huge--the definition of epic--and I didn't even get that close to it; we were still in the taxi heading to our hotel.

We were staying outside the city center, on a street that, at night, is populated by women practicing the oldest profession (you get me?). Still, armed with a map and our feet, we went for a wander after we got settled in. Our destination was a pyramid--not sure what its significance was or why it was even there, but it was a pyramid, our first "sight" in Rome. We stopped and had lunch nearby, at a French-named restaurant with a Macedonian waiter who served us Italian food. Like so many things we discovered in Rome, it was quite an interesting combination. He became enamored of us, and, figuring there were three of us and only one of him, we agreed to meet up with him later that night. It could have been extremely stupid of us, but it wasn't. Turns out, we drank a beer, and wandered around Rome at night, which is beautiful. So it all worked out.

After lunch, we headed over to the Coliseum because, well, that's what you do. I didn't have my good camera with me and neither did Cait, so we opted NOT to go in and save that for another day. Instead, we walked around it in awe, marveling at age and history of what we were seeing. Cait, who loves the National Geographic and History channels, told us all about what we were seeing, which was both funny and interesting.

Like The David, I could not wrap my brain around the sheer size of the Coliseum--it's so much bigger than any photos lead someone to believe. Just as an example, here's a bit of a perspective shot. Keep in mind I'm almost six feet tall--although I look minuscule next to the epic-ness of this structure. Nothing like a giant Roman ruin to make you feel your place in the world!

We also commemorated the moment with a group shot, with the epic in the back.

That evening, we ate dinner in view of the Coliseum, with a lobster staring at us, waiting to be eaten (not by us). It was lovely.

The next day, we really set out to see the sights, but there was a minor setback--no public transportation. The trains, busses, and subway were all on strike. Neat. So we had to take a taxi to Vatican City, where we had reservations for The Vatican Museum and Sisteen Chapel and planned to also see St. Peter's Basilica. I was a little frenzied, and the walk from where the taxi dropped us off was pretty epic (there HAS to be an easier way around!), but we got there and headed into the museum.

The Vatican Museum has art and artifacts from, like, the beginning of time, basically. I'm not sure how or why they were amassed, but there is everything from Roman and Greek days, to Egyptian sarcophagus, to an entire hallway of maps (which, I think, was my favorite part). All of these hallways and rooms are simply a prelude to the main show, the reason everyone goes to The Vatican Museum, the Sisteen Chapel, which, I found out, is actually the Pope's private chapel and where the new Pope (when one is needed) will be elected. I never knew that, I guess. So anyway, we finally get to the chapel and I don't know what to expect. I've seen amazing art on this trip so far, and each piece affected me differently. I didn't know if I'd cry or be moved or what, and, in truth, I walked into the room and looked up and felt... nonplussed. I thought I would have this spiritual experience--angels singing and all of that--and I didn't. It was beautiful, yes, a masterpiece certainly, but there wasn't enough space or even the ambiance to be contemplative. It felt more touristy than anything. I wanted to be moved and I just... wasn't. However, I can imagine Pope Benny clearing the place out and being in there alone; then I could see how spiritual it could be. Still, looking up at the ceiling, and looking around at the walls, was an amazing experience; one that made me realize just HOW blessed I have been. I have seen the ceiling of the Sisteen Chapel with my own eyes.

After the chapel, we headed toward St. Peter's. The courtyard there is beautiful--I didn't mind the short wait in line because there was so much to look at and be awed by. I mean, look at this...

And these statues on the top of the building...

Saints would be my guess. I wish I knew more about each piece of art, each statue, but without a guided tour, and about six hours, I don't know that I would have picked it all up.

We got into the basilica, having dressed modestly for the occasion, after a short wait. The first important thing to see is Michelangelo's pieta, which is in the basilica behind glass. A pieta, one of his favorite subjects I learned, is a depiction of Mary holding her dead son in her arms. It was heartbreaking and beautiful, stunning along the same lines as David. The folds on Mary's robes look like fabric, not stone. I was waiting for a real tear to drip from her eyes and I almost felt like a trespasser, having dropped in unexpectedly on what was without doubt the most private and sad moment of Mary's life. Stunning.

The other piece de resistance in St. Peter's is the copper alter-piece, which is massive and beautiful. It stands in front of the altar over the tomb of St. Peter, who is buried there. Again, I was struck by the true purpose of such a building--to honor the God of the Universe who created all things. This place, this altar, the way the light fell from these windows above us, everything about it was only a reflection of the wonder that God created for us to use and enjoy. It was a reflection of the genius He allows some people to have, and what that genius can look like when used to honor Him. Fantastic.

St. Peter's was a sensory overload--it was almost good they began to kick us out because a mass was starting. I would have liked to stay a bit longer, walk a bit slower, but we played with what we were dealt and left as we were asked to do.

My quest for the entire time I was in Vatican City was to get a stamp in my passport, but, despite extensive searches, asking several randoms, and flirting with a security guard, I found out this does not exist. Sad. Day. So sad, in fact, that we stopped at a cart and got a beer. It was super awesome to walk around Vatican City sippin' a beer, like ya do. :)

After The Vatican, we went to Castel St. Angelo, a place where the Popes used to live, I guess. There was even a secret passageway from the castle to the Vatican, I guess to protect the Pope and bishops in case of attack/emergency. The view was pretty spectacular, I must admit, as most castle views are. Y'know, strategic positioning and all of that...

We walked around after the castle and into the evening, finding a random little outdoor market near a bridge where there was everything from records to dried fruit for sale. That sort of thing generally makes me quite happy, so wandering around there was fine by me. We eventually go tired and headed back to the hotel, again via taxi, for a good night's sleep before hitting more of Rome the next day.

The site everyone imagines and pictures when they think of Roma is the aforementioned Coliseum.

We went to it first thing, and got to skip the long line because we had bought the Roma Pass (if you ever go, GET IT) and headed in. It's even more fascinating inside than out. You can see the seats where people sat to watch gladiators fight animals and each other to the death. You can see the rooms and halls under where the floor would have been where these animals and gladiators were kept. And if you think it seems big from the outside, it's even bigger inside! It's absolutely fascinating. We must have spent, like, two hours inside, walking around in awe, taking jump shots, and pretending to be gladiators ourselves... Well, maybe that was just me. :)

Incredible.

From there, we saw some of the other biggies, like the Trevi fountain, where each of us tossed in a coin and made a wish. My dreams were only worth 0.02 Euro but Cait and Emily's were both worth more. lol.

Here's a bit of the fountain detail. It is really beautifully carved, and a very pictaresque, although touristy, spot. We wanted to see it at night, when it's supposed to be twice as beautiful, so we went back after dark. It was pretty much the same... but dark. lol. The gelato around there was delicious, though!

We also passed by this giant monument, the Victor Emmanuel Monument--a huge white building with copper statues all around it. I thought, the first time I saw it, that it must be some important government building or something, not a random building with no purpose but to memorialize a soldier. It was, however, a great place to play with my zoom. The locals seem to have mixed feelings about it; on the one had it's lovely, but on the other it's not functional. Still, the statues were cool to photograph.

We also saw the Panthenon, the oldest building in Rome that has been consistantly used since its construction. It's used as a church to this day. The dome, which I was pretty much obsessed with, was the one that Brunelleschi based his dome in Florence on--the one no one could figure out how to build. This was it...

Stunning. The dome is smack in the middle of the building, and opens to the sky--in fact, rain had fallen before we arrived, and there was still some water on the floor from it. I could have lay down on my back under that dome for hours just contemplating life.

As we wandered, we came upon this fountain in a piazza. Because I'm a sucker for fountains, I took a picture.

Lovely, huh? And we also saw Constantine's Arch, which comemorates Constantine who brought Christianity to Rome in, like, 300 something.

We saw all the major sights in Rome, and it was great to be there with two pretty cool Canadian chicks. We spent our last night in Rome enjoying each other and remembering all we'd seen. We were all towards the end of our journeys. They were headed to Milan and I back to Nice. Speaking for myself, I was not going back to Nice as the same person who left it six weeks before.

After the wonders and awe of Rome, I spent a day on a train, heading back to Nice. It took about ten or so hours to get there, three different trains, only one of which I actually had a booked seat on, but I'm glad I made it at all. I thought I had missed my last train to Nice (the ONE that was on time all day, of course!) but there was one more I caught. I spent that ride chatting with a lovely British lady who made sure I got to where I was going and provided stimulating conversation along the way. A thirty minute friend that won't soon be forgotten.

I got to my hostel planning to turn in and sleep, but found I had some pretty cool room mates so we all headed out for a drink. One guy was American and played piano, another was a girl from New York who was traveling after a breakup, and the third was a Finnish guy. We walked around Nice at night, enjoyed some gelato (beer flavored, weird!) and had a lovely glass of wine. I was glad to have some company, in the end. Except that the two guys snored like it was thier job so sleeping was sort of difficult...

The next day I had planned to go to this medieval village with the Finnish guy, but we missed the bus due to confusion, and I didn't feel like waiting an hour for the next one so I wandered off to explore on my own. I climbed up the chateau, which has a lovely view of the city. This was a wall on my way up, which I thought was kind of cool.

And this was the view at the top. RIDICULOUSLY blue water! I thought Miami had beautiful water!

After that, I wandered through the Fruit and Vegetable market, which was actually selling antiques at the time, and had escargot and wine for lunch. Amazing. I wanted to marry that meal it was so delicious! Then I headed to the beach, which was kind of strange. Living in Miami, I am spoiled by beautiful beaches. This beach had very little sand--the shore was made of grey rocks. It wasn't comfortable to lay on, or even sit on really, but the sound of the waves coming in, grabbing the rocks, and sweeping them out to sea over other rocks was loud and unique. I sort of fell in love with it.

I did some more wandering, some shopping at H & M and a wine store, had a crepe for dinner, and then headed back to the hostel to sleep, since I had to get up early to get to the airport on a 5:30 am bus. Fuuuunnn. But my trip home was uneventful, except that I realized I need to go to Spain soon because the three hours I spent in Madrid were filled with eye candy. Hellloooo Spanish boys! :)

For the full album of photos from my traveling days, click here.

This trip was probably one of the most life-changing experiences I've ever had. I was really working to be more "go with the flow" on this trip, and I tried to appreciate every moment and just take things as they came, which is often hard for me. I really worked on it and, while I'm not there, I'm better. I'm better not just in that area, though, I'm just better. I am in love with Italy and it makes me sad that I'm not there right now. Maybe I'm really Italian!

Although Italians may not believe in elevators, air conditioning, or screened windows, they believe in loving life, and eating great food, and being present in every moment, rather than just being there. They believe in family and making family. They don't believe in strangers, but rather people who are not their friends yet. They are beautiful.

Ciao.

Much love.