when in rome!

Rome.

Oh, Roma. I’ve learned it’s possible to fall in love with a city at first sight. It is a city of cobblestone streets, overflowing fountains, a history unparalleled, and spaghetti that makes me drool to think about. It was love.
Despite spending the night on the cement floor of the airport and catching a 5 am flight, we felt relatively rejuvenated when we arrived to find the sun shining and the weather at a temperature none of us had experienced since October in Oxford. Thanks to Spencer Kubin’s meticulous planning, we knew exactly where to drop our luggage and how to navigate the metro system to our first stop: the coliseum.
It was one of the most spectacular things I have ever seen (soon to be challenged by the Egyptian pyramids, but at this point in my life I couldn’t help keep repeating to Brooke that this was the coolest thing I’ve ever done.) The sheer size and magnitude of the coliseum is impressive, let alone when it was built and what it was used for in the ancient days of glory. We spent hours wandering through the ruins, snapping about a thousand pictures, and enjoying the sun on our face.
Afterwards, we meandered through the city and hit up some of the most famous sites in the world: the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon. I was a little disappointed by the Spanish Steps. I don’t really know what I expected, but they were much smaller than I had imagined. The Lizzie McGuire Movie made them look just so cool, I was doomed for disappointment. The Trevi Fountain, on the other hand, was absolutely stunning. We all made our wishes as we threw our coins over our shoulders and enjoyed the vast amounts of tourists milling around the square.
After a lunch of delicious spaghetti dipped in a variety of Italian sauces from blue cheese to Alfredo to tomato, we made our way to the Pantheon. Again, just surreal and out of a movie. (This time I was thinking more Da Vinci Code than my idol Hilary Duff) It’s amazing to think of the sheer history of such buildings is enough to make you feel small. We then made our way to an old church that Spencer had read about. In the basement of the church was a church composed of monk bones. The bones and skeletons adorn the ceilings, walls, and floors, making patterns of flowers and Biblical symbols. It was one of the eeriest things I have ever done, with real people’s remains being placed directly in front of me. The last chamber of the chapel had an engraved sign stating, “What you are, we were once were. What we are now, you will be.” (That may not be the exact wording, but you understand the jist.) Incredibly scary, and surrounded by a city of such history it really made us all think.
We then caught train to the airport in Rome to catch our flight to Cairo! It was an incredibly long day, starting traveling at 7 pm and getting into Cairo at around 4 am…. But well worth the day in such a city.
On our way back we were able to stop in Rome for a night and another day. We went straight from our flight from Cairo to our hostel, located conveniently near the train station, and then straight to the Vatican. I hear that lines get ridiculous for the country within a city in the summer months, but we were lucky we were visiting in the off-season and were able to have a relatively easy experience. We first went to St. Peter’s Basilica. It was one of the largest, most fabulous and stunning things ever. Again, Rome’s site are impressive almost on their own by their sheer size. But within the chapel, you saw works of geniuses I had only seen before in art textbooks. A highlight was Michelangelo’s The Pieta. It was just a true piece of brilliance, with the human qualities of Jesus and his defeat contrasted by the divine peace of the Madonna. We also went into the Vatican museum, something I was hesitant about in my ignorance and but was ultimately blown away. The only problem with the exhibit is there is so much to see, you could spend an entire week vacation just in the Vatican, not a morning. The Sistine Chapel is everything you expect, although I was bothered you couldn’t take pictures. Everyone knows how I am with my pictures. I thought another interesting aspect was the modern art that was on exhibit. I couldn’t help but take pictures of art pieces’ names to Google later. After the Vatican we all ate another large lunch of pasta (we were getting off our rice and lamb diet of Egypt) and took one of the longest most beautiful naps I have ever experienced. Who knew you could sleep so heavily in the middle of the day?
That night we got to see the vibrant city even more vibrant. Night time in Rome is like a masterpiece on steroids. Everything is illuminated. From fountains to ruins to street lights to the people themselves. It is a bustling city, with cafes busting with people and good wine. We went to a few squares and enjoyed the sites, then settled on a restaurant where we could sit outside by a heater and enjoyed a fabulous pasta dinner complete with some great jugs of wine.
What a way to cap off an amazing carnival break!