Florence then on to Rome

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Another early morning and we woke up to find a beautiful day outside, it was perfect for our guided walking tour around Florence. Hannah and I packed up our gear and carried our luggage to the bus where the group was slowly getting ready. Eventually we all packed the bus and made the walk back into town to explore Florence. We met with our tour guide who introduced herself then lead us to our first stop in the Piazza della Signoria which was a huge square in the centre of Florence. The square is scattered with amazing statues and we stood listening to our guide explain the immense history behind some of them. It began quite interesting but she had so much to tell us that most of us lost interest quite quickly. Next we headed towards the river and onto one of the oldest and most famous bridges in the world, the Ponte Vecchio. The bridge crossed Arno River and was famous for the many shops on either side of the bridge. We walked across the incredible bridge and browsed the different shops, then stopped with our tour guide as she explained the amazing history of the Ponte Vecchio.

After a brief chat on the bridge we headed back into the centre of town towards the Bascillica di Santa Maria del Fiore which was Florence’s main cathedral. As we approached the Cathedral I never expected it to be so spectacular. The building was absolutely stunning and the bell tower standing next to the Cathedral blew me away. The tour guide stopped at spoke about this beautiful Cathedral and the history of the massive dome which sits on top. However we didn’t stop long, then we were on the move again, she lead us to a leatherworking shop in one of the alleyways of Florence. We were supposed to watch a leatherworking demonstration however Hannah and I weren’t at all interested and would rather explore more of Florence then be pressured into buying expensive leather. We walked through the maze of streets and back to the incredible Cathedral. We had just over an hour of spare time and I really wanted to climb the dome and look down at Florence from one of the most important buildings in the city. The line was huge, we joined the end and were convinced that we would never have enough time. But after a long and nervous wait the line started to move and eventually we were t the front.

We paid the entry fee and began our way up the dome. After loads and loads of stairs we worked our way up to the beginning of the dome and had a close up of the stunning paintings which were all over the inside of the dome. As we continued to climb, the stairs got narrower and roofs were lower but eventually we emerged at the top. The views were simply breathtaking, we were so high up that we could easily see the entire city. My camera worked overtime as I took as many photos as I could since we were running out of time. We were cutting it really close so we reluctantly headed back down the dome, but we were so glad to skip the leatherworking and climb the dome instead. We met back with the rest of the group jumped on the bus and began the long drive into one of the cities I was looking forward to the most on the entire trip, we were heading to Rome.

We drove all afternoon, trying to minimize stopping at petrol stations so we had more time to explore Rome this afternoon. We were dropped off in the city centre for another walking tour to the sights of one of the oldest cities on the planet, however this time, Jamie was our guide. We went into the subway where we were handed a bundle of train tickets to get around for this afternoon and tomorrows free day in the city. We took the subway then walked to the first stop of our private tour the Piazza del Popolo. The Piazza del Popolo was a large square with a tall obelisk in the centre and two identical churches at one end. The square was huge, and an awesome first taste of the ancient city of Rome. We stopped and had a quick chat with Jamie where he told us that in fact all the fountains in Rome use clean water, you can actually drink from any fountain in the city. Jamie gave us 15 minutes to explore the square before meeting again to continue our tour. After snapping a few photos Hannah and I decided to take a look inside one of the twin churches of Santa Maria.

After meeting back with the group we moved on to the next sight in Rome, the Spanish Steps. We stopped while Jamie gave us a brief history lesson about the Steps then had another 20 minutes to explore for ourselves. Again for the majority of the time I was taking as many photos as possible of these amazing white steps and the clear blue sky. I took my time walking up these steps as it was something I had wanted to do for a long, long time, once I was at the top I admired the view, then met everyone there before it was time to move on again. We followed Jamie as he took us through the maze of streets contained in Rome, we had no idea where we were off to next. Eventually we arrived at a massive crowd of people, it was packed, people all over the place, we had arrived at the Trevi Fountain. We were given another 20 minutes to get some photos, the fountain was nothing like I’d imagined, it was stunningly beautiful with clear pure water flowing like a small waterfall, amazing. I took loads of photos with the spectacular building in the background before it was again time to meet the group and move onto our next stop, but so far this was one of the most amazing cities I had ever been to.

It was beginning to get quite late and since we had been walking around half the city of Rome we were all getting hungry. We made our way to another fascinating Rome sight, the Pantheon, the best preserved building for its age in the entire world. Another brief chat with Jamie then we were free to explore inside the impressive structure. As we walked past the tall columns and through the large doors into the centre of the Pantheon I was stunned, I couldn’t believe I was standing here staring up at the oculus which was the only light source in the 2000 year old building. I took my time exploring the Pantheon, taking loads of different photos then left to meet the group for dinner. We ate at Jamie’s favorite pizza place with his favorite gelati place right next door, both were ok, but nothing special.

After dinner we continued on the tour visiting various more ruins which were located in the city centre and we made our way to possibly the most impressive sight in Rome, the Colosseum. As the group walked towards it I could see the massive structure in the distance, it was huge, and as we approached it got bigger and bigger. The Colosseum was absolutely breathtaking, I just couldn’t look away from the biggest amphitheatre built in Roman times, I couldn’t wait until tomorrow when I actually get to go inside. After an amazing day, a massive sightseeing day around Florence and Rome it was time to make for the campsite. Billy picked us up and took to us what was possibly the best campsite on tour. The entire group had pre-set tents, similar to the ones we paid for last night, we were assigned our tents and most of the group went straight to sleep, we were all stuffed.


Day 9:
Florence - Rome
190 MILES TRAVELLED // 1710 TOTAL
Camping Roma

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Photos

Florence
A beautiful morning across the city of Florence

Florence
The famous Ponte Vecchio bridge lined with dozens of shops

Florence
The breathtaking Florence Cathedral and Giotto's Bell Tower

Florence
The amazing Giotto's Bell Tower, part of the Florence Cathedral

Florence
Stunning views across Florence from the top of the dome on the Cathedral

Florence
More incredible views over the beautiful city of Florence

Rome
The famous white Spanish Steps in the centre of Rome

Rome
The amazing Trevi Fountain flowing with fresh drinkable water

Rome
The ancient Rome Pantheon in the centre of the city

Rome
Inside the Pantheon, one of the oldest structures in Rome, built in 126 AD

Rome
The very impessive Victor Emmanuel Memorial in Rome