Blogs from Lazio, Italy, Europe

Today we got to explore Rome! We started our tour with the biggest and most well known structure, the Colosseum. It was amazing, they built it in about 8 years. It's a bit surreal being there, it's not every day you get to visit the colosseum. Then we went to the Roman Forum where we got to see where Julius Caesar was cremated and many other important events. I was starving so i had a pizza near the colosseum. Half way through i found half a bug in my pizza! Had to complain to the manager but its a bit weird in Italy/ europe as the customers are never right, and they were hesitant to give me a refund for a pizza i couldn't finish. After that we travelled to a different country, Vatican City. It ... read more

Today we headed back to Rome through Pisa. We took some pictures with the leaning tower of Pisa and had a competition to see who had the best one (we didn't win). Then we had our last pitt stop at Autogrill which we have been going to for our road breaks (it is also owned by the Pope), it's kind of like a mini supermarket combined with a place to sit and eat. Today is the last day we see our bus driver Alexandro, as his driving hours are up. He is an amazing driver and has to drive the bus down the narrowest streets in Italy (places you'd be scared to take your car down). He is very funny, speaks very little English and has the best fashion sense I have ever seen a bus ... read more

This morning Nakita and I went back into the centre of Rome. This time we managed to keep walking past the shops and made it to the end of the long street. What we thought was the colosseum in the distance was actually something different. It was the il vittoriano which is an amazing building. Apparently the locals don't like this building as much because it's so big it blocks out the other amazing buildings such as the colosseum. We initially went there to see one of Rome's famous galleries but the line was too long so we just ended up wandering. We ended up walking into an old alley way and when we got out the other side we were facing the Roman Forum! such an incredible site! As we walked back into the streets ... read more

Yesterday I fell asleep before I could write my blog. Still a built jet lagged but slowly adjusting. I've realised now that ive got to stop thinking like a princess and start thinking like a contiki tourist, cold showers and all. Yesterday Nakita told me the what I thought was a urinal in our bathroom was actually a butt cleaner (bidet). Thought I'd pass on that European experience :). We hed some breaky in the hotel then thought we would go and visit the pantheon (we are going to see it at the end of contiki but thought we could have a sneak peak). We took our maps and started walking. We definitely looked like lost tourists at multiple parts of the journey. We didnt make it to the pantheon but we almost made it to ... read more

Day 1: I arrived in Rome! the flight over was amazing! I arrived at Auckland airport at about 6.45am on May 2nd and got to Rome on the 3rd May at 6.50am. 3 days of flying, so it's nice to be back on the ground again. I was very lucky and got to fly on business class on air nz and Thai airways and then first class Thai airways for the last flight. When I arrived in Bangkok they had someone greet me as soon as I got to the airport and they drove me in a little golf cart to the first class lounge. The lounge was amazing and I was given a free back massage. Except at one point in the massage I fell asleep whilst sitting up which gave the girl a huge ... read more

If there is another city that I would love to return to, it has to be Rome. Not because it boasts the stunning scenery like the Alps, nor is it having extremely cordial locals that made me feel so much at home. On the contrast, the herd of tourists heading there seeking photos of the famous Colosseum can easily put a traveller off. Coupled that with the constant threat of pickpockets and street scammers, its hardly the ideal destination. It is rather, because of the richness in history and culture that this glorious city has to offer. It is for the reason that the Rome ruins from over thousand years ago seem to be able to speak and get distant descendants like us to wonder and ponder what might have been. It is because one seem ... read more

Todays Gelato flavour was : Mint and Chocolate I have had an ambition since my college days and geography lessons to see what the Appian Way in Rome was all about. The road was built initially for military purposes in 312 BC and ran all the way from Rome to Brindisi in the south,many hundreds of kilometres away.We were sure it wasn't going to look anything like that today. The day,at around 16C, was still a bit overcast and rain was in the forecast but not expected until later in the day.However we set off prepared with rain jackets which would also provide insulation from the breeze which was a cool westerly. Girogio,the B&B owner,suggested a 218 bus from in front of the nearby San Giovanni church.He wasn't sure how you actually paid to ride the ... read more