Rome!

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I am so glad to be back in Florence. Rome was a great place and all that but I would not want to call that place home. It is more like a New York City in Italy. The people there aren't all that friendly, the drivers will definitely run you over, and even restaurant waiters tend to be rude. I didn't really enjoy the culture of Rome; however, it was a great place to visit as a tourist. It turns out that the first day was the Italian Founding of the Republic day (kinda like 4th of July). There was this massive parade that went around the Colliseum and even jet planes flew through the sky emitting red white and green smoke. That was quite cool to watch but extremely hot. Also on the first day, me and a few friends visited the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain. There were great views from the Spanish Steps overlooking much of the city. I threw a coin in Trevi Fountain but what I really wanted to do was to scoop out the hundreds of Euros which were thrown into the Fountain. I can't believe people would actually throw in 2 euro coins! must have been a massive wish. The next day, I did a 3 hour tour of the Vatican where I saw the Sistine Chapel and all sorts of famous paintings by Michelangelo and Rafael. One of my favorite memories from this day was watching this Brittish lady in the Vatican piazza run to her kids to hand them 3 cones of quickly melting gelato . Chocolate was dripping so fast and melting all the way down her arms. Her kids were making a mess with it and had gelato all over their face. I eventually started conversation with them by informing them that I liked their accent. There were so many random American tourists who would come up to my group and randomly start talking to us or asking us questions on how to get somewhere. The following day, we toured the Colliseum and also the Roman Forum. It was crazy to think how it would be to live during the time of the Gladiators and people getting slaughtered by lions. That night, we went to an ice bar where everything was made entirely of ice!! It was -5 degrees celcius and we all received a coat to wear inside. It was quite crazy and mega cold! Most of the girls decided to just wear flip flops and their toes must have been feeling some pain after this event. Overall, Rome was an enjoyable place to visit. The food was pretty good. I am glad to be back in Florence though where the culture continues to impress me. I love wandering the street, seeing familiar faces, and learning what it is like to live in a Renaissance city.

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Comments

[Dad]

when in Rome
how is the transportation in Italy? did you have to travel very far to places in Rome? is your luggage ok after the world travel it went through? you still have space left on your camera for the rest of the trip? We look forward to see the pictures you have taken. hope all is well with you. Dad