Roma

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It was a beautiful day in Rome today. We all slept very well last night. Pedro slept late! Really late! We woke up at 0950. Breakfast was served from 0700 to 1000 at the hotel, so we rushed down. It was a very good start to the day. A full spread of eggs, meats, fresh fruit, pastries and fresh juices. We were glad we did not miss it! We took the "M" to the Vatican. We got there just before 12 and the Basilica was closed today from 1200 to 1400 as they were preparing for the presentation of the Nativity. We walked down to the Castel 'Angelo and did the full tour. We had a snack of pizza for lunch and then it was back to Basilica San Pietro. We wanted to do the climb to the Cupola so we got in the line. After we were waiting for some time we saw the sign that it was cash only. We did not have many euros left as the pizza place was cash only as well. We counted our euros and we were just short. We decided to see if we could use a few US dollars instead. We got to the ticket area and handed the guy the euros. He counted the money and handed 7 back with our ticket for 4 to climb to the top. We either got the "buy 3 get one free deal" or he decided to let Kasie in for free. We were not sure, but we were glad that we all got to go. We climbed to the top. Sriracha was given the challenge of the day to find a priest and high five him for a photo. True to form she found a cooperative and photogenic priest when we were viewing out of the top of the San Pietro Cupola. A quick high five and he was smiling and said he must be famous! We took some more pictures as we walked around the rooftop as the sun started to fade. We then went down and did the walk through the Basilica. We went outside and the service to unveil the "sand nativity" was just starting. There was music and some speaking and then they pulled up the curtain to reveal the nativity. The music as playing "the First Noel" as the curtain went up. A few minutes later the Christmas tree was lit up as well. We really could not have timed it better if we had tried. We made our way walking through the city to the Trevi Fountain and to the Pantheon. We were all getting tired and decided it was time to head back to the hotel. We hopped a metro bus to one of the metro subway stations and then took the subway back to the hotel. We had another wonderful meal at Aquila Nera. We were welcomed back and seated immediately.

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