Rome

Rome is the oldest city we've visited, and also the most crowded. Once off the plane we headed to the hotel, but our room wasn't ready yet so we wandered a little. We had a nice hotel room, right off the main street, Via del Corso. It was a great location, with tons of shops and restaurants nearby, and was also within walking distance of many attractions. We had our first Italian pizza, and it was fantastic! They also came with a croquette type fried ball of rice and cheese and meat. Once we were able to check in and put our bags down it was easier to explore, although we mainly stuck to the Via del Corso area. The city isn't too large, so we were able to walk everywhere and didn't have to worry about the metro. There was a lot to see, and to be honest I didn't know the significance of a lot of the monuments, but they were nonetheless impressive.

We saw the Piazza del Popolo, the Trinita dei Monti (AKA Spanish Steps), Palazzo Montecitorio, Castel Sant Angelo, and a number of other sights. One of the most incredible sculptures was the Trevi Fountain:

The Vatican was awe inspiring (as was the line to get into the museum!). The dome of St Peter's Basilica is visible from a number of other points in the city, and the structures in the main square are massive. The museum is free on the last Sunday of the month, so we luckily were able to take advantage of that, although the line to get in took a couple hours. Once in, however, there is plenty to see. Being the Vatican, there is mostly religious art, but there are other items as well. For example, there was a pretty interesting hallway dedicated to old maps, some of which were huge tapestries. There are also a number of other works given to various popes and added to the museum.

The halls and rooms are crammed with people, and nearly everyone makes a beeline through the galleries to the Sistine Chapel. The Chapel itself is amazing, and pictures don't do it justice. Michelangelo's work on the ceiling is incredible, as is the artwork of other artists around the room. One of the most impressive parts of all of it is the attention to detail and 3D shading of the borders. The trim and columns look like they are jumping out of the wall, but it's all flat in reality. It creates an optical illusion that I wouldn't have thought possible for the time it was created.

We took a walk down to the ruins of the forum and other buildings of ancient Rome. For a lot of it, there isn't much to see, but it's still amazing the structure that they had so long ago. As an American, many things on this trip are changing my perception of time. Even though I knew from school the disparity in age between countries, it really hits home just how young all of (westernized) North America really is. We climbed Palatine Hill, which has many ruins, including palaces, a stadium, and vineyards, and gives a great view of the Coloseum. The main reason I wanted to climb was that it's also supposed to give a great view of the Circus Maximus, an enormous racetrack, but unfortunately that side was closed off.

The Colosseum is very impressive, especially when you consider what technology and materials they had to work with. It is enormous, and very aptly named. When you look into the arena, the floor you see is actually the tunnels that ran under the stage. The stage itself was made of wood and covered with sand, so it rotted away a long time ago. Of course, having watched movies like Gladiator, I could imagine it full of Romans watching a match between warriors. I was impressed by the tunnel system and the stage's trap doors and other triumphs of ancient ingenuity.

Another awe-inspiring place is the Pantheon, which is still the largest unsupported concrete dome in the world. The building itself is one room, and the ceiling is composed of the great dome, which has a large hole in the center that lets in sunlight. The Pantheon is dedicated to the gods of ancient Rome, and is also used as a tomb.The painter Raphael is entombed there.

At all of the sights, and actually throughout the city, there were street vendors selling little things like sunglasses or souvenirs or toys. They were super aggressive to the point where they were really an unpleasant nuisance. We saw the police chase them away a few times, but it looked like a never-ending game of cat and mouse. They just pick up their things, run away until the police leave, then come right back.

On trying to leave on Monday night there was a problem with our plane tickets, so we couldn't get on our flight. To make matters worse, we were supposed to be on the last flight of the day and would have to find a flight out the next day. The train back to Rome is expensive, takes an hour, and we didn't have a place to stay anyway, so that led to the three of us sleeping in the airport in Fiumicino. I've never slept in an airport before, but apparently it's not that uncommon; there were at least fifteen other people who also stayed the night in the same area. We slept on metal benches and the tile floor, although we didn't get much sleep. After being in the airport for about eighteen hours, we finally made it on a plane back to Paris. It was a rough night, but we made it back alive.

Gallery for more.