Roma!

We took a 4 day trip to Rome at the end of September and it was as facinating and wonderful as everyone told us it would be!  We stayed near the Termini area and did 4 days of non-stop sightseeing.  We started off by going by the Vittorio Emanuele, otherwise known as "The Wedding Cake", which is a massive white marble building that can be seen from many of the points that overlook the city.  It was built in the late 19th century (so very recently to most Italians) in honor of the first King of unified Italy.  The monument also houses the Tomb of the Unkown Soldier with an eternal flame which was bulit after WWI.  As we walked towards the Roman Forum, we looked up and saw the Colosseum....seeing a structure like that right in the middle of the city was something neither of us had seen and we were amazed.  You can't help but stare at it and think about all of the history in this city.  We then took a tour of the Roman Forum with an audio guide which helped capture what it looked like over 2,000 years ago. Hearing about the kings and queens who ruled there and seeing Ceasar's house was truely mind-blowing.  The next day, we did another audio tour but this time of the Colosseum.  Every modern day stadium runs exactly like the Colosseum did back then - they had concession stands there and sold merchandise of fan's favorite warriors.  The only difference is that after the "game", if a person was still alive, the King would give the thumbs up or down to decide if he lives or dies.  So, we're happy times have changed since then and sports are a little more civilized!

We spent one full morning touring Vatican City.  The Vatican is its own country, run by the Pope with its own currency and army (you have to be Swiss, male and under 30....and wear a less than flattering uniform).  We got to tour the Vatican museum and the Sistene Chapel, which was stunning.  Matt even snagged a photo of the ceiling before being yelled at by one of the security guards.  One of the interesting facts we learned was that after Michaelangelo did the first scene, he got down of his ladder, looked up and realized the figures were too small.  So, you can see the progression in his paintings and how the others are much larger than his first.  We headed over to St. Peter's Basilica and took a tour of where the dead popes are buried.  Molly blessed her rosary beads at the grave of St. Peter and then we headed up to the church.  It was STUNNING.  Words and pictures cannot even describe how big this church is and how ornate and beautiful everything was.  Pope Ignatious is the only Pope who lies in the church...and that's because he is a Saint.  Once Pope John Paul is annointed a Saint (they say it will be soon), they will move his body upstairs to the church too.  We spent a lot of time in the Basilica since neither of us had seen anything like it before.

From there, we headed to the Borghese Gallery which made both of us fans of sculptures.....or maybe fans of having enough money to buy all this art!  This family's collection is really unbelievable and the grounds the house is on are magnificient.  The collection was started by Cardinal Borghese (a nephew of Pope Paul V) in the 1600's and houses art by many famous artists including Bernini and Carvaggio

One other really interesting sight was the Capuchin Crypt.  It contains the skeletal remains of over 4,000 bones believed to be Capuchin friars buried by their order.  The bones are arranged in a very structured and artful way.  It was very freaky and odd but we were both facinated. 

We also got to see the other main attractions - theTrevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, Roman baths, lots of piazzas and churches and of course we ate as much gelato as we could!  We both threw our coins in to the Trevi Fountain so we'll be sure to go back!

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