Rome

When in Rome....eat as much gelato as possible. Besides the ice cream Rome was just as idyllic as I had imagined it to be. Roman ruins scattered across the city, cafes lining the streets, the distinctly Italian foliage; it was beautiful. The first day we got there we met up with my friend Jackson (who you may remember visited me in Vienna), and he showed us around his neighborhood which included the pantheon.

After that we went to the gardens around Villa Borghese and strolled among the fresh new spring foliage. It was so nice to be able to take our time and enjoy the city on 'Roman time'.

The next day we got an early start and went to the Vatican. I'm not Catholic but I was really looking forward to seeing St. Peter's basilica and the Sistine Chapel. We got there around 9 a.m. so the line wasn't that long - St. Peter's was full of crisp morning light pouring into the windows.

Afterward we jumped in the already long line to see the Sistine Chapel. The line took an hour and a half but was well worth it - in order to get to the chapel you are able to walk through a bunch of other galleries and exhibits which really build up to seeing the Sistine Chapel. After leaving the Vatican Karina and I trekked across town to the Colosseum. I actually thought the Colosseum would be bigger than it actually was but seeing it in person was really exciting. I can't even imagine what it was like back in its glory days!

The next day we met up with Jackson's sister, Emma, who came into Rome that morning. We made our way to the Spanish Steps and then to the Trevi fountain. I love fountains, I have always been enthralled by the combination of water, art, and engineering - and of course the Trevi fountain is the mother of all fountains. The water was so crisply blue and the way the water flowed it looked like a secret lagoon. I enthusiastically threw my penny in and was so tempted to jump in myself. I could have sat by the fountain all day but we had more of Rome to see. Afterward we treated ourselves to yes, more gelato. This time we went to a place suggested by several friends located by the pantheon - I had champagne and black raspberry!

 

 That night we went on a little night walk back to the Colosseum and it just so happened to be the day before Rome's birthday which meant the ruins were all lit up! There was a rehearsal for an event so we got to watch a little light show against the ruins! And the Colosseum lit up at night was stunning! We walked around that area for a bit then made our way over to the Circus Maximus.

The next morning I went with Emma to the Roman Forum ruins. I had enough time before my flight to squeeze it in and I am so glad I did. Not only were the ruins fascinating but so beautiful. There were poppies dotting the bright green grass and roses climbing the ancient walls.

Since Jackson is studying abroad in Rome he was able to provide us with some great cultural context. He made an interesting observation when he said Rome is being suffocated by its own history. The tourists are hard to ignore and when tourism is such a huge part of a cities identity there are bound to be good and bad effects. From what I understand Italian politics are corrupt, there is a very high unemployment rate among 20 somethings, the different regions of Italy couldn't be more different causing national friction, and there is a steadily declining birthrate (of course this is a very small compilation of opinions, but nonetheless interesting.) I'm really happy I chose to spend a week in Italy - there is so much to see but I think my time in Florence and Rome were a great introduction to the country. I don't think I would ever live in Italy, needless to say it is very different than Austria, but I would love to come back and discover more!