The Trip-Day 3

Roma...











Well, this day...with our luggage intact, thanks to my father who drove us into Rome the night before to pick up our luggage, as we couldn't take the train (trains seem to shut down absurdly early in Italy)...found us in Rome! It is a huge chaotic bustling city, of who's metro system I didn't even remotley understand the entire time I was there, so I just followed everyone else around! Today we got to go to the Vatican! I was extremely excited as I have been wanting to see the Sistine Chapel in person for a very long time...Which continued as we entered the Vatican. Man, the chapel is way at the end of a huge amount of other exhibits, that I wound through for hours!












Not to even mention all the painted decorations on the ceilings! I always feel that by my second or third day in Italy, my neck is sore and tired from constantly looking up...It is truly amazing and fantastic, the amount of painting and decoration that is on every surface...and that you can take pictures if you don't use a flash! (you can click on the pictures to enlarge)

































And, if you get tired of looking up, you can look down and notice the many marble mosaics you're walking on, and large slabs of marble everywhere...it is a true feast for the eyes!














Or...any of the walls...



We were lucky to see the Egypt exhibit. I guess there are so many rooms the afternoon and morning exhibits are very different...(I did restrain from taking picures of the two mummies!)




























And as we slowly wound our way through all the rooms, including one by Raphael...through an amazing tapestry room and a map room, depicting all the things they'd discovered up until that time...we were lead into this hall...











And I did respect all the postings while in the actual chapel, and did not take any pictures of the ceiling...although there were a lot of people who were, and the officials were not stopping them. I just felt honored to be where Michelangelo was once...creating beauty! So, you can see it here. I did want to go to St. Peter's square...and the Piata', but we were hungry...and strolled down the ramp to the exit...











We ate and then went for gellato at a fabulous place called Giollati...where you have to pay first then take your ticket to elbow through the crowd and shout out your order from the 30+ flavors they have (I had coconut and pistachio) And in case you're wondering Pistachio is better in Florence! We did not have trouble eating here twice more in our two days in Rome! And on to the Panthenon...sorry, my pictures did not survive this but you can see it here. And the spanish steps...no picture here either! So here it is. But I did take pictures at the Trivoli fountain!











I didn't have any pictures of me taken because I was toatlly overwhelmed and grupmy by this point...It was a little overstimulating for me to be around these many people on not much sleep, trying to recall what little I know of the Italian language..but there are some pictures of me coming up!