Rome, Italy

Rome, wow. Lots to see and it's hard to take it all in at once.

Yesterday was spent seeing a lot of sights, the Colosseum, the surrounding ruins and their temples, as well as, the Trevi Fountain. It is amazing to see all of the art and skill that it took to create such phenomenal buildings and sculptures. The sheer size and ability of these building to withstand 25 centuries of the elements and war is incredible.  The evening was spent wandering around the up and coming area of Pigniot, which wasn't quite what we expected, but was interesting to see how some of the young locals hang out. Lots of walking so I'm hoping we're burning off all the gelati we ve been eating! It is great to be back in a cosmopolitan city, mostly for the diversity of food. I was getting pretty tired of Greek food every day, every meal by the end of our 11th day in Greece, so Italy is refreshing for the taste buds. I am also in love with the language: Buon Journo! Grazie!Salute! Love it. Pizza, pasta, wine, hand talking, it's all here and it's great.

We lucked out with a sunny/cloudy day yesterday to be able to see the outdoor sights but today it is absolutely pouring with thunder showers. I also accidentally left the lighter jacket I had (still have my down one) at one of the hotels in Greece, so will have to buy a new one today, poor me, having to shop in Italy :).

Today we will go to see the Vatican but unfortunately will miss the Sistine Chapel as the Vatican museum is closed as they begin the process of selecting the new pope today. Sort of an exciting time to be in Rome. Apparently, it can sometimes take a few days to weeks to select a new pope, there are a number of rounds of voting as a two-third majority needs to be met in order to name the new pope. Tonight we will  watch the news to see if black or white smoke comes out of the chimney, white, indicating a new pope was selected, black, one has not. Every time we walk by the hundreds of postcards of pope Benedict in tourist shops I keep wondering what they are going to do with them all in a few days? Postcard sale? :) It is has been interesting thus far to learn more about the Vatican; only 110 acres in size, with a population of 800, it is the smallest state in the world.

Other than that, I missing  sharing a lot of these experiences with friends\family. There are so many cool bars and restaurants, would be great to enjoy them and socialize with friends! We havent recently met a lot of people as we have been staying in pseudo hotels\hostels but are excited to hopefully meet up with some friends in Venice in a few days.

Other than that, the spring-ish weather here is getting me excited about spring\summer in Van - cannot wait to get out in nature for some hikes and camping. Some photos from our first day in Rome below. Also added some videos to my previous post from Greece.

Jess