Conquering Rome

St. Peter's

This past weekend our group traveled to Rome for 3 days.  It was awesome!  The history found in the city is incredible.  Our weekend started early Friday morning around 8am when we caught a bus to Rome.  We took the Frecciarossa (red arrow) which is the fastest train going from Florence to Rome.  After about an hour and a half on the train, we arrived in the beautiful city of Rome.

St. Peter's Square

After arriving at our hotel, we began our first adventure to Vatican City.  For those of you that don't know, Vatican City is actually it's own country, meaning that they could technically check our passports when entering, but they didn't.  After standing in line to get into the city, we started on our tour of the Vatican Museums, the ending of which is the famous Sistine Chapel.  We spent about 3 hours walking through the museums before finally reaching the Sistine Chapel.  Once we got to the Chapel, I was overwhelmed, not by the beauty of the art, but by the enormous amounts of people!  The Sistine Chapel is a holy place, meaning that photographs are not allowed and it is supposed to be completely silent, but with hundreds of people crammed into the room, it was almost impossible for the guards to stop photographs and keep people quiet.  It was frustrating that people were not being respectful of the art and the chapel, but I think it's fairly typical.  After seeing the Sistine Chapel we went to St. Peter's Basilica which was amazing.  It is the biggest church in the world and the head of the Catholic church, and all of the art inside is mosaics which is incredible.  We also hung out at St. Peter's Square for a bit, saw where the Pope makes his speeches, saw the window to the Pope's office, and even saw a beautiful rainbow!  After a long day of tours and art, I was exhausted.  I ate dinner and headed to bed to prepare for our next day of tours.

The Roman Forum

On Saturday we started early in the morning and the day was focused on the Romans.  The first place we saw was the Roman forum which is basically just a big area of old ruins.  It was neat to see all the old stuff, but it was nothing compared to the Colosseum where we headed next.

The Colosseum

The Colosseum was so cool!  It was massive and the history behind it is amazing.  The Romans basically used it as a big stadium where they would have gladiator battles and beast battles (it was a pretty gruesome place and I'm pretty sure tons of people died there).  It blows my mind how the Romans were able to build such a huge place without any of the technology we have today, but they were pretty smart people.

The Pantheon

After the Colosseum we went to the Pantheon which is another amazing place built by the Romans.  The Pantheon was originally built as a temple to all gods, but it is now a Christian church and they still have services there sometimes.  It was a massive building and the pictures don't do it justice, so you'll all just have to go there for yourselves :)

The Trevi Fountain

On Sunday we had the morning to explore on our own so me and a few friends went to see the Trevi Fountain (yes, we made a wish), and the Spanish Steps (not as cool as I expected).  We also went to the biggest gelato place I have ever seen (they had over 50 different flavors!).  On Sunday evening we were all very exhausted.

In other news, my grandma has officially arrived in Florence!  I was in Rome when she got here, but I got to see her on Sunday and her apartment is so close to my house that I have been able to visit her every day this week.  It is SO nice to have a familiar face here and I will have even more this Sunday when my parents and aunt arrive.  Then the next week my friend, Heidi, comes to visit and then it's exam week! I can't believe my trip is almost over, but I know that when the time comes I will be ready to be home.

Nipozzano Castle

This week was just another normal week of school and this weekend was fairly normal as well.  On Thursday after class, we took a group trip to two different castles owned by the Frescobaldi family.  We are lucky because one of the teachers in our program (unfortunately I am not in her class) is Diletta Frescobaldi, the 32nd generation of the family.  The Frescobaldi family has been in the wine-making business for over 700 years, and the castles we visited are just two of their many locations throughout Tuscany.  The first castle, Pomino, was up on top of a very large hill where it was much colder than in Florence.  At Pomino, they grow a type of grape that can only be grown in colder temperatures, hence the reason for the high altitude.  We got a short tour of the estate before hopping on the bus and going down the hill to Nipozzano, the second castle.  Fortunately is was much warmer at Nipozzano and after the tour, we got to taste some wines that were produced by the Frescobaldi's.  Overall it was a fun day!

On top of one of the towers in San Gimignano

Gelato World Champion 2006-2007/2008-2009

On Saturday a group of us traveled to San Gimignano, a town about an hour away that is known for its many (still standing) towers.  When we arrived, we immediately noticed the difference in temperature from Florence.  It was freezing!!! But, despite the weather, we decided to make the most of our trip and we climbed one of the 13 towers, ate "World Champion" gelato, got some pizzas, and walked around the market.  By 4 o'clock, however, we were all very cold and ready to go home, so we got on the bus and headed back to Florence. 

This week is another normal week followed by a very exciting weekend--ROME! I can't wait to visit Italy's capital and the Vatican and see all of the things I've read so much about.  In addition to the trip to Rome, my grandma also arrives in Florence this weekend and I can't wait!  I can't believe it's been 2 months already, but I am definitely ready to see a familiar face and tell her all about my experience and hopefully have many more cool experiences with her while she's here.  Well, today is a very cold, rainy day so it's a great day to do homework! Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers and I hope everyone is doing well back home! :)

Fiesole, Lucca, and Pisa!

This weekend I decided not to travel too far from Florence, but to enjoy the sights and towns that are close by.  On Friday, 3 of us girls hopped on a bus and went to Fiesole, a tiny, quiet little town in the hills just outside of Florence.  It was beautiful!  It was so great to see trees, grass, and to breath clean air.  While in Fiesole, we visited some Roman ruins.  At the ruins, there was an amphitheater, a temple, and some baths.  The ruins were incredible.  Those Romans definitely knew what they were doing!  

Then, on Saturday, we took the train to the city of Lucca, about 1 hour outside of Florence.  Once we got there, we went straight to the bike rental place and rented some bikes for the day.  We had heard that the best thing to do in Lucca is ride bikes around the ramparts, so that's what we did!  Lucca's walls are the most in-tact of any city we've seen so far because Lucca was never really attacked, so the walls never suffered much damage.  Along the top of the walls, there is a beautiful path for bikers and pedestrians...no cars allowed!  Luckily it was a gorgeous day for biking and it was so much fun!  After biking for a few hours, we got on the train to Pisa.  Everyone knows what's in Pisa...the Leaning Tower!  We were so exhausted by this point that we literally got off the bus, walked to the tower, took the most touristy pictures possible, and left.  It may sound lame, but we had heard from multiple sources that the only thing worth seeing in Pisa is the tower, so that's what we did.  The tower was awesome, though!  I'm not exactly sure how it's still standing, but I'm glad it is!  After about 2 hours in Pisa, we got on the train back to Florence and we all slept the entire way back. 

Today (Sunday) was spent relaxing, catching up on sleep, and doing homework.  A friend and I walked up to Piazzale Michelangelo since it was such a beautiful day (60 degrees and SUNNY!) and then I came back and got started on my homework for the week.  This week is just a normal week of classes and schoolwork, so I don't anticipate much excitement.  Last week was the start of tourist season, and it is very obvious.  Luckily I have already become accustomed to the city and I no longer feel like a tourist :) I even helped some Americans find their way the other night!  I was so proud :)

Well, until next time...Ciao!!!