Roma!

The next morning we woke up really early to pack and catch our train to Rome. We arrived in Rome around noon, and after catching a taxi to our hotel we dropped off our bags and headed out for a stroll of the city. Within a 1 minute walk we found ourselves standing outside of the Pantheon! It was incredible to see the inside which is a 2000 year old building. The inside was all marble and stone and was gorgeous. It is crazy that the Romans were able to create such a feat of engineering at that time. As we walked out of the Pantheon we were accosted by a gypsy dressed up as a Roman soldier who wanted to take pictures with us. We reluctantly agreed and took several pictures in different poses. We were going to give him a tip but then he said, “10 euros....5 each.” We thought that was extremely steep so we bartered him down to 5 Euros...which I still felt was steep. Afterwards we grabbed a bite to eat and headed to Piazza De Navona which is a minute walk on the other side of our hotel. Literally everywhere you turn in Rome is a famous ancient statue or building! It is honestly overwhelming! It would take a month to properly visit all of these places. Afterwards John had a short nap while I planned some trips for later in the week. We then set off again to see the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps...with of course a bunch of lesser known monuments and buildings on the way. Rome is truly amazing...far better than we expected! I can’t wait to explore it more in the coming days. Tomorrow we are headed off to explore Naples and Pompeii! I will be sure to give you a detailed report when we return!