Rome summary

My first night in Rome I ate dinner out and walked around some of the well known spots, which were lit up. I went with Annette, a girl from Norway that I met in the hostel.

St. Peter's (before it got dark, obviously)


Palazzo Nuovo


blurry Colosseum. Where's my tripod when I need it?

We then got gelato and that sums up day one.

The next morning, Saturday, I went to the Vatican museums with someone else I met at the hostel, Jason. Apparently it was European Day, meaning all of the museums in Rome were free. This ended up saving me a lot of money, because museums are also free on the last Sunday of every month. This meant I ate nicer food to get rid of all the cash I had (I didn't discover that everything was free until after I took out money for the weekend).

I didn't enjoy the Vatican museums, they were extremely crowded to the point where I couldn't think about anything, especially about art. The only thing going through my mind while in the Sistine Chapel was "where is the exit?". Tragic. This means I must go back to Rome in Winter or whatever time is opposite tourist season, and do it again.

Jason and I went our separate ways and I ventured on my own around the city. The rest of the weekend blurs together, with endless walking and sightseeing and eating and more walking. I will cover the highlights:


From Castel Sant' Angelo, where I had the amazing cannoli and espresso I pictured in an earlier post.


My favorite fountain in Rome - the water fountain. The water continuously pours out the bottom which is great for filling up water bottles (water is safe to drink in Rome). As this woman demonstrates, you can plug the hole on the bottom and the water will shoot through an alternate hole on the top. Depending on your elevation in the city, the water pressure varies. Here the pressure was strong and water was shooting everywhere when she tried to plug the hole.


Piazza Navona - there are some impressive fountains here but they were under renovation.


I saw Italians illegally parking their tiny cars, running into this place, and stuffing their faces with food as they ran out and drove away. I took that as a sign that I should eat lunch here. I did, and it was so delicious I came back again the next day. Near Campo di Fiori.


Campo di Fiori


Even with a map and a decent sense of direction, I found myself getting offtrack in Rome. I didn't mind, I like to meander, but I found it amusing that the most reliable way to find a tourist hot spot was through McDonald's signs. People were gazing at the Colosseum, sitting on the Spanish Steps, and throwing coins into Trevi fountain with camera in one hand and french fries in the other.


My favorite picture of the Pantheon happens to include a How to Master mug. :)


Just thought this was funny.


I loved the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. I spent around 4 hours there, and if I wasn't out of water and starting to get hungry, I would have spent more.

My general feeling about Rome and Italy is that I have not seen enough. I guess it's time to start saving and hoping that I will get a chance to go back.