After a great night’s sleep, we woke up this morning around 10 or so. We realized that Roslana or her husband brought us fresh croissants and milk for breakfast this morning. After we showered and ate breakfast we left the B & B around 11ish and headed out to explore more of Roma!
First we headed to Plaza del Popolo (Piazza of the People) which was just an enormous square that we saw on the map and figured that we would check it out. This piazza has been around for centuries, and was a place for public executions. We took some pictures and then planned to see the Colosseo.
As we were walking towards the Colosseo we ran into an enormous plaza called Piazza Venezia, it is literally located in the center of Rome. This was interesting because it was built about 100 years ago and has a very interesting purpose.
Here are a few more pictures from the Piazza Venezia, which had an amazing view of the city.
The monument on the top is the Victor Emmanuel II, and it was built to honor him because he was the first king of a unified Italy.
After that we wanted to go to the Colosseo. On the way, we stopped at the Foro di Nerva and Foro di Traiano because there were some awesome Roman ruins, and we took some pretty good pictures around there.
This following photo is of a monument of Julius Caesar…
We finally made it to the Colosseo, and it was funny because we planned going there first...but ended up getting distracted with many other parts of the city. As I learned today there is SO MUCH to see in Roma, and in order to get the full experience one needs much more than a few days here. Here are a few pictures outside the Colosseo.
The day started off relatively cloudy, but by the time we reached the Colosseo, it was very sunny and probably 70 degrees again. We waited in line for almost an hour to get inside the Colosseo, but the wait was well worth it.
The Colosseo is one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and Roman engineering, and some say it was began around 70 AD. The Colosseo’s capacity was about 50,000 spectators and it was used for gladiatorial contests, animal fights, and even executions.
This next few pictures were taken inside the Colosseo…I just can’t believe how old this place is. It was really awesome to be there, and quite unreal to be honest. I’ve always seen pictures and heard about the Colosseo, and am happy I finally got the opportunity to experience it!
The Colosseo was packed with people, so after about an hour or so…we decided to leave. We went outside and ate lunch at a restaurant that had outdoor seating, and looked right to the Colosseo. We had some excellent pizza and relaxed for an hour before continuing our day. We really weren’t in that much of a hurry…after all, it isn’t every day one can eat lunch next to the Colosseo in Roma!
Here are a few pictures of the pizzas from lunch!
Delicioso!
Our view of the Colosseo from where we ate lunch..
We walked around to the Arco di Constantino, which is located right outside the Colosseo. The Arco is located between the Colosseo and Palatine Hill. It is said that it was built sometime in the third or fourth century. We also walked around the Arco di Tito or the Arch of Titus and Palatino which was pretty cool. Palatino is one of the most ancient parts of the city, and stands about forty meters above the Roman Forum. It is said that people have lived there since 1000 BC, but I’m not positive on that. Here are a few pictures from that area…
After we finished around that area we wanted to see San Pietro in Vincoli or St. Peter in Chains which was relatively close to the Colosseo. Although it was probably a five minute walk, it took us thirty as we walked in a huge circle. But we had heard that this place was pretty hidden, and there really weren’t as many people there as I thought there would be. The highlight of St. Peter in Chains is Michelangelo’s statue of Moses which was unbelievable, and the following picture shows it….
Haha don't look so happy dad!
Santa Pietro in Vincoli was pretty cool, and we figured we would stop at the Pantheon before we headed back. Of course, this was everything I had expected. The Pantheon literally means “Every God” and it was originally built as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome. It was rebuilt in 126 AD, and is now used as a Roman Catholic Church. I was surprised how big this was, and the inside was just as cool as the outside was.
The following pictures I took outside the Pantheon…
These next few I took inside...
The Pantheon was overwhelmingly huge and we decided to go to Piazza Navona, which is one of the most known parts of Rome. Piazza Navona is the most famous square of Baroque Rome, and is located on the site of Domitian’s stadium. The piazza is lined with restaurants, gelaterias, shops, fountains, and there are people everywhere.
Another government or police car? I feel like I saw at least five different cars and uniforms for the security or police in Italy...
We took some more pictures outside and decided to stop for some gelati.
My Uncle Fred has recommended this restaurant Tre Scalini for some gelati, and it was amazing. We had a few drinks and gelati and decided we would return there later for dinner. Here are a few more pictures of the piazza and the gelati as well….
Haha more police in different uniforms?
On our way back we decided to take a different way back and ran into Palazzo di Giustizia which is the Justice Palace in Rome. Here are a few pictures I took outside of it…
We returned to the Bed and Breakfast and relaxed a little bit before dinner. We actually got the internet working in the apartment which was nice because I was able to check my email for the first time in a few days.
For dinner we went back to Ristorante Tre Scalini, which has been around since 1815. We had dinner for a good three hours, and it was amazing. We sat at a table outside, looking out to Piazza Navona…which was packed with people. We ordered a nice bottle of wine, and had some tortellini soup and bread so start off with. Dad ordered Bolognese pasta, and I had to order the pasta with shrimp and mushrooms which was excellent. For dessert we enjoyed hazelnut and pistachio gelati and of course tiramisu…we had to wash it down right with a few cappuccini. We relaxed for a little while and decided we would have a few after dinner drinks….Dad had an amaretto, and I had a godfather…which was tasty to say the least. I won’t mention what is in a godfather, but those who know have an idea of what I am talking about. Dinner was fun, especially since a few of the servers recognized us from earlier and I actually practiced some of my Italian skills, which was fun because I actually understood them. Of course my speaking skills are lacking a little…I always want to throw in some Spanish and English words as well...but I need to talk more in order to improve my speaking skills. It was still cool that I was able to communicate in Italian, I absolutely love the language! After we finished our drinks we took the nice walk back to the B & B and decided to walk by the Vatican which was lit up beautifully tonight, as it is every night.
Here are a few photos of dinner and the Vatican this evening….
Yes, it was amazing..
Best gelato I've had in my life, by far!
Piazza Navona at night after dinner..
One of the bridges...
An awesome picture of the castle at night, which I will talk about tomorrow..
The Vatican...
Another day has flown by in Italy, and we have two more full nights left. One of the funny things I learned in Roma is that people just walk across the street whenever they feel like it. The cars stop for anybody walking which is awesome. This definitely took a little while to get used to because many streets don’t have walk signs. There are many things we hope to see tomorrow, and have some recommendations which I am excited to try out. I will post tomorrow night again, I hope…but if not definitely on Thursday night!
A piu tardi
