I can't believe I have been blogging for five months and this is my first travel post! I love to travel. I am that girl who would rather take a road trip across country then fly, or the girl who loves 14 hour plane rides because I know an adventure awaits! I don't know what I would do if I didn't have some sort of trip to look forward to.
If you haven't noticed, my blog gets a lot of inspiration from Tolkien and Lord of the Rings (nerd alert). And, I have said that, hobbits and I have a special little connection. The only barrier I face is hobbits don't like to leave their holes - that is unless they have a little bit of "Took" blood in them, which is a clan of hobbits. The hobbits who do have "Took" in them, Bilbo and Frodo, are drawn to adventure. So, with that being said, I must have a little bit of "Took" blood in me (now I do realize these are fictional characters, and that I am slightly crazy)! In the real world, however, I do have "Cook" blood in me, so that counts right? One more crazy LOTR mention before I move on: my blog's tagline is also from LOTR, but it has become a life motto of sorts.
{Not all those who wander are lost}
{Not all those who wander are lost}
So now to Rome!
Italy is one of the most recent countries I have been blessed to visit. I have traveled with the same group of people the past few times I have been overseas. This particular trip, we went to Italy, Vatican City, and Greece. And yes, Vatican City is considered its own country, so you better believe I count it as one!
So here is a look at my trip! I won't document every little detail, but I will hit the high points! Get ready for picture overload!
Beautiful Vatican City:
The Vatican is actually located within Rome, and the entire city is walled off. I believe it like 1 mile by 1 mile, or something like that :) It isn't very big though! The population is around 800, so it is the smallest country in the world!
 |
| St. Peter's Basilica! |
 |
| The Pieta by Michelangelo |
 |
| The dome of St. Peter's Basilica! |
The Spanish Steps:
This was one of my favorite moments of the trip. We went to a little coffee house, Cafe Greco. It is the oldest coffee house in the city, and authors such as Mark Twain frequented it often. The coffee house still contains the original furniture that is over 200 years old - how cool! After drinking our Italian cappuccino, we walked about a block further and ran smack dab into the Spanish Steps! The steps themselves lead to a church, but the significance of this area is that it became known as the English Ghetto. This is because, people who developed TB because of the wet climate in England would travel to Italy for drier climate, and they would live in this area. My favorite Romantic poet, John Keats, was one of these people. He lived in a little apartment to the right of these steps. You can see the windows to the apartment in this pic. He actually ended up dying here. His life was a tragic, yet romantic, journey. If you are interested in British or Romantic poets you need to read him (sorry English Major moment). But anyways, we got to tour his room/museum as well! |
| The Spanish Steps |
The Trevi is one of the most famous fountains in the world. The legend says that if you toss a coin into the Trevi Fountain you are ensured a return trip to Rome! You better believe I threw some coins in that thing :)
The Pantheon:
The Pantheon is most famous for the big hole in it's celling! It was built in 126 AD as a temple to all the gods of Rome. It's circular shape and granite columns are still a marvel to look at.
The Piazza Novona:
Strolling along the Piazza Novona was not only one of my favorite moments, but I got to stroll along hand-in-hand with my boy! It was so special walking around with him looking at the local art work. Top moment of the trip!
The Church of St. Peter in Chains:
 |
| Peter's Chains |
 |
| Statue of Moses by Michelangelo. |
The Colosseum:
I'm pretty sure you all know what the Colosseum is, so I don't think I need to go into details. But let me just say, it was one of those moments you don't forget.
 |
| The boy and me inside the Colosseum! |
The Roman Forum and Paul's Prison:
The Roman Forum is home to several ancient government buildings, but it most significantly would have functioned as a marketplace in ancient Rome. It is located at the center of Rome. Right next to the Forum, stands Mamertinum Prison - the prison that Paul (yes, from the Bible) wrote Second Timothy in. While we were standing in one of the confinements, we read a passage from Second Timothy. Let's just say, a few tears were shed at the moment.
 |
| Roman Forum |
 |
| The hole Paul would have been lowered down. |
The Catacombs and St. Paul's Outside the Walls:
We got to tour the catacombs outside the Roman city walls. We weren't allowed to take pictures inside - I guess that might have been a little creepy! They were actually pretty cool though. We only looked at a small portion of the catacombs because the tombs stretched for miles under the surface of the ground. A few of us got lost while trying to keep up with the guide... I'm pretty sure we broke a few rules as we tried to find our way back! After the catacombs, we went to St. Paul's Outside the Walls. St. Paul's is another basilica, and the Catholic church believes that the tomb of Paul is located within the church. This was one of the most gorgeous churches I have ever been in, and I've been to a LOT of churches/cathedrals. The upper facade is one large mosaic.
All photos were taken by me. If you would like to use any of these photos for personal use, please ask me first and link them back to this blog.
1) I am still maddeningly jealous. 2) Your blog inspires me to give my own blog a facelift. 3) The Vatican is the only carbon-neutral state in the world (aka: it's "go green or go home")
ReplyDeleteWhat can I say, the Pope's crunchy. :)
DeleteI am glad you enjoyed your vacation. Amazing places!
ReplyDelete