First item on the agenda--see the Pope. We took the Metro to the Vatican, then we bought a few rosaries to give as gifts. The Pope addresses the masses in St. Peter's Square every Sunday at noon.
And by masses, I mean people by the THOUSANDS...and they all had cameras. So did we.
When we arrived, mass was still in progress in the Basilica. We could see a simulcast of the service on Jumbotrons in the square. Even though the service was in Italian, the music was really nice and it was cool to see a service in the "mother church."
About 10 minutes after church let out, the windows opened in the papal apartment, the maroon cloth was rolled out,
and then the Pope stepped out.
Obviously, we didn't get a good view of him. It could have been a cardboard cutout for all we know. He gave a message in Italian, and then he gave short blessings in English, German, and Spanish.
He welcomed us to the Vatican on Pentecost Sunday (and we still don't know what Pentecost is) and blessed us with wisdom, joy and peace. It was a really awesome experience. He blessed my rosaries...although he probably does not realize that.
Next we did lunch...mmmmm, McDonalds. But did you know McDonalds charges for ketchup in Italy? That’s un-American! Beggars in the McDonalds hit us up for money. They were everywhere and use their kids to make people feel sorry for them. They were also picking up used cups and drinking from them, so they were obviously hungry enough to eat others’ leftovers. It was really sad.
Our next activity was the Coliseum.
It was huge and an awesome site to see. It would have been so cool to go to an event there.
We both decided to watch Gladiator when we got home.
Did you know they had luxury boxes in ancient Rome? Seriously. The photo below is of antique stadium boxes where the emperor and other rich folk would sit.
Graffitti is all over Rome, but we were rather disappointed to see that Americans...TEXANS for that matter...participated. Of course, this adds fuel to all of our aggie jokes.
It was kind of hot in the Coliseum, so we sat in the shade and gawked at the architectural wonder, but then our attention turned to people's feet. We could not believe some of shoes people would wear. Heels, wedges, flip flops, tall boots...all to tromp around the cobblestone streets of ancient Rome. How very intelligent.
We learned, however, of a new fashion craze--boy capris. Scotty can't wait to get a pair.
Constantine's Arch is right next to the Coliseum. Constantine legalized Christianity in Rome around 300...or maybe 500 A.D. So, we can attribute him for our religion spreading across Europe and eventually to the United States.
We took a tour of Palatine Hill, the hilltop overlooking Rome where all the ancient emperors lived. Palatine means palace in Italian.
As you walk through the area, you can see why the emperors chose that location for their homes, it was really beautiful. When a new emperor took over, he would build a new palace.
There are lots and lots of ruined buildings...and then Mussolini built his palace up there too. I found that just a bit pretentious. His palace is now some sort of museum.
Mussolini's digs were not all that pretty, but nice view. We saw what was left of the Circus Maximus, the old chariot race track. It doesn't look like much now, but I guess it once was really something to see.
Palatine Hill was where Rome began, and then the civilization flourished in the Forum. The Forum is at the bottom of Palatine Hill, and you can see how this once was a busy city with lots of residents, visitors and monuments.
Abandoned single pillars were all over the place, and piles of old columns, capitols and marble lay around like scrap metal. Kind of sad (tear, sniff).
Now here's a little story about a town named Rome. A long, long time ago...like waaaayyyy before Christ when mythology ruled, the area had an honorary group called the Vestal Virgins. I can't really remember what they did, but it was an honor to be one. Well, one of the lovely ladies turned up pregnant. Oops. So she told everyone that Zeus or someone like that was the baby daddy, so no one was going to mess with his kid. So she had the babies, and oh no...twins! She named the boys Romulus and Remus. She was still ashamed of having kids out of wedlock, so she dumped the babies. A she-wolf (and every time I tell the story, Shakira's She-Wolf plays in my head) took the babies and raised them as her own. All over Rome, there are carvings and pictures of a she-wolf and two babies.
When the boys were older, they wanted to establish a settlement. They had some sort of fight, and ROMulus won, and hence, ROMe was born. If I understood the guide correctly, archaeologists think this little area protected by the tin roof was possibly Romulus's settlement.
When Rome fell, the buildings and monuments were abandoned, so the churches used the old Roman buildings as their scrap yards, and they took whatever marble and other materials they wanted to use to build cathedrals. Good one Rome.
Just outside the ruins is the jail that held Peter and allegedly, Paul. We really wanted to see this, but it was closed for reconstruction :(
So, we ate! Our friend Kate, who lived in Rome for a semester, recommended Isodoro near the Coliseum. On her suggestion, we did the pasta sampler.
We ate like high school football players at the Pizza Hut lunch buffet. Then we got the bill. The food was reasonably priced, but they charged a 12% service charge AND a $2/person cover. (Note from Scott - hmmmm, it appears my thriftiness has really rubbed off on Erica! Just a few short years ago she never even looked at prices. Good for you E! I'm proud of you!! Now back to Erica).
We got some great nighttime photos of the Coliseum, then called it a night. (Note: Scott's pictures were way better than mine, so I only posted his photos).
When we returned to the B&B we visited with Francesca and family. Their yellow lab had just had puppies, and they decided to crash right in front of the door. They were not moving for us or anyone...they didn't care that we paid money to be there. They were really cute and I wanted to keep one.
Francesca force-fed us apricots soaked in brandy. Holy moly! They were something else! This was a very fun, very nice Italian experience.
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