Roma, Day Two

Day two started early. Not bright and early, as we were up before the sun (again). Watching the sunrise in Rome was worth it. We spent our first hours at the Vatican. It was, of course, beautiful.

First we went through a few of the main galleries.

Main art gallery, with mosaics and statues.

BCE Mosaic.

The map corridor.

In the tapestry corridor, the ceiling is painted to look like sculpture. Impressive, huh?

 After that was the Sistine Chapel. Photography is not allowed there, but it was breath-taking.

Last was St. Peter’s Basilica. Everything inside is mosaic, not paint. It’s really quite incredible. Everything is marble. The line outside went on forever—thank god tours get in on their own. The plaza was probably my favorite, partially because I could breathe there.

St. Peter's Chapel, one of many in the Basilica.

After that we had the best paninis ever.

That day we killed our legs. We walked from the Vatican to the southern side of the historical district to see Tiber Island and the old ghetto. Tiber Island was one of my favorite parts of the trip. By the old ghetto I was starting to feel pain. Before we’d crossed it, we gave up and sat for about an hour people-watching. Did I mention it was around 90 degrees at this point?

Hello there, Octavius/Augustus. We keep meeting. This was actually near the Colosseum.

 After that we trooped back to the hotel and passed out. We woke up in time for dinner at an Irish Pub, where I got my spaghetti and lemoncello, ironically. Then we walked down to the Piazza de la Republica, which was gorgeous and filled with artisans. Also crazy drivers, but that was pretty normal for Rome.

 After it started getting dark we walked back, stopping at an Italian bookstore for the one English book there. That day we saw both sunrise and sunset in Rome. The lack of sleep was worth it.