To soften the blow of turning a year older, we thought we would use it as an excuse for taking off for a long, relaxing trip to Rome. I have always wanted to explore and visit Italy, and one big factor is that it is the home of my favourite food and drink Prosecco, with the addition of fabulous culture and stunning sites.
We managed to find a reasonable five star hotel on the outskirts, I say reasonable because it really was on the outskirts, which is why a five star was so cheap. Looking back it would have been better to have down graded to a three or two star in the city centre. It was a great leg and bum workout though, ten minute walk to the tube station and approximately ten minutes on the tube and we arrived in the centre by the Colosseum.
After a long day of travelling there, we ventured out of our hotel after walking around for an hour trying to find it and having finally got our bearings headed to the tube station. As it was the closest and most obvious place to go to first, we went straight to Colosseo (one guess as to what building is there). As soon as I stepped off the tube and stepped outside, we were immediately graced with the grandeur of the Colosseum. It was incredibly overwhelming, surreal and breath taking. After all these years, hearing all the historic stories and films made about this building and I am stood in front of it. The atmosphere outside was warm and electric, you could sense other tourists' excitement in the air. In the warmth of the evenings air, hand in hand, off we strolled along the cobbles. I am glad someone pre warned me not to take heels because of the cobbles there. We wandered around in search of course for a bar to celebrate our arrival and to kick start a fun filled, romantic vacation. To my glee we found a great place where we sipped on Prosecco and quite a few (albeit maybe a tad too many) cocktails. To my joy we discovered Prosecco was always the cheapest alcoholic beverage on the menu, so I was incredibly chuffed about that, Joshua not so much. It was a great evening to head onto great things and new adventures.
We woke early for an authentic Italian breakfast, which we did everyday of our stay. Which featured, delectable cold meats, cheese, pastries and superbly strong coffee, to kick start the day. Being incredibly organised I had pre booked tickets for the Colosseum and the Vatican spread across the days we were there. I seriously recommend doing this before hand, unless you want to spend your whole time queuing for hours. The days we did not have anything booked, we spent leisurely walking around the city, taking in the beautifully adorned architecture of the buildings and soaking up as much culture as we could.
As mentioned on the one day, we did book the Colosseum and this really does take a whole day, if you include the grounds and ruins. A wonderful day well spent though,throughout our visit of the site, I had vivid images of grand gladiators preparing for fights and charging around, with Royal Caesar's gracing the building to watch the events. It was magnificent, finally stepping onto such famous grounds and seeing such an incredible history before you. Of course you know it is a terribly grand venue but nothing quite prepares you for the real size that it is.
The Vatican City was remarkable, the architecture and carvings on the building were stunning. Beautiful white statues and carvings, graced the Basilica and the crowds, looking like small ants in comparison filled the square. The sun was shining and it took us a good part of the day to walk around the grounds, making our slow approach towards the Sistine Chapel. I am a huge art lover so I was in paradise, having my eyes scan over detailed paintings by the famous painter Michaelangelo. When you finally arrive at the Sistine Chapel and look up to such a grand, high ceiling, painted with such colour and depth, you think you have died and gone to heaven itself. Everyone was in awe, please note that I unfortunately do not have any photographs as it was forbidden. The remaining part of the day we walked around the museums there and tried to take it all in. To top it all off during our vacation here and a little bit of research we witnessed the Pope out of his window, addressing us among many people in the crowd for twenty minutes. I am not very clued up on the Italian language, apart from the basics, so we could not understand really what he was saying but we got the general gist of it. The atmosphere was palpable, intense and exciting, it was quite an emotional experience and one we will not forget.
Of course we saw the other popular tourist hot spots; The Trevi Fountain, The Pantheon, etc. without planning. Rome is a very easy city to find your way around and a lot of it we happened to stumble upon whilst walking.
I adored Rome, there was never a bad restaurant or bar, with the food out of this world. I know the gym will be calling my name now we are back.
The atmosphere of the entire city is humble and vibrant, with a friendly, relaxed ,warmth to its nature. All the buildings are a dance on the eyes, captivating you and pulling you in. I certainly cannot wait to go back to this enchanting capital!
Next time on the blog I will be giving a run down on my Italian wardrobe picks!
Lots of Love or arrivederci
xxxx
