My Road (pt. 1)

Well, as I was saying in the last post, my road led me to Rome. And yes, Rome was so awesome that it merits multiple posts about it. In short, it was simply the best I could've imagined. The Eternal City really is a magical place, and, as my coin in the Trevi Fountain indicates, I hope I make it back someday.

I knew I was forgetting something...
So, I usually do a decent job packing. But this trip was a disaster. I won't have photos consolidated for this post for a while because, although I brought my camera, I forgot my camera charger and was pictorally helpless before the first day in Rome was over. In addition, I forgot my phone charger and Rachel's birthday present. I think I deserve an award.

"May the force be with you"
So, I knew instantly that if the very first night in Rome was any indication of how fun the vacation would be, it would be one for the history books. I met up with Rachel at the central train station and immediately headed over to eat some real Italian pizza for the third time in my life (delicious). Then we decided to walk around a bit as we were both fully energetic and ready to take on Rome. Later we joked that if we had pulled an all-nighter we could've seen Rome in one night. We walked a long ways, and, when it started pouring rain, it didn't deter us from continuing (sorry, Rachel haha). We ended up at a plaza that we didn't know the name of and saw a massive monument that looked like the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in DC. The building behind it, however, was huge and very distinct. I guess compared to everything else in Rome it's just normal, but it was hard to believe it wasn't famous. I proceeded to joke that this must be the hidden jedi temple or something George Lucas made. As we departed the plaza, I just said, "May the force be with you..."
[We later found out that it was Venice Plaza and, sure enough, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is exactly what we saw.]

Benedict-ion
Thursday we went to the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica bright and early. We started at St. Peter's; it is the biggest cathedral in the world and is literally 6 acres. Yeah, insane. It was also one of the most ornate buildings I've ever seen, boasting a dome designed by Michaelangelo, Michaelangelo's Pieta, a curvy wooden canopy over the main altar, St. Peter's final resting place, and the coolest stained-glass dove in the world. We climbed the dome (in typical Rachel and Thomas style...always with the stairs and climbs) and got to see views from high up both inside and outside the cathedral. We then proceeded to the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. Words cannot describe the Sistine Chapel--I love Michaelangelo. That man was an absolute artistic paragon. Anyhow, afterwards we went back to St. Peter's so Rachel could buy holy water. It turned out that we were not able to get any holy water, so we just decided to stay in the Basilica for a while and enjoy the strains of music from the service going on. As it ended, Rachel was scanning the room and said, "Is that...is that the POPE?" I turned and, sure enough, we were not belied by the pointy hat or golden staff. It was Pope Benedict XVI. Needless to say, for the next hour we were somewhat shell-shocked. About every 15 minutes on the dot one of us would shake our heads incredulously and remark, "We just saw the Pope!"

From "Et tu Brute?" to Baileys (mmm creamy)
Thursday evening ended with a scenic walk through what Rick Steve (travel guru) calls the "Heart of Rome." We saw multiple plazas, the place where Julius Caesar was assassinated, the Pantheon, and the Trevi Fountain at night. Along the way we stopped and had dinner at a marvelous restaurant. I had lasagna (real Italian lasagna...seems obvious but it just makes it so much cooler) and veal in white wine sauce with roast potatoes...SO good. We also stopped a little later at a little place called Giolitti's, which was the best gelato/ice cream I have EVER had. I had 2flavors: Bailey's cream of whiskey and chocolate. This place knew how to pile it on, and it was just HEAVENLY! I cannot even describe the 10 or so minutes of ecstasy that envelop your senses while consuming the chocolate-dipped cone and the gelato it contains. Tired but overwhelmingly happy, we headed back to the hostel to rest (at least I did; Rachel woke up at 6am to get that holy water...) for Friday and some Ancient Rome...