I am so sorry I have been so slack on my postings lately- my life has been crazy! Last week, I completed all but one of my midterms, and then headed to Rome on Thursday afternoon for the weekend. Our flight out of Barcelona was delayed several hours, but Grace Perry and I finally arrived around 11.
Once settled into our hostel, we met up with Sarah Kana and Margaret Strom who are both studying in Rome for the semester. They picked us up at the train station, and the four of us walked around for a while in search of a wine bar. We settled on a bar that, no joke, was right across the street from the colisseum. It was surreal. There I was sitting with three of my best friends and staring at one of the world's most famous places. After enjoying a delicious glass of wine and catching up for a while, we headed back to our hostel to rest up for a full weekend of touring.
On Friday morning, we met at the Wedding Cake, which I have yet the know the significance of. We then enjoyed my first authentic Italian pizza, which certainly did not disappoint. After lunch, we saw other places like the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Arc of Constantine, Circus Maximus, and the Colisseum once again. We also had gelato at the famous Gioletti ice cream shop, and it was truly a slice of heaven. I had a combination of After Eight (mint), Coffee, and Cream. I could certainly get used to living in Italy!!
The Wedding Cake
Hadrian's Tomb (I think!) with Sarah, GP, and Margaret
The Spanish Steps
The Pantheon
Inside the Pantheon
Italian gelato...Heaven on Earth
The Trevi fountain
Making my wish!
I love Italy!
Dinner with Margaret, Kensley, Me, Sarah, Mollie, and GP
The six of us met up for a 10 am tour of the Vatican, which was absolutely incredible! We toured the Vatican museum, where I saw the Sistine Chapel. Then, we went in St. Peter's Basilica, which was absolutely beautiful. My only regret is that I didn't get a view of the Pope, which some of my friends got when they went on Sunday morning. Still, it was an incredible experience and I'm really glad I got to see everything.
Arch of Constantine
I don't think this one needs a caption
Roman Forum
Inside St. Peter's Basilica
On Saturday night, we went to a restaurant that was one of Anndel's favorite places in Rome during her semester abroad last year. As always, the food, wine, and company were all wonderful. We then went to one of Sarah and Margaret's favorite bars, On the Rocks, for several hours, and called it a night after that.
On our last day, we had lunch with Sarah's parents, who came into town on Sunday morning for the week. Without a doubt, I saved my best meal for last, and was sad to leave Rome! I had the most amazing weekend with beautiful weather, and can't wait for Sarah and Margaret to come visit us in Barca next month!
Simply delicious!
Last night (Monday night), John Langford joined us for dinner at the apartment. John is Mimi's boyfriend of a year and a half and is in town for the week to visit her. Elena and Cecilia went all out on the dinner and we all really enjoyed having a visitor. I also had an occasion to take a picture of my host family for you all to see! I hope everyone is doing well!
My 2 host moms, Elena and Cecilia
Our family of 5!
Me, Mimi, Cecilia, Maya, and Elena
And John comes for dinner!
Molly, I have not checked your blog in a few weeks and I clearly missed out on a lot of your travels. I am blown away by all the places you have been able to visit, and am envious of your upcoming visit to Turkey. That is on our must-see list, but it won't be this year. Your blue boots are very cute, and I'll bet you wound up in a lot of other tourists' photos and didn't realize it. Your blog is a gem of a record that you and your children will enjoy reading one day in the future.
ReplyDeleteSpring is slow in coming to MN, and since nothing green or blooming is up yet, I went to the annual flower show at a downtown department store---it was great to breathe in the fragrances and smell something alive.
We are heading out next week for our month long trip to Europe: a week each in Scotland, England, Romania and northern Italy. We will be seeing lots of friends in each place, and we are looking forward to it. We found a nice young woman from the U of MN to house-sit with the kitties so they will be taken care of well. My challenge now is to get all my packing down to one bag--yikes.
Will check your blog again soon. Keep having a great time. Aunt Nancy