3 days in Rome (including the Vatican City)
Rome is really a place of dreams- it was one of my favorite places to visit last summer!
We prepared for our trip to Rome in two ways. The first was by watching Roman Holiday- one of my favorite movies of all time! It flips the classic fairy tale story where a girl wants to be a princess. Instead, the main character is a princess wanting to get away from her life of being a royal. We watched this movie because it shows many notable sites throughout Rome. Having Roman Holiday fresh in your mind makes it fun to walk around different monuments and places and point out where or what the characters were doing in that scene. The other thing that we did to get ready for our trip was to get a book called “Mission Rome,” a kids scavenger hunt book that inspires you to search for hidden statues or unusual objects. Mission Rome made going around Rome so much more fun because we had to search for things while learning about the city’s rich history.
Our first morning of Rome, we made our own breakfast- we were staying in an Airbnb, so we had a kitchen and a free-for-all breakfast. That flat was run by a nice woman named Lavinia. The Airbnb was where Lavinia’s grandmother was born and lived as a child. Not only was the flat spacious and full of character, but it had a great location, right off a square. After that, we trekked all the way to the Colosseum. We made sure to buy our tickets online in advance, because if you try to buy them on the spot, there are many long, long lines. The ruins took my breath away! I could imagine every tourist in a toga, milling around before the gladiator makes his move. We listened to a bit of Rick Steves‘s Audio Europe tour from his app (highly recommend) while stepping back and observing the majestic structure. Once out of the Colosseum, we snacked on some fruit (everyone needs some 
power up). We took a walk to the Roman Forum. At my first look, I fell in love. I couldn’t resist! We took out our Mission Book for Rome and started searching for the various hidden and seemingly unimportant (but really interesting) objects. After that, we walked closer to the Spanish Steps. Along the way, we stumbled upon the Basilica of SS. Ambrose and Charles. I may have liked it better than the Sistine Chapel. It was not crowded and VERY majestic. Then we climbed to the top of the Spanish Steps and back down again. We got gelato and tried to sit on the steps, to mimic the famous scene from Roman Holiday in which Audrey Hepburn ate a cone of gelato on the Spanish Steps. It turns out that you are not allowed to eat food on the Spanish Steps. A guard told us to stop and we happily ate our gelato while looking at the Spanish Steps instead of sitting on them. On most streets, we saw a faucet that turns out to be an aqueduct, an ancient water system! Rome has plumbing all over the city so that you can stop now and then to fill up a water bottle or take a small water break. This was new and exciting to us, so we walked home, exploring the water system and getting a sip wherever we could. We took a trip to the Trevi fountain- another landmark from Roman Holiday. The large statue at the top is Poseidon, the water god. After that, we came to Baffetto, a highly recommended pizzeria. Even though the name means mustache, it was great and they had interesting pizza combinations, such as one with an egg on top 
of the pizza. After that, we took a walk just across the street to a gelato place called Frigidarium! They have crazy flavors (their dripping chocolate is where they dip your ice cream into chocolate and the chocolate hardens- a special at Fridgidarium!), and the uniqueness only enhanced the quality of the perfectly creamy gelato. We went back to the Airbnb and called it a night.
The next day, we took a trip to the Vatican, the smallest country ever! It is only 109 acres! To give perspective, Central Park of NYC is about 7 times as large as the Vatican. Wow! The Vatican is a small country, but it has a big part to play in the Cristian religion. We got to the Vatican and met a woman named Silvia. The tour was arranged through the Vatican’s patron program. A friend had made a generous donation, so we got a behind the scenes tour of the Vatican. Silvia showed us around the Sistine Chapel. We were told all about the symbolism of the way God and Adam were not touching. Apparently this is because God is too great to be touched by Adam. The Sistine Chapel features many scenes from the Bible, like Adam and Eve’s story and depictions of Israel’s prophets. My family is not very religious, but still- we were amazed by the ceiling. Shortly after we tried to put our jaws back together (they were nearly dislodged from the amount of gaping we did), we saw the restoration lab! It was really cool to see how pieces of art covered in dirt and grime could become vibrant, beautiful things to look at. We met many of the people who work there and I’m considering possibly working there when I grow up (it would be interesting to touch such valued pieces of art. I guess I would have to become less clumsy!).
After that, we took a stop at the Vatican Post office. I mailed a few postcards and it was really fun! Holy Moley… the Vatican was really a highlight of the trip! A bit later, we took some rest and headed out on a walk to the Bocca della Verità , also known as the Mouth of Truth! We stuck our hands in, hoping not to lose one. After all, legend says that if you have been lying and you stick 
your hand into the Mouth of Truth, it will not come out! When I stuck my hand in, I wanted to make it special. I had been waiting for this moment half the trip… I couldn’t wait to be exactly where the characters in Roman Holiday had been on their crazy adventure! It was the BEST!!! We headed home and retired to bed, for the last time in Rome on this trip.
Finally, the last morning, we stopped at La Casa del Caffe Tazza d Oro, which has the best shaved ice espresso- a slush with coffee in it, not syrups. The drink is called a Granita de caffe con panna. It was delicious! I was having my first coffee and I was enjoying it! They went heavy on the whipped cream… what’s not to love? After that, we headed over to the Pantheon. The towering and thick columns are only the first and least amazing part of the seemingly impossible to build building. The ceiling- wow! It takes your breath away to look at the ceiling and it takes all logic away when you try to contemplate how early Romans could have built such a thing. We used Mission Rome to see all of the hidden history of the pantheon. The book suggested seeing if we could hug the columns, but they were too big! I can’t even explain how that made the top of my list. It was just so amazing.
Leaving Rome, I was so sad. I had experienced so many wonders. I was impressed that I got to do so many things. I was tired from packing so much in. I was amazed from seeing Rome, a place of dreams.
