Friday, December 3, 2010

Italy Part 2: Rome

So, this past month, Stephen, James and I spent 2 days in Rome.  While there we got to see many amazing things including the Roman ruins (including the Colosseum) the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, and the Vatican museum.  We stayed in a hostel about 30 minutes outside of the city and used public transportation to and from the city.  Even though the city was rather spread out, we walked everywhere by foot, partially because of not taking the trouble to figure the bus system out, and partly because we found interesting things to see pretty much around every corner.  We spent both nights in Rome outside the Trevi Fountain eating Gelato. During the days we went on a couple free tours that were not really all that good and did sight seeing on our own. The most memorable sight for me was definitely the cathedral dedicated to Peter, although the Colosseum comes in a close second.  It was so large and beautiful with the different colors of marble.  Also it contained the Pieta, the sculpture of Mary and Jesus by Michelangelo.  Other highlights for me included seeing the paintings of Raphael and the ceiling of the Sistine chapel.  But by far, what made the trip really fun, was seeing these sights with Stephen and James.  There is nothing quite like exploring the previously unknown with people you know.

Also, as an aside, I recently read this quote from GK Chesterton that I found to be brilliant, and I wanted to share it as I thought it relevant:
"When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude." -- Chesterton

Anyways, here are some picture of our time in Rome. Enjoy!

Spanish Steps

Ugly Building

Forgot what this was

Famous Bridge


Something like the department of culture


St. Peter's, Vatican City, Catholics, and lots of Tourists

About 1/4 of the line at 9:00 to get into the Vatican Museum


Painting by Raphael - Justice

Painting by Raphael - Philosophy

Painting by Raphael - Theology
Painting by Raphael - Poetry




The man himself


The Pieta

Inside the Cathedral

Sweet Panoramic

From above



From the top



Another sweet Panoramic


The Roman Ruins



The Colosseum





The Pantheon


Raphael's Grave


Trevi Fountain


3 comments:

  1. that was the castle i told you about...right next to the place with the yellow awning that sold the best chicken wraps ever....i think it was called los Angelos Castle or something like that...it is straight ahead as you walked out of the piazza in front of St. Peters....you can see it and the bridge if you look just to the left of your head in the shot of you and James on top of Peter's...and fyi, that is not an ugly bldg...i like it:)

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  2. well, to the left and straight up a abit...along that road there about 3 blocks up...sorry

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  3. Josiah,
    We sure enjoyed your pictures and comments about Rome! We stood in many of the same spots and took some of the same shots, about a month later! We had gelato at the Trevi Fountain, too (OK, to be honest, we had gelato EVERYWHERE, including the Trevi Fountain. Yes the Castel Santa Angelo was quite near our hotel and has an underground tunnel running all the way to the Vatican---Popes used to take the tunnel to safety when under siege.... Very cool moats, didn't you think? What a wonderful experience you've had this semester. I am so thankful you've been safe and have seen and experienced so many parts of our planet! Memories for a lifetime!
    Love to you,
    Aunt Kaye

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