Once we arrived back to Rome, Katie and I headed straight for our hotel near the train station. We got all settled in and then set out to see the sights. We only had two days in Rome, which is not nearly enough, but still better than none! We grabbed lunch at a nearby pizzeria and then headed out for the rest of the day. We met up with Liv after her class, and she showed us around a little. We walked past the Spanish steps and wandered down to the Trevi fountain. Katie and I took our turn tossing a coin into fountain (apparently I was so excited that I forgot to make a wish the first time, so I had to throw another coin in just to be sure). We stopped for gelato and spent our day wandering around the streets of Italy. However, by midday, we were exhausted after our weekend, so we headed back to Liv’s apartment to relax for the night. Liv, Sammy, and Lauren made dinner for the five of us! It was so sweet of them and so delicious. Since Katie and I were anticipating a long day of sightseeing the next day, we headed back to our hotel around 9 so we could shower and get to bed early.
The following day, we met up some friends, Diana and Nicolette, who we met in Morocco earlier in the month! We met them at the Pantheon, and they took us to an amazingly good panini shop for lunch. We ordered our paninis (which were only three euros!) and spent some time catching up with the girls near a beautiful piazza. Afterwards, they took us to one of their favorite gelato places and we said our goodbyes. It was still early at this point and Katie and I had a long “to do” list of places to visit, so we started with the Roman Forum which I absolutely loved. It was unreal to think that I was walking along the same path that Julius Caesar once had. We took some great pictures and wandered up to the Palatine Hill before heading over to the Colosseum. Seeing the Colosseum was such a surreal moment for me too, because I’ve seen it countless times in pictures, but finally it was my turn! Katie and I got some incredible shots and really enjoyed our afternoon together. We could not have asked for better weather; it was absolutely gorgeous that day! Later that afternoon, we took the metro to go see the Vatican before the sunset. We decided that we couldn’t leave Rome without seeing it, even if we couldn’t go inside. It was also a very cool experience not only because one of the cute policeman was checking me out (ha!), but because we were there not long after the new Pope was elected so all of the chairs were still set up outside. We only stayed for a little while because we wanted to go watch the sunset on top of the Poblono, which was one of Liv’s great recommendations. It was so beautiful to watch the sun sinking over the city, even though it was getting very cold at that point. Afterwards, Liv came to meet us after her class and her, Sammy, Katie, and I all went for dinner together one last time at one of Liv’s favorite restaurants, since the next day we would be heading to Florence. It was so nice to spend the evening with the girls, but it was sad to say goodbye after spending all weekend and our few days in Rome with them. Luckily I’ll be seeing Olivia in a few weeks at school!
The next morning, Katie and I packed up our stuff another time and took the next train to Florence to meet our other friends! We’ve kept in contact with all of my DG sisters, Chelsea, Lindsay, Emma, Kellie, Meredith and Chelsey ever since we first met them in Paris at the beginning of the semester. Our train ride was pretty miserable because it was so stifling hot inside the cars, and some random Italian woman yelled at me whenever I tried to put the window down (still bitter about that). Nonetheless, it made us that more excited to get to Florence! Chelsea was waiting at the train station for us when we got there, and she took us straight to their apartment to put our bags down and relax. I must say that their apartment was HUGE!! It was twice the size of our’s in Sevilla because all six of the girls stay there. Anyway, the girls were still finishing classes for the day so Katie and I decided that it would be a good idea to nap for a little before we did anything; traveling is exhausting! After we got up, we all went out for dinner together to celebrate Lindsay’s birthday at one of their favorite restaurants. It was the first time that I’ve had a balsamic dressing in months, and I must say that it was probably the best that I’ve ever tasted in my life. The mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, pasta, and wine were scrumptious! After dinner, we all got ready and headed to a club called 21 to celebrate Lindsay’s 21st!
The next day, Katie and I slept in a little then finally got up and walked around the city, which was a lot smaller than I was expecting; it was still so charming nonetheless. Upon walking down to the river to see the famous Ponte Vecchio bridge, I had felt like I had walked straight into an Olive Garden menu. Katie laughed at me when I said that, but it was completely true! I absolutely loved the scenery all along the river. The Ponte Vecchio bridge really was one of the coolest things I’d seen since I’d been in Italy... so many jewelry shops!
After walking around for a little, we decided that it was time for some lunch. We stopped at a delightful restaurant, where I ordered the best lasagna that I’ve ever eaten in my life! The trick to finding a good restaurant is not to follow all of the tourists and eat at the unvaried restaurants that aline the popular piazzas but to wander through the streets and find somewhere more hidden, which is exactly what we did. After lunch, we leisurely walked around and took the time to just enjoy the city (and admire all of the leather, too!) Katie and I made sure to see the Duomo, which was one of the prettiest cathedrals I’ve seen since I’ve been in Europe. We had such a wonderful afternoon and enjoyed our last full day in Italy. That night, the girls took us to a delicious pizzeria (I know, what pizza ISN’T delicious in Italy!), but this place truly was phenomenal. We all took our pizzas and ate outside on the steps before seeing some of the city at night. We hiked up to the top of the Michelangelo hill, and let me tell you, the view was exceptional. All of us sat on the steps overlooking the city, talked, and enjoyed each other’s company for the rest of the night. Since Katie and I had such an early flight to Madrid the next morning, we had to go back to the girls’ apartment before it got to be too late. It was really sad saying goodbye to them, but luckily they all go to school in Ohio at Kent State, which means we’ll be visiting a lot next fall since we’re fairly close!
Getting up the next morning before 5am was so hard, but I was still really excited to be moving on to our next city. Ciao Firenze, hola Madrid!
No comments:
Post a Comment