June 6th
The overnight train ride was so painful (physically and mentally). There were five people in our box including us when we left Paris and the couple seemed super nice. I took sleeping pills to knock me out because let's be honest, sleeping on a train is not easy even though you are laying down. It's loud and rocks back and forth, but not like a nice little cradle. I was just starting to fall asleep when we stopped and picked up more people, including a lady who joined us in our box. She wanted the top bunk (which was probably her assigned bunk I will admit), but Karlee had taken it. So Karlee moved and we all finally got to go to sleep...well kinda. The bunk was very uncomfortable and even though the sleeping pills normally can knock me out I woke up because my hip was sore. I spent the rest of the time tossing and turning, half asleep. Some guy came into our box at 4am speaking Italian. I can't understand Italian but at 4am when you are half asleep it is the most confusing thing in the world. At 5 our passports were returned thank goodness. It made me nervous having to hand it over so that they could check them and stamp them at the border. Emily stayed up after that, which was really good because otherwise Karlee and I would have slept through our stop! There wasn't an announcement and the signs through he window at the station were not helpful. We hopped off the train, with our fingers crossed that we were actually in Milan. Thankfully we were right and hung out in the station for an hour and a half until our connecting train came.
I managed to somehow book us Premium seats for dirt cheap for our train ride into Rome which was nice. We had so much more leg room than we did on the Eurostar from London to Paris. We even got a free snack and drink! Who wouldn't want cream cookies and orange juice for breakfast on a train to Rome? The orange juice was a lot sweeter and smoother than what I'm used to; it was still yummy though. We all dozed on the train ride since we were so tired.
We arrived in Rome around 10am and had a straight shot to our hostel. The actual hostel was still really hard to find though because it was in a giant apartment/condo complex. We managed to pass the building once and then found it walking back towards the train station and buzzing in. It was a small hostel with maybe four rooms with eight to ten beds in each. The rooms were a lot bigger than the other hostel rooms so far for the amount of beds. The hostel was also a lot homier and had other furniture even! We all took quick showers (bless the owner's heart since she wanted to clean and we disrupted her) before heading off to lunch. We ate outdoors at a cute little Italian place (go figure, Italian food in Rome, who would have thunk it) around the corner from our hostel.
we went to the Colosseum first which was a lot bigger than I expected. I wish I could have seen it before so much of it was missing and when it was actually in use. We walked around Palantine hill and the Roman Forum afterwards. It amazed me how they've managed to restore so many things, though there are more things that are just rubble or just a last standing pillar than full buildings. It's nearly impossible to imagine what things used to look like since so much of it is gone.
I managed to somehow book us Premium seats for dirt cheap for our train ride into Rome which was nice. We had so much more leg room than we did on the Eurostar from London to Paris. We even got a free snack and drink! Who wouldn't want cream cookies and orange juice for breakfast on a train to Rome? The orange juice was a lot sweeter and smoother than what I'm used to; it was still yummy though. We all dozed on the train ride since we were so tired.
We arrived in Rome around 10am and had a straight shot to our hostel. The actual hostel was still really hard to find though because it was in a giant apartment/condo complex. We managed to pass the building once and then found it walking back towards the train station and buzzing in. It was a small hostel with maybe four rooms with eight to ten beds in each. The rooms were a lot bigger than the other hostel rooms so far for the amount of beds. The hostel was also a lot homier and had other furniture even! We all took quick showers (bless the owner's heart since she wanted to clean and we disrupted her) before heading off to lunch. We ate outdoors at a cute little Italian place (go figure, Italian food in Rome, who would have thunk it) around the corner from our hostel.
we went to the Colosseum first which was a lot bigger than I expected. I wish I could have seen it before so much of it was missing and when it was actually in use. We walked around Palantine hill and the Roman Forum afterwards. It amazed me how they've managed to restore so many things, though there are more things that are just rubble or just a last standing pillar than full buildings. It's nearly impossible to imagine what things used to look like since so much of it is gone.
After exploring all these ruins we had dinner near the hostel again and I discovered that some ding dong invented pizza without cheese! It's called a margarita pizza. Now I'm honestly not much of a cheese fan but pizza without cheese is just not right in so many ways. I also had Italian cheesecake which was a lot breadier than standard cheesecake but still so delicious, especially since it was drizzled in honey. We went back to the hostel and Karlee had a snoring competition with another gentleman in the room while the lights were still on. It was hilarious. A girl from another room came over and asked what was going on and if someone was really snoring that loud. Eventually we shut the door and I'm sure everyone in the other rooms was happier. Personally I was just really glad that I had sleeping pills!
June 7th
Today we slept in until a whopping 8 AM! I didn't really feel any less tired than usual though...
We ate breakfast in the cute little back yard courtyard of the hostel. We got these weird doughnut croissants. They were good and sweet like a doughnut but shaped and looked like a croissant. Yummy but strange. Once we were all ready we hopped on the metro which was the most crowded thing I've ever been on. It's nearly all standing room and you get really friendly with everyone quickly.
We got off at the Ottaviano stop and got in line to go into the Vatican museum. There were tons of vendors selling tickets along the line for $28 (student) and $35 (adult) to skip the line. Honestly they were very obnoxious since they would not leave us alone. It also amazed me how marked up the prices were since it was $8 (student) and $16 (adult) at the door. We did have to wait in line for 2 hours though.
We spent most of the day in the museum since we didn't get in until 12:45. There were lots of ancient Greek/Roman sculptures. I was honestly expecting more Christian art. We went to the Sistine chapel and that actually takes forever to get to. You are essentially herded in a long line through tons of hallways and rooms. That's where all the Christian art was! There were tons of paintings, sculptures, tapestries, etc. that were religious in one way or another. My favorite thing was the intricately detailed ceilings, both the paintings and the woodwork.
We ate breakfast in the cute little back yard courtyard of the hostel. We got these weird doughnut croissants. They were good and sweet like a doughnut but shaped and looked like a croissant. Yummy but strange. Once we were all ready we hopped on the metro which was the most crowded thing I've ever been on. It's nearly all standing room and you get really friendly with everyone quickly.
We got off at the Ottaviano stop and got in line to go into the Vatican museum. There were tons of vendors selling tickets along the line for $28 (student) and $35 (adult) to skip the line. Honestly they were very obnoxious since they would not leave us alone. It also amazed me how marked up the prices were since it was $8 (student) and $16 (adult) at the door. We did have to wait in line for 2 hours though.
We spent most of the day in the museum since we didn't get in until 12:45. There were lots of ancient Greek/Roman sculptures. I was honestly expecting more Christian art. We went to the Sistine chapel and that actually takes forever to get to. You are essentially herded in a long line through tons of hallways and rooms. That's where all the Christian art was! There were tons of paintings, sculptures, tapestries, etc. that were religious in one way or another. My favorite thing was the intricately detailed ceilings, both the paintings and the woodwork.
We left the museum around 5:30 and headed towards St. Peter's Square. We figured we would just get some pictures of the Basilica because we thought it would be closed. However, as we got closer we heard a loud speaker and cheering. The square was filled with people and once we managed to get through security we saw that the Pope was speaking! I think it potentially had something to do with the World Cup. We were far in the back but it was so amazing to get to see the little white speck that was the Pope. I was literally jumping up and down. They drove around eventually in a little Pope-mobile and we were 20 feet from him! If you look really hard at the second picture in the slideshow below you can see him. And that's when he was already past us!
We didn't get to go into the Basilica or get good pictures because of this event, but seeing the Pope is better. When we were leaving Emily said "We just saw the Pope! Is there a gift shop for this?" Low and behold there was one right in the square. We bought tons of postcards and some Pope Francis items which were adorable as expected.
We got amazing gelato on our way back to the hostel. The waiter was pretty creepy though and kept calling us his new American girlfriends. After that Karlee left us to go hang out with her friend Martina for the night. Emily and I found a supermarket and then just relaxed together for the evening.
We got amazing gelato on our way back to the hostel. The waiter was pretty creepy though and kept calling us his new American girlfriends. After that Karlee left us to go hang out with her friend Martina for the night. Emily and I found a supermarket and then just relaxed together for the evening.
June 8th
Today we got up and once Karlee got back and showered we ended up hanging out at the hostel until 10 AM talking with a guy from Canada. We were able to leave our bags at the hostel which was really nice and then hopped on the metro to the Spagni stop to walk over to the Spanish steps. It was crowded and extremely hot. The two towers and the fountain were being renovated so it wasn't too spectacular but we went partway up to the top still.
From there we walked to the Trevi fountain which was also fenced off and being renovated. We were still able to get some pictures through the fence and managed to throw a coin over our shoulder to ensure our return to Rome. It took me three tries with the fence but whatever! We walked by what's left of the Adrian temple, which is just some pillars but they were astonishingly tall. We went to the Pantheon next, but didn't go inside. There was a giant crowd in front of the doorway so we just stayed far away and admired in from afar. We went through the Palazzo Madame and Piazza Navona too.
From there we walked to the Trevi fountain which was also fenced off and being renovated. We were still able to get some pictures through the fence and managed to throw a coin over our shoulder to ensure our return to Rome. It took me three tries with the fence but whatever! We walked by what's left of the Adrian temple, which is just some pillars but they were astonishingly tall. We went to the Pantheon next, but didn't go inside. There was a giant crowd in front of the doorway so we just stayed far away and admired in from afar. We went through the Palazzo Madame and Piazza Navona too.
We headed across the River towards Piazza Cavour. On the way along a winding cobblestone road a lady sat a little bird on my shoulder and told me to stop. I didn't realize it was a tourist trap for awhile but we all got a bunch of pictures with the two budgies. The woman kept putting them on different parts of me like my head and shoulders. I'm really glad they didn't decide to go to the bathroom then. It almost made me like birds. She asked for 5 Euro each but I was not going to give her that much and I didn't have it anyway. We each gave her a little bit. It was a cool and unique experience anyway so I didn't mind.
We made it to whatever building in front of Piazza Cavour which was beautiful. Then we walked to Castel Saint Angelo which I was super excited for since it was in the movie Angels and Demons. It wasn't as big and menacing as it seemed in the movie but I did see the angel statue with the downward pointing sword. We got stuck in the little park surrounding the castle for at least 30 minutes. We thought there was entrance in the back part but we were very wrong. Once we finally escaped we got to see the bridge of angels and neat view of St. Peter's.Lastly we walked to Piazza del Populo which was a beautiful square. It had a massive obelisk and fountain in the middle, two Roman statues on either end, and four towers between the other two sides.
We hopped back on the metro and went back to the hostel because it was blazing outside. We hung out at the hostel for a couple of hours and rested before we left for the train station. We stopped at the little Spar (grocery) store before waiting to see our train show up on the departure board and hopping on. There was another woman in our car with us from Argentina who was really nice. It was super hot until the stewardess unlocked the window in our box. We all hung out and enjoyed the sunset over the mountains. To Vienna!