Como e' bella ce' la luna...a Roma!

So, when I found out I got into Cambridge and would be in England for summer I knew I just HAD to make a stop in Italy.  I've been taking Italian at BYU for two years and was excited to experience the culture and practice speaking the language.  So, Shamae (another girl in my Italian class who was going to Cambridge) and I planned a whirlwind 5 day Italy trip and were accompanied by her dad and our friend Annie who were also doing the PKP Program.  Below are pictures of our adventures in Rome!

This is my very first passport stamp! I've been waiting a long time for this.  

It was so exciting to get to Rome and see signs in Italian, especially because I could understand them!

The view from my window at the hostel in Rome.

SPQR is an ancient Roman acronym for Senātus Populusque Rōmānus which means "The Senate and People of Rome" and is still used on street covers and some buildings.  I learned about this in my Classical Civilizations class a few semesters ago, so it was cool to see in person. 

Consulting a map as we wait for dinner on our first night in Rome.  

Pasta Italiana Al Pesto!

La Fontana di Trevi later that night.  After seeing it in so many pictures and movies it was surreal to see it in person.  

And yes, I did throw in a coin and make a wish. 

Me, Annie and Shamae in front of the Colosseum.  Ciao baby!  

After getting lost a bit on the way to the Vatican, I asked an Italian man for directions (in Italian!) and we finally found St. Peter's Basilica.

That place is HUGE.  Here is the Baldacchino by Bernini.

I loved the light streaming in through the oculus.  

Gate looking out into the square

We stopped for some lunch before the Vatican museums and I had some delicious aranciata fresca (fresh orange juice) with my pizza.  It was so good.

The Vatican Museum was HUGE!  There were so many rooms filled with sculptures, paintings and more. I was really excited to find out that the Laocoön was there as well as the Apollo Belvedere (both of which I've studied in my humanities and classics classes).  

The School of Athens in the Raphael rooms!  One of my favorite paintings.  This was right before we went into the Sistine Chapel.  No wonder it took Michelangelo so long to complete it.  It was magnificent.  The ambiance wasn't though.  It was packed with tourists and I felt it could have done with some nice renaissance background music.  

Fountains like this are all over Rome.  They're great for tourists like me who need to refill their water bottles.  

After the Vatican Museums, we would our way over to the Pantheon, which I was quite excited about. Unfortunately, they were closing, so we didn't get to go inside, but I got to see inside as they shut the doors, so it worked out.  

So that was our whirlwind day and a half in Rome.  I got to do just about everything on my list.  Rome is an awesome city, but I didn't like how crowded, noisy and dirty it was.  So, aside from its historical values, it wasn't my favorite.  But, it was still amazing!