Sorry for not blogging in such a long time, I really have no excuse... But I'm back with my post about my trip to Rome! Whilst there I took lots and lots of photos so trying to narrow down the amount I'm uploading has been very difficult.
So the journey began on Saturday evening when me and my dad drove the 4+ hour journey all the way down to Manchester where we were getting the flight. It may sound a long time however because we used to live there, we're used to the journey - it's still tedious though. When we finally got there, we checked straight into the Premier Inn we were staying in (I love that place. It has purple everywhere.) to get some sleep as the next morning we were waking up at 4am - that time exists? - to go to the airport. Now if you read my last post (link) on what I packed for this trip, you'll know that I had squeezed everything into a rucksack - my dad did the same with his luggage - as we were only taking hand luggage this time, so you can imagine we looked quite turtle-esque as we waddled through the airport to our gate. Then at 5:30am we hopped on the plane and jetted off to Rome. I love flying in the morning because you get such an amazing view of the sunrise. It's breathe-taking.
After we landed, we managed to find a taxi and set off for the Vatican which, in real-life, looks a little smaller than when you see it on TV. Don't get me wrong, it's still beautiful and impressive, but I found that with most places we visited-everything looked bigger on TV. It's strange. So after a quick photo in front of the Vatican, we set out to look for the tour bus my dad had arranged for us to go on so that we could have a look around Rome but without all of the traffic and people trying to sell you everything - there was a lot of both! Once we found and got on the open-top bus, we got a tour all around Rome! But just as we were coming to the end of the tour, it began to rain and I mean rain. It was coming in at the sides (we were on the open-top area which only had a flimsy roof) and within 20 minutes there was literally a pool forming at our feet which meant that everytime the bus stopped - and there were lots of stops - all of the water would come running forward like a mini tidal-wave and we'd have to lift our feet quickly or risk soggy socks. Luckily, we are a family with good humour and me and my dad found the whole thing hilarious. Not quite as hilarious as when we finally got off the bus for lunch near the hotel though and dad accidentally ordered a litre of beer - the glass was bigger than my face! - and I then proceeded to accidentally knock over some of the best orange juice I'd ever tasted all over my dad in front of the whole cafe and about 50 Popes in magnet-form which were on a stand beside us. We were in stitches. I think it was the lack of sleep finally taking it's toll which is why we then set off to find our hotel. It was a lovely hotel with an outdoor pool, gym and jacuzzi (which was always closed or busy when we went to use it). We then left our luggage in the room and headed out again to explore a bit more as the rain had died down. It was whilst exploring that we visited one of the most beautiful cathedrals I've ever seen. The detail in this place was just mind-blowing! After that, the rain began to fall heavy again so we decided to adjourn our exploring and head back to the hotel where we fell asleep at 5:30pm. We were knackered.
Me by the Vatican. Dad with his huge beer and my orange juice prior to spillage.
Gorgeous designs in the cathedral.
Our swanky hotel.
Day 2 consisted mostly of me lazying around the hotel and watching films as dad was of course working during the day and it wasn't safe to explore Rome on my own. But by 4pm he had finished and so we decided we would set off to the Trevi Fountain on foot, but not before a quick stop at an ice-cream place - you've got to try Italian ice-cream whilst in Rome, right? It's basically law. I had mixed fruit and strawberry and dad had cherry. They were delicious.Then, with our sugar high, we continued on towards the fountain as dad navigated us through street after street with our little map. We even stopped to see Vittorio Emmanuel II Monument which was beautiful as was the Trevi Fountain when we finally reached it. We managed to get right next to it - so close that I touched the water. We then threw our coins in and made a wish. After that we wandered around a little and saw an amazing street artist who worked with spray paint and yet another beautiful cathedral before heading to McDonald's for dinner. Yup, even in Italy we went to McDonald's but I mean, we live on an Island, you've got to grab your chance when you can.
Me and dad in front of the Trevi Fountain.
By the third day, my dad was still busy working all day so he arranged for two of his colleagues' partners, Naomi and Corkie, to come and explore Rome a little with me. They were both American so had amazing accents (they found mine cool too) and they were really nice. We decided to go and visit the Museum of Borghese as I had told them I was interested in art. As it was quite far away, we chose to take the metro which was an interesting experience as we had absolutely no idea where we were going! We managed to find the right place though and were soon on our way however, when we left the metro and came into the light of day, we had no idea where we were. We were in some sort of side road with no signs or anything, luckily for us Naomi was good at reading maps though so we weren't lost for long. On the way to the Museum we had to walk through some sort of park area which was so peaceful and beautiful with a little fountain; It was a nice change from the busyness of the city. Something we weren't expecting to see walking to the museum though was an older lady brushing a stray cat after tempting it to her with food...it was an interesting sight to see. Unfortunately though, that was the only sight we were to see on that trip because after arriving at the museum, we were told that there were no tickets available for 2 days so we went and got some lunch and then headed back to the hotel.
I then chilled by the pool for the afternoon before dad finished work and we went out with Corkie and her husband, Bruce (my dad's colleague) to do some more sight-seeing (which including visiting the Coliseum and the Spanish steps!) before heading back to the hotel and packing for us leaving the next day.
The woman brushing a cat.
Me with Bruce and Corkie.
Then on Wednesday morning we began our looooooong journey home. And that was my trip to Rome in a nutshell. It was amazing to visit and every morning we woke up, I couldn't quite believe I was in Italy; it's somewhere I've always wanted to visit and i'm so grateful I got the chance to! Though Rome is in many places very beautiful, it is also quite dirty and full of graffiti like most cities which surprised me and my dad as we were picturing everything almost glistening white. Also, the traffic was horrendous. You didn't know when you took your foot off the curb if you'd make it to the other side of the road alive sometimes because nobody really likes using their brakes there. You just kind of had to run across and hope for the best. But other than those things, Rome is very beautiful with some amazing architecture and I'd definitely recommend it but especially to those of you who are interested in art and design because there is so much of both to inspire you in Rome! Something that really stood out to me whilst being there was the incredible amount of intricate detail and pattern that adorned everything from statues to bricks on walls. It almost makes me want to go and sculpt something.
Going to Rome was an amazing experience and I'm so happy I had the opportunity to see so many of the sights whilst there. We even bought a Pope pen! You know, when in Rome...
Until next time (which will be soon, I promise),
Mollie♥
