Rome

I had a long and exciting day today. I am exhausted, and it feels like I must have walked 10 or 15 miles. However, it was worth it. The hotel I am staying at in Rome is very close to the Coliseum, only about two minutes walk. Also, this little internet cafe is almost right across the street from my hotel, so I found a great spot! Anyway, since I was so close, I started the day at the Coliseum, it is huge!

After the Coliseum, I walked across the street to the old archeological site where some of the original buildings from Rome are still standing. The site was a little hard to navigate, since there were no signs or anything identifying the ruins. The highlight was the old Roman Forum, where people used to buy, sell, and conduct business. For all of these sites, you have to kind of imagine what they looked like with all the pillars still intact and covered with white marble. It must have been amazing.

After I finished wandering around the old ruins, I decided to try and find St. Peters Basliica and the Vatican. I walked along the Tiber river for a while looking for a dome. I didn't quite find the church I was looking for, but I ended up at this castle. It dates from Emperor Hadrian, and was used as a mausoleum for many of the emperors.

From the top of the castle, I was able to locate the church, and it turns out I wasn't that far off. I walked up the street towards the church. I waited a bit in line, then went up to the top of the cupola. 551 stairs to the top!

Check out the shield made of flowers...pretty cool.

After I came down from the top, I went inside the church; it was enormous. I was not able to capture it all in the same picture. It was that big.

I left the church and went towards what I thought was the Pantheon. I ended up at the Royal Palace...

I finally found the Pantheon, and again, I could not capture the whole building in one picture.

I walked back toward the Coliseum, and stopped at Trevi fountain. The legend is that if you throw money in the fountain, you will someday return to Rome. Of course, that rumour was probably started by the man who cleans the money out of the fountain every night.

After the fountain, I went back to the Coliseum to see if I could capture the sunset. It has been cloudy all day, except for a few times in the afternoon when the sun came from behind a cloud. Anyway, here are a few...

I'll be headed toward Venice tomorrow, hopefully stopping in a few places along the way. I have not yet made my plans. Enjoy!