No we didn’t, but now that we have your attention …
We started our day with a nice breakfast at the hotel at 6:45 (!!). After our breakfast, everyone (except Siani and Ms. Smith) hopped on a bus to the Vatican. At the Vatican, our local guide, Carlotta, took control. We spent the next few hours sampling some of the finest Renaissance art the Vatican has to offer. We saw a hall full of tapestries, some incredibly accurate maps from ancient times, thousands of paintings, and enough statues to fill a stadium … or a Colosseum. Following the artwork, we ventured over to the Sistine Chapel. We all had a moment where we realized that we were actually seeing this beautiful art with our own eyes. Following the chapel, we took a secret staircase to St Peter’s Basilica, which was being prepared for Palm Sunday. We thought the Basilica was beautiful, monstrous in stature, and a true testament to what faith and determination can bring.
Following our visit to the Vatican, we grabbed a quick lunch and traveled back to Italy to visit the Roman Forum. It was such an incredible feeling being able to stand in — and quite literally on — history. We saw the ruins of old homes, temples (many of which have been transformed into functioning churches), the spot where Julius Caesar was cremated, as well as the remains of old games Romans would play to pass the time.
We then walked over to the Colosseum. Almost everyone in our group thought that it was an incredible site. It felt like we were really immersed in the ancient Roman culture. We learned about everything the Colosseum had to offer, ranging from bathrooms with running water to the four different levels of seating. Another thing that was incredible about the Colosseum was the lighting — our pictures actually look Photoshopped because they are so beautiful and clear! We waited on the bus for a few minutes and then came the moment we were all waiting for: the RETURN OF SIANI AND MRS SMITH (woo!!).
After the Colosseum, we were given about an hour and a half of free time in downtown Rome. This was a short time to relax after all the traveling and guidance we had all day. Some groups chose to buy some gelato, some chose to buy clothes, and some (including the group Siani stayed with) chose to revisit the Trevi Fountain, and others chose to stay closer to the meeting point and just relax. After the hour and a half, we hopped back on the bus and went to dinner.
Dinner was a four course (!!) meal, consisting of a quiche-like dish, a penne with marinara sauce, chicken with peas and potatoes, and finally some lemon sorbet to end it. After our filling dinner, we all headed back to the hotel, ready to start again tomorrow.