Rome - The Last Stop

*Unfortunately this is a short post, but our last few days were spent buying souvenirs and thus were a bit less exciting than some other things we've done...

We arrived in Rome after our drive from Siena to sweltering heat. After a harrowing journey to drop off the rental car at

termini station (which involved a lot of yelling and one-way streets filled with pedestrians), we walked towards the ancient city. We saw the coliseum from the outside, and then walked around the old forum. That night we were all so tired that we decided to grab food and cook at the hostel/hotel.

Given the fact that Gloriana and I had just gotten the new Harry Potter book, we spent most of that night and then the next day reading. Lizzie, Sy and Wes decided to walk around instead, and we all met up later that night to explore the Piazza Navona, the Via Del Corso, the Pantheon, and the beautiful side streets around every corner. We even stopped for some gelato at the Trevi fountain, and we were sure to toss our coins in so that we could one day return.

The next day, the girls had to leave, and our week in Tuscany was finally finished. Wes and I visited the Vatican City, and saw St. Peter's and the Vatican Museum. We were even able to catch our breathes in the Sistine Chapel, though all the humanity in that small space was a bit distracting. Later, we visited the Coliseum's interior and took a guided tour which certainly helped us understand its context a bit more.

We stayed with Enrique and Claudio those last few days in the city, which was awesome. Enrique is my mom's

cousin, and the two of them are an absolute blast. We had a great time with them. They took us up to the Gianicolo park on our last day which afforded us amazing views of the city from atop the hill. And the next day, we were gone!