roma 2

This was bound to be the busiest of all our 3 Italian ports... so much history so little time.

All around Italy sent us Andrea today as our tour guide.  We had six today which was really good for such a hectic port.  Once in our van we were off for the hour and a half drive into Rome.

Our first stop was the Pantheon....  looking at it from the outside I would have thought it was no grander than walking into the Parthenon in Greece...  I was gob smacked ... it was so grand with all its marble and statues and all that other ornate stuff it was just amazing.....

Next stop was the Trevi fountain..... so much larger than I had ever expected.... Andrea told us once we had decided that we had seen enough of the fountain we were to throw a coin to ensure that we returned...... once we had thrown the coin we were not to look back, not until the next time we visit.

Off we were again to the Spanish Steps.... Andrea suggested we walk down the street opposite were we would find all these exclusive shops.... we had to explain we were the flea market type of girls and couldn’t afford the goods that were on offer there....  We found a centurion that was more than happy to take his photo with us and then proceeded to ask us for 20 euro’s for the privilege...... I laughed at him and gave him five and walked away... probably still too much but I was feeling generous.

What else did we see.... we saw Mussolini’s famous balcony and then up to capitol hill for another great vista of the city and if you walked around the back you saw Rome’s ancient Agora..

It was then onto one of Rome’s most famous sites, the Colosseum.  Paying for a private guide payed off once again.... one flash of that special card and we jumped those queues and before we knew it we were wandering the halls of this popular site....  In contradiction to popular belief ... the colosseum was never used to sacrifice the Christians, this happened over at Circus Maximus ..... the colosseum was exclusively used by the gladiators.... It was very grand in it’s time and Andrea assured us that they could empty this stadium within 5 minutes.... after climbing their steep steps we decided it only cleared that quickly because most would have tripped and fallen out....

You might be wondering what that silly picture is that I included.... looks like you are looking down some type of pipe.... well unfortunately the photo didn’t come out..... as a special treat Andréa took us to a spot where at our own risk, you looked through a  key hole..... He said that if we got caught we should know that the Australian Consulate was just around the corner....

There was this wooden gate with a round keyhole.  You looked through and you are taken aback as you see this tree lined path and at the very end is the dome of St Peters Basilica....  Hard to explain how amazing it was.....  Now Andrea said that this was a well kept secret... but that didn’t ring true when four other cars and vans pulled up behind us....

Off we were again..... down and around these tiny back streets..... pass the palatine hill.... off to nice little square for lunch.

For the Vatican we had prepaid our tickets and booked our time slot.... The tour company arrange for a guide to take us through.... we had to wait for the guy on a motorbike arrived with our headsets to make it easier to hear our guide in the busy corridors...

Once again through the quick entrance... Fabrizio wound us through the Vatican museum until we reached the Sistine Chapel... we were ushered in to the tune of “Shhhh ..... no photo’s”..... kind of clashed with the serenity of the chapel ...... but it is something to be seen.... it is smaller than you think and not very well lit ( avoiding damage ) .... you can’t help but be in awe of the workmanship of the famous Michael Angelo....

Another amazing work of art is St Peter’s Basilica, the size and the opulence of these places is amazing.

Once back out in St Peters Square Fabrizio showed us the pope’s window... we asked if he could give him a call and see if he would come out and wave to us..... Fabrizio pulled out his phone dialled  P O P E and asked if he could come to the window and bless us Australians.... the pope replied he couldn’t today but could tomorrow.... oh well doesn’t matter....

By now we were exhausted and it was time for the drive back to the ship....

Up on deck for sail away we had a birthday party for Garry.... apparently he was a big star on the wake show but thanks to our early start we missed it..... But he got lots of surprises and a plate full of Berry Panacotta with candles and a very loud chorus of Happy Birthday.......