First four days in Italy

So once again this is the part of the trip that my husband, brother in law, sister in law, and I could enjoy together.  We have been going non-stop since we've been in Rome to see everything we've been wanting to see and more.  It wouldn't be a trip with Chris McCarver without taking in some good Italian cuisine too, including ending nearly every night with gelato (Italian ice cream).  I'm hopeful that all the walking is off-setting all the calories that I'm consuming.  Thankfully my clothes aren't fitting any tighter, so I would assume that is a good sign?!  I guess the scale will confirm when I return, though (fingers crossed)!  

I thought it might be easier for a quick catch up to list everywhere we've been so far. 

Saturday sights: 
Trevi fountain, Quarinale (government building built by Napoleon),  and Santa Maria Maggiore (basilica that claims to have pieces of the cross of Christ inside)

Sunday sights:  
Ancient Rome...We visited the Colosseum, Roman Forum (government center for 1000+ years, and includes several different eras of buildings and temples), Palatino Hills (where Caesars including Caesar Augustus' and other wealthy Romans lived, it's also where Romulus & Remus started Rome), and ended the day walking the Spanish Steps, which led us to a rewarding view of the area.  

Spanish steps

Monday sights:  We saw the Pantheon, which was originally built as a Polytheistic temple by Julius Caesar and then later converted to a Christian church by Roman Catholics.  Then we walked to Circo Massimo (chariot races and battles re-enacted by gladiators happened here, think Ben-hur chariot race too?) followed by a hour and 45 minute walk (not all flat by the way) to the Catacombs di San Callisto.  The Catacombs were used to bury Christian martyrs underground during the Roman persecution.  It was also used to bury Christians for another 600 years after Constantine turned Rome into a Christian state.  The one Catacomb that we went into measured 13 miles long and buried 1/2 million Christians.  It also held at one time several early Popes who were martyred, and a few saints who were martyred were also buried there.  Really really interesting!!  

Current government building

Pantheon

Circo Massimo

The old entrance into Rome

I nearly screamed "hallelujah" when I saw this sign..after such a long, hot walk, we finally made it!

Tuesday sights:  When Lance and I returned from the airport with my luggage (yay!), we met up with Chris and Mel and took a subway close to Vatican City to see Castle Sant Angelo.  It was a mausoleum built by Caesar Hadrian around 100 AD (he also built Hadrian's Wall in the UK).  After Rome converted to Christianity under Constantine around 300 AD it started to be used by the Pope as a defensive structure, and it evolved over several hundred years into a castle that was easily defensed in the Middle Ages and early Renaissance years.  It even had a elevated passageway for quick and safe passage from St. Peter's Basilica, which was used several times when armies would try and attack and kill the Pope.  The castle itself was beautiful and also made for great pictures from an outlook at the top of the castle.  I'm looking forward to posting these pictures!   When we left Castle Sant Angelo we walked to Piaaza del Popolo, and then rode the subway back to our hotel.  I think we were still tired from all the walking the day before so we were ready to get back to our hotel to rest. :)  

Castle Sant Angelo

The rest of the week includes a night stay in Florence, and Cinque Terre then a train back to Rome for the final day.  From my perspective Rome in a nutshell is that it's dirty, but holds so much history that makes walking trashy streets completely worth it!  Everyone should put Rome on their lifelong bucket list!  As Chris (brother in law) would so eloquotely say, Rome is "cool as crap"! ;)  And no, I have never understood that phrase, but I heard that enough over the week that I needed to include that Chris quote. :)