Rome days 4, 5 & 6

The day before yesterday we got up and went outside in the pouring rain. We didn't realize that the puddles on the road and the cars speeding past the bus station were not the best combo. I got splashed all the way up to the ends of my shorts... So we went back inside for a while, then emerged again when the sun came out. After that, we did the classic tourist thing and visited the Forum, where all the semi famous old ruins are. Then we visited the palatine and the Colosseum. The Colosseum was amazing! Selfies...

The next day we went to Ostia Antica, an ancient Roman town that is super well preserved, to the point of being able to climb up onto second-story buildings from 2000 years ago. I went exploring off into the ruins and found some pretty cool stuff:

I highly recommend a visit, as most people skip going there, which is a mistake:) After the ruins, we went to the beach! Now I can say I've swum in the Mediterranean Sea!

We all got sunburns though....

Today we went to the Vatican and the catacombs. It was very unique... And fun!

Rome day 3

Yesterday we went to the Vatican Museums, inside of which was the Sistine Chapel, Castel Sant'Angelo, and the Villa Borghese park. There were little go-karts there and Gage and I tried one:

This was on top of the Castel Sant'Angelo, a fortress for the Pope if he should ever be under attack.

Rome!

Today we got up early and flew to Rome. Apparently flying to here is cheaper than taking the train... 

There are people everywhere! Today we went to the Pantheon (with a giant oculus at the top, open to the sky-a choir was singing and the acoustics were amazing!), Sant'Ignazio (church of St. Ignatius-the ceiling is flat, but painted to look curved!!) the Fontana de Trevi (a famous fountain that is part of a lot of movies-sadly it was closed for renovations today), and some obelisks.

What I learned today:

The Romans were obsessed with Egyptian things. They hauled an entire pyramid over from Egypt just because.

Facts of the day:

Our taxi driver was named Mario. 

There are 13 Egyptian obelisks around Rome. We saw 2 today.

Alcoholic beverages?

Today was Dominic's confirmation, and after we went to church, we had lunch with my cousins, cousins-twice-removed (I think), and Dominic's girlfriend. It was fun. And yummy. 

Apparently my mother decided that I was old enough to try a radioactive-looking beverage. It was wacky. I drew my glass some arms and legs and eyes and called it Fred. Fred was yummy.

Tomorrow we leave for Rome! I'm super excited... I don't know what all we are going to do there, but I'm sure it'll be fun.

I miss my friends so much though. :(