Hey everyone!
Hello from Roma! Just wanted to update you all on the activities of the last couple days. On Thursday, we drove to Delphi. It is a very small town that makes its money off the ancient sight. However, once we got there, I immediately went to work out. Delphi is incredibly mountainous so it was the perfect place for a workout. I found stairs that were similar to the Exorcist steps at Georgetown and started to workout. There was another woman running the stairs as well. Her name was Evelyn and she was Bulgarian. We ended up working out together and talking. Turns out, she used to work for the Bulgarian ministry of defense and has dealt with many foreign affairs. She now trains the defense team for Bulgaria for part of the year and has dealt with people from the United States that advise Obama. SO COOL right?! After the workout, she invited me back to her house for a drink and I agreed. We ended up talking for about an hour and she sent home some Bulgarian cakes for Tara, Cera and I. So delicious! Honestly, that interaction was one of the coolest things that has happened to me since I have been in Europe.
The ancient sight of Delphi is a basic Roman town. It has all the effects of a typical Roman town; a treasury, a theatre, and a temple dedicated to Apollo. Very interesting to see the place where the supposed "Oracle" gave advice to whomever asked. Anyone out there think the Roman politicians may have assisted here?? After Delphi, we drove to the coast of Greece and boarded an overnight ferry to Italy. It was an interesting experience since the ferry is run like the Italian Navy. We were even woken up with a horn and a guy turning on our lights. Not so comfortable.
Friday morning, we exited the ferry and took our first steps in Italy! Such a gorgeous country. We drove 3 hours to the city of Pompeii, obviously famous for the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius during the reign of Nero. The archaeological site is amazing. It is so well preserved and we actually got to walk in the houses, bakeries, and brothels of ancient Pompeii. Unbelievable. Afterwards, we drove the rest of the way to Rome. The Eternal City is, for lack of a better word, seductive. We toured the Vatican and then had free time. The Vatican is a nice sight to see. The Sistine Chapel is mesmerizing. Afterwards, we had lunch (Italian food is amazing!) and then wandered around the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. So great. Tomorrow, we tour the Coliseum and the Forum. So very excited!
After a half day in Rome tomorrow, we will head to Tuscany for a wine tasting and then , on to Florence!
Delphi
Pompeii
Vatican
Lasagna
Trevi fountain
Spanish Steps
Rome is one of the few places that I've vowed to return to. I think it would be easy to spend a full two weeks doing nothing but checking out the sights...and still not even coming close to seeing everything of interest.
ReplyDeleteStill jealous!
U.S.
Is it true that the streets of Rome are filled with rubble, that ancient footprints are everywhere, and that you can almost think that you’re seein’ double on a cold, dark night on the Spanish Stairs?
ReplyDeleteNice Bob Dylan quote. Rome was amazing. You could easily spend months there and not see everything. I will be returning. Soon.
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