Rome

April 1. 2019

So coming to Italy I had a few things that I for sure wanted to do before leaving. One of those things was to complete a solo trip. AND finally... I DID it!!!

Let me tell you. This trip was one of my favorites! There are many reasons for this. 1. I was on my own, which meant I could do what I wanted when I wanted to 2. I was 5 feet away from Pope Francis 3. Rome was Beautiful.

I was on my own for 72 hours & it was pretty amazing. I loved being able to be on my own and learn to be quite for some time. I was able to learn a lot about myself and how I like to travel and explore.

The first day I got there I went to my hostel and dropped off my stuff. I then proceeded to go towards the Trevi Fountain. Since it was a bit rainy & gloomy I was able to get close up to the fountain with no problem. It was nice because it was crowded but not too crowded. I threw a coin in the fountain hoping to find my Paolo (Lizzie Mcguire Movie). I then went to the Spanish Steps and walked around.

I didn't want to just go sit in my hostel all night so I went and just walked around random streets in Rome. Rome is a huge city and there is so much to see. I walked for about 3 hours & roughly 11 miles that day. It definitely made me hungry & very tired. Therefore I got Pizza Kebab (cheap & good pizza that is EVERYWHERE in Italy) & then I went to the hostel and went straight to bed around 10.

The next morning was an early one. Each Wednesday in St. Peter's Square the Pope has an audience appearance. I got up at 6:30 and left my hostel by 7. I took a bus up to the square and had to wait in line for security check. I was able to work my way up to the front of the crowd and so I was about 4 feet away from Pope Francis. It was an amazing experience that I will never forget!

After the Papal audience was over I had a scheduled tour of Vatican City. I was able to explore the Sistine Chapel & St. Peter's Basilica. I loved the guided tour because I was able to learn about why things were made the way that they were made. It was such a treat hearing about the paintings in the Sistine Chapel.

After the tour I was able to make it for church in the Basilica! Of course it was in Italian, but I still know what is going on since it is the same everywhere. I find that very fascinating. Later I walked to the Pantheon and walked around there for a bit.

I was starting to get hungry, but the place that I wanted to eat at didn't open for another two hours, but I am so glad I waited! Allie (my older sister) recommended this trattoria called Sora Margarita. I got red house wine, a fried artichoke, and ravioli. It was absolutely delicious!! The fried artichoke melted in my mouth. By the time I finished dinner it was already 11 o'clock (my bed time)!!!

The final day started with me packing up and checking out. I then took the metro to the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. I started walking around at about 9:30 and stayed in each place for a couple hours. The Roman Forum was by far one of my favorites. It was just so pretty and absolutely gorgeous. It was so cool to see all the architecture from the Roman times. It is pretty wild that the structures have lasted this long.

Side note: Traveling during off season definitely has its benefits because not as many people are at each tourist sight, but the downsides are most of the sites have construction on them which takes away from some of the beauty.

Signing off.

Kayla Nicole