Day 7

Today we woke up early, strapped on our huge backpacks and headed for the train station. We took the high speed train to Florence which was about a 2 hr ride. Once we got to Florence, we walked to our hotel, checked in, dropped off our bags, and headed back to the train station to go to Pisa. This train ride was only about 45 minutes. The Leaning Tower of Pisa was a must-see, and so was the silly "tourist" picture I made Wayne take of me...the one where you act like you're holding the tower up. I felt stupid, but then you realize everyone else is doing the same thing, so oh well! After that, we went back to Florence and walked straight to the Accademia Gallery to see Michelangelo's David. There were lots of other things to see too, but David was the main attraction. I couldn't believe how huge and perfect it was. It really is amazing to see these pieces in real life.  We also saw the Duomo church which is also HUGE...I thought the Vatican was big, but this seemed just as big. And it was so pretty! I loved it. After that, we got gelato (which I have been getting every single day) and then went to the leather markets and leather stores...which is what Florence is known for. I loved that part! I found a purse that I think I can't live without...will have to sweet talk Wayne, ha! We are going back tomorrow to look some more (and pick something out for me) and then head to Venice. We had a great dinner with wine and pasta and a wonderful view. And now we are back in our room getting ready for bed. I am having so much fun! We both miss our babies, but I know they are having fun with Grandmother, Mama and Papa, so I am trying not to think about them too much and just enjoy every minute here.

And here are pictures of our hotel in Florence. It is a lot different than Rome's, a lot more modern and quite a bit bigger. It's fun to have been able to stay in two totally different hotels, and really like each one.

Day 6

Today was a shoping day. First we went back to Campo di' Fiori. We snacked on cheese and tomatos, drank coffee, and had fun looking at all of the booths. We then walked around to look at different clothing stores and specialty stores. I thought it was so interesting to see that most of the owners stood outside their doors in the street and talked to each other until a customer came in. They all seemed so friendly! Wayne and I ate lunch together and then split up so I could finish shopping and he could go to the train station to get our tickets for the next day. I was a little nervous about how I would navigate without having Wayne with me, but I did pretty well! One thing I love about Rome is that it is so busy with tons of people walking all over the place so I always felt safe. I ended up getting two dresses that I love, so I had a successful outing! After Wayne and I met back up, we went back to the Vatican to see the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museum. Today was actually our 10 year anniversary so it was neat to be able to celebrate it in such a beautiful place! The 2nd picture here is on the roof of the Vatican.

I also took pictures of our hotel. It was called the Hotel Cosmopolita and was in the perfect location! The room was small, but was perfect for us. We've noticed that everything in Italy is small...even thier Coke cans! The room was nice though because it was cute and very authentic looking and feeling. We really did love it. Tomorrow, we are off to Florence!

Day 5, more pics

More Naples pictures:

Day 5

Today we took the train to Naples for the day. The train station was interesting. It was so busy! We got there about 30 minutes before the next train left...if we missed that one, we wouldn't be able to get another one for an hour and a half. Getting our train ticket was easy, but we read that you have to get your ticket date stamped, and we had no idea where you are supposed to do that. The information booth had a line with about 45 people in it. We tried asking a few people but they didn't speak English. So we ended up just getting on the train without getting our ticket stamped...there's no one to check your ticket until the train is moving. We weren't really sure what would happen if they checked our ticket and saw it wasn't stamped, maybe a fine? Maybe we have to get off at the next stop? Who knows. But we were pretty much just going to play the dumb tourist card. Well, we ended up finding in one of our books that there were stamping machines at the beginning of the tracks so we ran off the train to try to make one last attempt at getting our ticket stamped. Success! We (I) found it! We got it stamped, hopped on the train, and it pulled away 2 minutes later.
The trip took about 2 1/2 hours and was very relaxing. We read our tourist books and took naps. When we got to Naples, we headed for the ocean! When I first saw the water, it was so beautiful! There were docks with sailboats, huge rocks with people fishing and laying out on them, and hills with houses tucked into them. The weather was perfect too! We walked all along the ocean and had lunch on the water. I loved watching all of the people! We pretty much spent the whole day there and walked a total of 13 miles today! We got back to Rome around 9:30, and I know we will sleep well tonight!

Day 4

We slept in a little more than usual today. Although it was nice because we don't want to completely exhaust ourselves! The weather was great today, a little cooler with a chance of rain. The rain wasn't going to bother us though because we were planning on spending a majority of our day at The Vatican.
I love the location of our hotel...it is right in the center of everything so all we do is walk from place to place. In fact, Wayne has a pedometer and we have walked an average of 10 miles a day! So I don't feel guilty about having pasta, gelato, and dessert!
The first thing we did today was walk to an outdoor market called Campo di' Fiori. There were lots of booths set up with fresh produce, pasta, clothing, much like a farmers market. We then made our way to Vatican City. I did not know this but Wayne told me the Vatican is its own country! About 1,000 people live there and they have their own post office, radio broadcast and newspaper.
We first toured St. Peter's. Of course it was amazing and huge. There was so much to see. The Pieta is here and is a famous marble sculpture of Mary holding Jesus after he was crucified. It was sculpted by Michelangelo. We were also able to climb to the top of the dome of St. Peter's...521 steps! You couldn't do this if you were claustrophobic! The beginning of the climb was easy, a spiral ramp with wide steps, then the spiral hallway gets more narrow and the steps more steep. Pretty soon you are climbing almost straight up a spiral staircase with the walls about 2 feet wide. Wayne's shoulders were actually touching the walls! There was a rope hanging down to help you climb up. The worst part was that it was a bit crowded, so not only were you hot and moving slow, there was no way you could turn around and go back down! There were actually two girls ahead of us crying because they were having a panic attack! Mama, remember the Eiffle Tower??? But once we made it to the top and got out in the cool air, it was all worth it. You could see for miles!
We were going to do the museum and Sistine chapel too, but they ended up closing at 4 instead of 7 like we thought so we will go back in a few days.
After the Vatican, we toured two churches we missed the day before: San Luigi dei Francessi and Sant'Ignazio. San Luigi has 3 masterpieces painted by Caravaggio. They are gigantic and spectacular. Sant'Ignazio was one of my favorite churches. This church is famous for its over the top Baroque style (flamboyant, ornate, elaborate). The ceiling was painted by Fra Andrea Pozzo. The church was supposed to have a dome built but it ran out of money so the painter painted the flat ceiling in a way that gives you the illusion you are looking up at a domed ceiling. It is so amazing. It really looks 3D and like the figures are coming out of the ceiling. It is mind boggling to think someone painted that in 1691!
We ended our night by finding a cute outdoor restaurant. We got bruschetta, a pasta dish each and a prosciutto pizza. We also had wine, coffee and creme brûlée! Perfect day!

Rome Day 3

Today we went to the Spanish steps first where there were tons of people and a wonderful fountain and view. After that, we made our way down the high end shopping street to the Pantheon. The Pantheon used to be a temple of all the gods but in the Middle Ages, became a church. It is 140 ft by 140 ft and had a huge circular opening at the top of the dome that served as a sun dial. Raphael and modern Italian kings are buried here.
After the Pantheon, we got gelato at one io the biggest gelato shops and then headed to Piazza Navonna. Rome is made up of lots of "piazzas" which are squares for the people. There are usually fountains and cafes around the piazzas...Piazza Navona is huge and very busy. There were lots of people and vendors here. There were two huge fountains sculpted by the famous artist, Bernini. The church, Saint Agnese in Agone was here too. Of course, it was beautiful. We stayed at the piazza for quite some time and had a coffee break here.
We then went to Trevi Fountain. This is Rome's largest and most famous fountain. Legend has it that if you make a wish and throw a coin in, you are guaranteed to come back...I hope it works!!! To end the night, we found a cute restaurant with tables outside. Our dinner was excellent, and so was the wine! Tomorrow is The Vatican! Can't wait!

Forgive any typos and pictures that are out of order...I'm having to do each entry on my phone which is very tedious...it's too much trouble to try to change the order of pictures so I'll correct any mistakes when I get back