On our second and last day in Rome we decided to start the day by
visiting Vatican City. Jessica was clever and researched quite a bit the night
before so we knew to buy our tickets only to avoid the long lines. Thank-god we
did, because the line to get in snaked all the way around the corner. We were
able to just walk right by everyone. The girls staying at our apartment warned
us not to waste money on a tour guide.
They were scammed out of forty euros for
seeing
the same things we did. (We only paid twelve).
The Vatican has very specific and strict rules about how to dress, you
must respect that it is a sacred catholic place. The rules state that you must
wear sleeves and that your knees cannot be showing. I knew if I wore my jeans
all day I would die from the heat so I decided to wear Jessica’s scarf as a
skirt. The elephant scarf looked ridiculous with my grey top and running shoes
though.
Our ticket included the Sistine Chapel and the museums. The walk to
the Chapel is through room after room filled with art and ornamental walls and
ceiling. With all the lead up I expected the Chapel to be amazing, but it was
no better than any of the other rooms on the way. After we exited the Chapel (or more accurately
were pushed out by the hoards of tourists) we sat down outside to cool down.
True to her nature Jessica fell asleep on the park bench, (thankfully I
remembered to bring my kindle today). We stayed in the same spot for almost an
hour before we decided to continue on.
We walked along and saw the square of the Vatican before heading out
of the city (or I suppose country). We decided to spend the rest of the
afternoon exploring the other side of the river. We stopped along the way for
some tea and a muffin and to get out of the hot sun. The streets were filled
with many small alleyways and bright buildings squeezed tightly together.
Jessica stopped for her daily gelato and we sat down for yet another rest. We
can be quite lazy these days.
Through Facebook I saw that my friend Frances from New Zealand arrived
in Rome today. So after messaging back and forth we decided to meet at the coliseum.
It took forty-five minutes for Jess and I to walk there in time to meet her. We
found a nice Italian restaurant not too far away and spent the night swapping
travel stories before heading home for the night. It was so great to reconnect with someone I didn't think I would see again!
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