Ancient City with my Momma!

March 17th
Saint Patrick’s Day! We had a wonderful green lunch to celebrate the Irish holiday here in Italy. All of the food is so good here, but I especially love the pesto! For our green lunch we had: pesto pasta, broccoli, spinach, some meat and some delicious panna cotta with kiwi. It was very yummy! We all wore green and it was as if we were back home.
My mom and Suzanne had left to go to Florence on the 16th. After my art history test I left to meet my mom and Suzanne. This was the first time I was traveling completely alone. I got to the bus station in time to catch my bus to Arezzo and then the train to Florence. I stood at the bus stop and waited; 5 minutes after the bus should have come I realized something was wrong. An old man was staring at me; I looked at him and then looked away, then looked back a couple of times and I saw that he was still staring at me. After a couple of awkward stares he said something to me in Italian. I had no idea what he was saying. Apparently he was trying to tell me that the bus was not going to come to that particular stop because Sansepolcro was having a festival over the weekend and there was a tractor blocking the bus route. A nice Indian man who spoke a little English walked me up the street to the next bus stop where I anxiously waited for an hour to see if the bus would come.
It would not have been that big a deal if a bus was late or in a different location if I was at least traveling with someone, but since I was alone and it was getting dark I was freaking out when the next bus was 3 minutes late. Thankfully it came. The driver ended up driving a completely different windy and dimly lit route to Arezzo, that I had never been on, and then after a couple of stops I was the only person on the bus. He was a pleasant man; he talked to me about the music and helped me get me my heavy suitcase of the bus.
Since I had missed my first bus I only had 9 minutes to get off the bus, buy my ticket, and get on the train. I used the self serve train ticket machine for the first time. Everything ended up working out, I got on the train, made it to Florence and saw my momma!
March 18th
This was my second trip to Florence, which was good because there were things that I still really wanted to see. My first stop was something I had already done. If you have previously read, I had really enjoyed seeing Michelangelo’s David last time I was in Florence. So in the morning I excited walked to the Accademia to see David again! He was just as amazing seen for the second time. I was still in awe of Michelangelo and his spectacular talent.
The next stop was the Museo Nazionale del Bargello( Bargello Museum) which is home to two different David sculptures created by Donatello. One was a large piece in marble, the other a bronze piece in which David is depicted as feminine and childish. It was an interesting comparison to Michelangelo’s David.
After lunch we went to the Palazzo Pitti (Pitti Palace). This place is huge, and we could have easily spent the entire day there. It was very exhausting walking around because there are so many rooms and so much to see. I enjoyed being able to see the rooms which the Medics actually lived in. Everything in the rooms was so nice, from the carpets, to the paintings hanging on the wall, the chairs, and the frescoes on the ceiling. It was incredible.
March 19th
My mom was making her rounds in Italy, and her next and final stop was Rome. After arriving and putting our bags in the bed and breakfast we went to the Pantheon. I enjoyed walking inside and looking up into the skylight of the dome. The floors were cool with different types of marble and designs.

We decided to sit down in the Piazza where the Pantheon is located. It was good place for people watching. I always think it is fun to look at people and try to guess where they are from, or listen to the language they speak.
We went on a night walk (that Rick Steves recommends) from the Campo di Fori, to the Trevi Fountain, Piazza Novena and the Spanish steps.

The walk was so much fun. We were able to see the city at night for the first time and all lit up. The Piazza Novana had musicians, magicians, artists, and jugglers. In the middle of the Piazza is a huge fountain in which Bernini depicted four river gods. It was under restoration when I was there so I was not able to see it in all its glory.
March 20th
My mom woke me up bright and early, we had reservations to go to the Museo Vaticano (Vatican Museum) at 8 AM. Luckily we had reservations, because even at 8 AM the line was very long. We spent about 3 hours in the Museum looking at the Sistien Chapel, the browsing through the Egyptian room, the map room, and Stanze di Raffaello (Raphael’s rooms).


My favorite room was the Capella Sistina (Sistine Chapel). I sat down on the benches and looked up to see Michelangelo’s work. I was thinking how hard and how long it must have been for him to paint such a detailed meticulous work, and upside down!

We also went into the Basilica di San Pietro (Saint Peters Church). The Cathedral was huge, and is home to Michelangelo’s Pieta, as well as Bernini’s Baldacchino. There were lots of different little sections of the church, one was only for prayer, one was only for confessions, and one mass was currently being held. Saint Peters is the largest that I have been in. After going and seeing the entire church, all the great art work, and detail in the building, it only seems appropriate that it is in the Vatican City.

After our morning in the Musei Vaticani and the Basilica di San Pietro we had lunch at the Fontana di Trevi and then went to see the Colosseo!

The building of the Colosseo (Coliseum) was started in 72 AD by Jewish slaves. In its original life it was filled with marble seats, and sculptures under each arch. Shows and fights were put on with animals and gladiators for the citizens enjoyment.
We also walked to the Foro Romano (Roman Forum). Though there is not much of it left it was still interesting to imagine how it was.

If I were able to go back in time for a day I would love to be able to go and see the Colosseum , and the Roman Forum, as they originally were.
After a long and tiring day we enjoyed dinner by the Spanish steps, and I had some delicious gelato!
March 21st
After having a few busy days we slept in till 9 and left the bed and breakfast around 10 AM. I wanted to go to Porta Portese for the flea market that they were having. As we were walking we saw a marathon with hundreds of runners. There were people lined up on the streets and bands cheering the athletes on.

The flea market was an interesting experience, and different from that back in Raleigh. Porta Portese’s flea market is one single long road. On each side of the road are tall buildings, giving you a slight claustrophobic feel. Here the shops sell some jewelry, clothes, and shoes, but most of the shops all had the same things. The difference is that back in Raleigh the flea market is spread out in a large open space with different items being sold. In North Carolina the shops range from clothes, to music, to food and to antiques.
After the flea market we went back to the Piazza Novana because we wanted to see it in daylight. We walked around and looked at some of the art that people were selling. My mom and I had bought some art work from people painting in Venice and Florence, but in Rome we didn’t see anyone painting to sell their work. We saw people selling artwork but it was all replicas of the same things.
We walked around the shops by the Spanish steps. There were lots of nice designer stores like Prada, Gucci, Dolce and Gabbanna, and Stuart Weitzman. When I was in Verona I had decided to slide down a cement wall and ripped my pants so my momma wanted to buy me some, I got a new pair of pants from a store called Zara.
I had really been looking forward to my momma coming to visit me and I am so happy that she came. We had a wonderful time touring Italy together, and it is one that I will always remember.