Rome, Day 2

It is currently 4:30am, and I am showered and ready to go. I received my wake up call 3 hours too early, and did not have a clock to see the mistake until I was up and showered and awake. Apparently the person giving the wake up call did not set their watch to the right time zone... UK time. At this point, I might as well stay up and see my first Roman sunrise. I do feel much better than I did yesterday now that I have some sleep under my belt, although I would have enjoyed a few more hours. I will write more in the evening when something more notable has happened over the day.

So, the rest of "Rome day 2" was super busy. We started out going to the Colosseum, which was sooooo cool to see in person! Walking in a group of 51 people (half of which are from Texas) is a bit chaotic. These particular Texans are rude, loud, a little stupid, and very immature. Anyway, the Colosseum was the bees knees. Being able to walk in it, and touch the same stone that was there and in use more than 2000 years ago is amazing to think about. Just being there in person, and seeing all the things I learned about in school was amazing. After the Colosseum we went to the Roman Forum for a few hours, and looked at many other ancient ruins of buildings, statues, gardens, and even the death place of Julius Caesar. After that, we went to a place known as the Spanish Steps, and got some free time to shop and explore in Rome. That was a lot of fun! After lunch, I saw the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and a beautiful church that I cannot remember the name of. One thing that kept impressing me was the size of all of these sculptures. On TV or in a book, they are described as being large, but seeing them towering over me was absolute insanity. So far, the Pantheon is my favorite thing I have seen. The dome, and the hole, and the paintings... amazing.

We ended the tour with another chunk of free time, which I spent sitting under a mist machine at a bar, drinking limoncello and eating calamari and prosciutto with mozzarella. It was 95 degrees and we had been walking all day, so I really enjoyed the chance to rest. I signed up for an optional night tour of Rome too. Rome is so different at night. We revisited most of the sights we saw earlier in the day, and I spent most of my time looking at how each piece was lit.. being a techie and all. We returned to the hotel at 12:45am from the night tour, and I am exhausted.

I discovered a sunburn on my face, neck, and arms... I itch. My feet hurt pretty bad too from all the walking we have been doing, but it is totally worth it. I am having some problems with my cell phone habits too. There are certain people (you know who you are) who I am in the habit of texting or talking to on a regular basis. I keep finding myself reaching for my phone to share with them how cool something is, and then I remember that I can't. I would love to come back here someday with a great friend or loved one and share this experience with them.