Exploring Italy: My First Days in Rome

I was beyond excited to be finally arriving to Italy, espcially since it is my first time in Europe. There was so much to explore, and I was truly eager to see how beautiful Rome is from its profound history to its stunning architecture. 

On the first day, we visited The Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Wall. The church was absolutely beautiful. It had an amazing garden outside the front with magnificent statues of Saint Paul and Saint Peter. I learned that the church not only got it's name becuase this is where Saint Paul is burried, but also because it was built outside the walls of the Vatican City. 

At first glance, you would think that the church would be small from the looks of it outside, but it was very deceiving. The inside of Saint Paul's Basillica was breath taking. It is decorated with beautiful mosaics and columns that tower above you, along with the celings being decorated with gold. 

After Saint Paul's Outside the Walls, I had my first taste of the food Rome had to offer and it was delicious. The pasta has grown to become my favorite meal while being here in Rome.

I started off my second day with one of the most well known drinks in Italy, the cappuccino. This was my favorite part of the day. 

That day, I got my first experience of the public transportation in Rome from using the metro-train to go The Vatican City to see Saint Peter's Basilica. It was magnificent and with great luck we were able to listen to Pope Francis give a prayer to the public. 

This is a view from the top of The Vatican, it was beautiful. The Vatican is the tallest building in Rome; no other building is allowed to be built higher than the Vatican.

A view of the ceiling of the Vatican. 

Today I had my first taste of gelato. Delicious. 

On the third day, I got to see what I was most excited for...The Colosseum. One of my favorite movies is The Gladiator which takes place in the Colosseum. It was beautifu. It was a dream come true to walk through and re-live this history. 

A view from inside The Colosseum where the historic battles took place. There has been a lot of work done to renovate the Colosseum so it can be toured. I could not imagine what it looked like when it was in its prime state. 

After the Colosseum, we walked across the street to see the Roman Forum. This is where the poweful and rich Caesars of the Roman Empire carried out their lives. It was a center hub for political and social events. 

After the fall of the Roman Empire, the columns from many of the roman buildings were taken and repurposed for the building of catholic churches. The Roman Forum was then covered with debris and garbage till it was rediscovered centuries later. 

After the end of the first few days in Rome, I am excited to see what adventures come next. There is so much more to see and so much more to explore. I plan on taking advantage of all my oppurtunites to make the most of this trip just like Major John Mark would have.