Florence/Rome

After our month in Sevilla, we met up with Kat in Rome for her Spring Break.  It was a fast and furious week touring lots of sites.  We all love history and it was amazing to see these man made marvels that are hundreds, even thousands of years old.  Our first day we took a train to Florence and spent 4 days.  We saw David…did you know he is 17 feet tall?  The skill it took Michelangelo to carve him is incredible.  I was truly impressed.  We ate very well and had lots of gelato 😊.

Steak Florentine

We took a day trip to Pisa and then on to Lucca.  Pisa was crowded!  Lucca was enchanting, it is known for its perfectly intact Renaissance wall around the city which has been made into a park.

Then we moved on to Rome where we spent 3 days.  I only thought Pisa was crowded, Rome was overwhelming.  Thankfully we had booked all of our tours ahead of time…if you go, book in advance!  We stayed near Vatican City away from the main tourist attractions and it was a bit quieter.

We visited the Sistine Chapel and the Vatican Museums, we had a great tour guide who gave us a lesson in history with a lot of humor.  Did you know every Pope can add whatever they want to the Museums?  My favorite was the Gallery of Maps completed by Ignazio Danti in the late 1500’s.  Our guide said these maps were 80% accurate…can you

believe that?  They certainly did not have Google Maps back then 😊.

We also went to the Colosseum which was very impressive.  Lots of people joined us on our visit so it was a bit challenging to stop and read all of the information.  While most people think of the Colosseum as the home of Gladiator battles, it has been many things through the centuries, including a church, a cemetery, a quarry and a botanical garden. 

Pantheon

The Pantheon was our final tour.  This building is impressive and much larger than I expected.  The hole in the top of the building provides light and there are no supports anywhere in the center of the building.  It is still used today as a church.

Our visit to Italy was short but full. We enjoyed getting the time with Kat.  Tim and I agree that we don’t think we will go back soon, it was too overwhelming with all of the crowds.  We are learning as we go that we really like to be in smaller cities that are not as tourist focused.  We enjoy slowing down and getting to know the locals.

We had not seen these markers since Czech Republic. This is where this person was arrested and taken to Auschwitz.