Spring Break Part One.

Windy and rainy: the first day of spring break in Florence was spent in and out of cafes to keep dry. The Renaissance city reminded me of my mom, as I had previously visited for a wine tour with Amy. Homesickness lingered on the surface as we walked around the city huddled under umbrellas. It wasn’t until later in the afternoon that the sky cleared and we managed to get some good pictures while the sun was out. My roommates went to see Davide in the Galleria dell’Accademia, so I decided to journal and venture on my own. It was a carefree day simply walking around, observing buildings and people-watching. A relaxing first day of spring break for the adventures that laid ahead of us.

Buona Pasqua! We spent Easter Sunday in two different Tuscan cities. After having a day trip to Cinque Terre be cancelled, we decided to explore more of Tuscany while we were there. The first stop of the day was to Pisa! Outside of the main tourist destination, we found an antique book market! I found old postcards, photographs, and maps that had been from the early 1900’s! In Europe, that era isn’t really considered “history” as their monuments and artifacts date back to the BC centuries.

The Leaning Tower is... well, leaning! An odd structure that makes you turn your head to the side; I wasn’t aware of how massive it truly is. Standing at the base looking straight up put into perspective how tall it is as the people on the top balcony looked tiny! We wanted to go inside, however it was too nice of a day to stand in a long ticket line.

The Cathedral is also massive in size and quite honestly, overlooked more so than the Leaning Tower. Built in the 11th century, the Cathedral was well preserved and kept pristinely clean. The Baptistery was another massive structure on the premises, it looked like a large dome on the ground which complemented both the tower and the Cathedral. Unfortunately, we didn’t go inside as you had to purchase tickets (of course).

It was a beautiful sunny day; however, Pisa was flooded with tourists trying to capture the cliché pose with the Leaning Tower in the background. After walking around the premises, we decided to depart for our next stop of the day!

Lucca: the walled city! We got off the train and fled for the massive wall in front of us. The city itself is surrounded by this massive “wall.” This wall is unlike any other because it is so thick on top that people ride their bikes, go on walks, and even play in the grass on top of it. I hadn’t realized we were standing on the wall until I spun around in a full circle to see where it began and ended. Once we got on to the other side of the wall, we went looking for some lunch.

We spent the day just wandering the winding roads, looking at beautiful churches, and arrived at Piazza dell’Anfiteatro. This city center is unlike any other I’ve seen thus far. Buildings are alined in a full circle to create an open center for people to relax, dine, and socialize. Being such a beautiful day we decided to sit outside of the cafes and enjoy a Spritz as the evening began to set in.

Monday morning, we were off to Roma... well somewhat. After navigating our way to the Florence train station, we missed our train by ONE minute. Although we were frustrated, we knew there was nothing we could control about the situation. We had to purchase a different train ticket and get into Rome a bit later than we anticipated.

Once in Rome, we dropped our bags off at our AirBnB and headed out to meet up with Aubrey’s friends from back home! Johnny and Brita were spunky, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic about being here in Rome.

Our first official stop: the Trevi Fountain. My goodness I could spend hours sitting on a ledge gazing at the massive structure. Clear water perfectly flows, dominant sculptures add a sense of prestige, and the layering rocks aesthetically cohere all parts of the monument. I know I’ve said this one too many times… but I think I found my favorite place in the world. My roommate Aubrey described the moment as being weightless and bubbly. We were all on cloud nine to say the least.

I believe an hour or two passed before we moved along to the Spanish Steps. A long street of brand name shops paved the way to the famous staircase leading to the Trinitá di Monti at the top. Fun fact: the Spanish Steps is the link between the French church, Trinitá di Monti, at the top, and the former Spanish Embassy at the bottom.

Having already booked timed entrance tickets in advance, Tuesday consisted of exploring The Vatican! We first stopped by Piazza San Pietro (St. Peter’s Square) to see the beautiful view of Basilica di San Pietro. The Basilica is open to the public, however it unfortunately wasn’t open at the particular time we were there, so we headed over to the Vatican Museums. Once we met our “skip the line group” we ironically had to wait in line for a decent 30 minutes until being set free to explore inside. If you ever plan to visit the Vatican, I suggest setting aside a full day to thoroughly explore all that the Vatican Museums offer. The museum itself consists of many galleries, exhibits, and corridors that contain various works of art and artifacts. My personal favorite was the Pope-mobile exhibit. This particular part of the museum houses the actual carriages and cars throughout history of which past Popes have used. From a cherry red, gold accented carriage to a shiny Mercedes, I’d say the Pope rides in style.

We went through a maze of corridors – old tapestries, hand painted maps, and gold ceilings led the way to the Sistine Chapel. Most tour groups skipped over the rooms as they wanted to get to the “must see” site. However, I took my time strolling through the galleries, observing each piece of art. My favorite part of the Vatican Museum was actually the corridor with hand painted maps on the walls. Each panel of the wall had a different section of Italy from roughly the mid 1500’s. The ceiling had hand painted biblical images complemented with white and gold crown molding. While gazing at the artwork on the walls, I overheard a tour guide explain, directionally, which each section was. Running with this new information, I set out to find Verona on the old maps.

After about an hour of winding through the Museum we got to the Sistine Chapel. My first impression was actual disappointment; not from the work of art, but from the tourists inside. Multiple times, you are warned to be quiet and not take pictures. Sadly, it was loud inside the chapel walls while people tried to sneak picture after picture. It broke my heart that people couldn’t be respectful towards history and religion for just a brief moment in time.

Nonetheless, I had a great time standing there in silence with no evidence of my existence inside. My favorite part of the Sistine Chapel was not one of the paintings on the ceiling, but a painting on the far left wall by a different painter – Cosimo Rosselli. It depicts Jesus’s “Sermon on the Mount.” It was very moving to see a familiar biblical story that has been displayed for hundreds of years in such a beautiful manner. I found it mesmerizing enough that I bought a postcard of it. Of course, Michelangelo’s “The Last Judgement” and “Creation of Adam” are highlights of the Sistine Chapel.

Wednesday was dedicated to exploring as much as we could of Rome. The most simplistic way of doing so was to purchase a hop-on hop-off bus ticket such as we did in Greece. We rode the bus for a full around the city which took roughly an hour to do so. It was nice to see all the main highlights which gave us an idea of where we wanted to spend our time for the day.

Being another “must see” stop, we got off at the Colosseum. Not to be biased, but Verona’s Arena holds a special place in my heart. Although the Colosseum is massive in size, it truly is similar to the Arena I walk past on a daily basis. We walked a full circle around the structure and decided to head off to another spot.

The Pantheon was one of my favorite parts about Rome. For some reason, this Temple spoke to me. The moment I walked inside, I was awestruck at the massive circular sky light which opens the building up. I believe the reason I was so intrigued with the Pantheon, is because of how unique in structure it is. When it rains, it rains INSIDE the building. Simply amazing!

After seeing a good amount of Rome, we decided to spend the rest of that beautiful sunny day simply relaxing. We headed over to Piazza Novana, famous for a fountain depicting Neptune. Tucked away in between little side-streets and neighborhoods, there were no cars in sight, no loud noises, and no crazy lines or crowds. It was a break from tourism which I greatly appreciated.

We then walked over to Capitoline Hill, or “the wedding cake” to sit on the steps and people watch. Big Italian flags waved in the wind as the long white staircase led up to the government building. It was a nice way to end the day after being on our feet for so long.

Thursday was our last day in Rome. We decided to head back to St. Peter’s Basilica to utilize the free entrance. Arriving around 10:30am we were met with a massive crowd already forming a long line. Not having anything else on the agenda, we decided to wait a little over two and a half hours to enter. The basilica was worth every second of waiting. My personal favorite part was touching St. Peter’s statue. A wave of excitement overcame me as I grazed my hand across the historical monument.

After walking through a majority of the basilica, we made our way over to climb the dome. We were informed that the hike up would be roughly 500+ steps. However, we weren’t informed what exactly these steps would consist of. The first staircase had 200 steep winding steps. The next 100 was more of a mental battle than anything else. A narrow hallway not fit for a big or tall person, we climbed up and up. We reached the top of the dome’s interior which put into perspective how high up the dome really is. I personally enjoyed the interior view better than the exterior.

We had about 200 steps to go; after walking with our heads ducked down a slanted hallway, we were met with a very narrow and thin winding staircase. A teenage girl ahead of me started having a bad panic attack because of how tight the space was. I kept my head down and continued walking until we finally got to the top. A full 360 view of the city welcomed us - it was a view straight out of a movie. We stood gazing down at St. Peter’s Square that had, what appeared to be, a bunch of tiny ants in it.

The first six days of spring break were bustling; many miles walked and sights seen. Rome is a masterpiece and I truly believe one could spend a lifetime there and still not see all that the city has to offer. It was the perfect amount of tourism before heading off to the Amalfi Coast for the last days of our vacation.