Today we got ready and were down in the lobby after breakfast at 8am to take the metro over to the Vatican to see the Sistine Chapel, since we didn’t have time to do it the previous day. When we got there, we waited in line for it to open at 9a and the line overall took us about an 45-minutes to get through.

We then paid €16 euros to get inside and overall it consisted of the chapel along with a museum around it filled with both religious and non-religious art (but mainly religious). Since we were early enough, Erin and I headed strait to the Sistine Chapel and it was awe inspiring. The frescos were incredible, each telling a biblical story, all done by Michelangelo. We weren’t allowed to take pictures and had to be very quiet but I managed to snap a few quick pictures anyhow.

Outside the vatican museum

The School of Athens

Sistine Chapel

Afterwards we walked through the rest of the museum and then took a quick break to sit outside in the museum’s courtyard to plan what we were going to do for the day.

We grabbed a quick bite to eat at a local cafe in which we each got tasty paninis.

Delicious lunch
Following our break, we left the museum and walked towards the Piazza Navona, walking down the main shopping strip as we went, admiring all the Italian shoes, purses and clothing. We loved the Piazza Navona as soon as we walked into it as it was three gorgeous fountains and locals selling art all around them. We found a woman who was quietly doing watercolors in the corner of the piazza and after having a pleasant conversation with her about her art, we each picked a small painting from her, mine being a watercolor of the Pantheon since it was my favorite thing I saw here in Rome.

The center fountain in the Piazza Navona

Then we walked down back towards the roma forum and the colosseum to go to the Capitolini Museum which housed the famous etruscan bronze sculpture of a she-wolf as she nursed Romulus and Remus, the presumed founders of Rome. We also saw the pieces of the gigantic statue of Constantine and the bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius. This museum was so eclectic and we enjoyed looking at all the roman artifacts and paintings.

The remains of the collosal Constantine

From histart class, 4 Tetrarchs

The famous Capitaline Wolf

Marcus Aurelius bronze equestrian sculpture

Boy with Splinter bronze that was widely copied

Incredible view of all of Rome from the rooftop of the museum

We were exhausted after walking to and around the museum so we crossed over to the colosseum to take the metro back to the hotel. Once back at around 5p, we had to meet the group back in the lobby at 7p for a classic roman dinner for our last night in Rome. We both took quick showers and then went to the lobby to catch up with everyone else on how their day went. Once everyone was there, we got on our charter bus and headed to the restaurant in which we had the whole 2nd floor to ourselves. Our meal consisted of a 4-course meal: bruschetta and salad, lasagna, chicken and fries, followed by a coco and tiramisu for dessert. It was beyond tasty and I was so full at the end I could barely budge. There was also a charming guitar player who played the entirety of our dinner, playing and singing classic Italian songs along with requests such as The Beatles and even the chicken dance at one point.

Our table and the guitar player

Bruschetta

Lasagna

Tiramisu for dessert

After being fully stuffed and warm from the wine, we returned to the charter bus and we did a quick drive around Rome again to see all the monuments lit up at night. We even had a chance to hop off the bus real quick outside St. Peters to snap some quick photos. It was so cool to see everything so quiet and lit up and we remised on all the fun things we’ve seen while in Rome as we drove back to the hotel.

Outside St. Peters

Group photo