I thought I would do a second post for today as there were just so many pictures to share with you. One of the things you will see is the very colourful Vatican/Pope's private Swiss Guards.
I went for dinner tonight in the hotel restaurant where we are staying at, the Rose Garden Palace, as Neil was still not up to moving about. I have to tell you the Chef here never disappoints, his cooking skills are exquisite. Tonight I had pork tenderloin stuffed with prunes and rolled in grainy mustard seeds. It was so tender and the centre of the plate was filled with slices of semi-crisp baby zucchini and some onion medallions. Dessert was outstanding! The plate was so decorative. It was a baked chocolate pudding with a touch of caramel and topped with a sprinkle of icing sugar. Then there was some caramelized sugar in the shape of a cup with a scoop of amaretto flavoured ice cream inside. Lastly there was some blackberries and raspberries lined around the outside of the plate with a little cream sauce and sprinkled with a touch of icing sugar. I do not think I am doing this meal justice with my description, but it was magnificent! My complements to the chef.
Happy Friday Everyone! Ciao...Tori
I was in awe all day long...at the paintings and sculptures of Michelangelo and the work of the Italian Renaissance painter Raphael. The tour we took today was of the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel, and then the St Peter's Basilica. No words can explain how all of this truly makes you feel as you experience such a journey. As I entered the Basilica, I gasped as I have never seen such beauty nor felt such power and love. It is a very emotional experience and brought tears to my eyes.
There are so many people doing this tour daily the place is packed and we often had to be careful not to lose our tour guide in the crowd. Our guides name was Egore. He was extremely knowledgeable. The tour group gave us audio boxes and an ear piece so we could always hear our guide while he talked. It was also easier for me to listen while having my hands free to take pictures all day.
Today was very difficult for Neil. After yesterday's outing I think this was too much. He was so tired that after our late lunch and, being serenaded with beautiful romantic Italian music by some live musicians at our table, we came back to the hotel and he has slept ever since. I am glad we are taking it easy tomorrow and going at our own very slow pace. We still want to see the Trevi Fountain. I think we can walk to it from our hotel.
The best way I can allow you to experience even a little bit of our day is with a few pictures that I took. Remember, we were not allowed to take any photo's in the Sistine Chapel, it is not permitted, so I have no photo's from there.
I don't know where to begin. It was a very surreal day. It started off by raining but cleared up by the time we entered the Colosseum. We had pre-purchased our tickets at www.tickitaly.com. We bought the Colosseum upper and lower levels tour. It was a 3 1/2 hour tour. Our guide "Deborah" was extremely welcoming. She was very knowledgeable, spoke clearly and with passion. You could tell she really enjoyed her job which made our experience even more memorable. It is advisable to go with a tour group as without them you cannot enter all areas. Also if you order online you will avoid the long lines of having to wait to purchase a ticket.
The Colosseum is not round as it appears but is actually a large oval shape. It held about 75 thousand spectators, workers, slaves and Gladiators. I felt like I was in a movie. Listening to the tales of the time you could almost see the Colosseum come to life before your eyes. You could imagine, some of the people we know from history, where they would of sat based on their station in life. We followed the footsteps of the Gladiators from the dungeons to their entering the arena for battle. Seeing the lower level allowed us to view where the Gladiators entered and see the rooms where they awaited their turn to battle and then follow their path out to arena. We found out that there were actually female Gladiators but they were only allowed to battle dwarves, so as to make the battle a fair one. Interesting to find out that the word "arena" came from the Roman word for sand.
Following the Colosseum our tour continued to the Forum. It was spectacular. Our guide had a book that she used to show us the original state of the structures. We would of loved a copy of that book. I am sure it is out there. We saw where Julius Caesar remains were buried. Still today people leave flowers on this site for him. Archeologists found a stone map of Rome that has given them invaluable information of the accurate locations of the ruins. What an amazing find!
Outside the Colosseum was an abundance of entertainment. There are horse drawn carriages, sidewalk entertainers, souvenir kiosks, and food. There were Roman Soldiers posing with tourists for pictures and of course 3 Euro's. But who could pass this up? It brought back memories of the old Roman movies with Kirk Douglas.
Neil said this was an amazing day and he was so glad we were doing this trip. He was however very tired. The day had taken a lot out of him with the long walk and climbing of stairs. He is still recovering from his cancer surgery. We stopped for a quick supper and headed back to our hotel so he could rest. Why is that when you are on vacation that the time seems to pass by so quickly. Tomorrow however promises to be enlightening as we tour the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. I will do what I can for photo's but we are told no photo's are allowed to be taken inside the Sistine Chapel. All other photo's can be taken but no flash is allowed. Also a dress code is strictly enforced - no knees or shoulders can be seen.
I have attached a few photo's from today and hope you enjoy them.
Ciao...Tori
