Hello from Rome!
Before Rome we journeyed to Naples where we went to the
cities of Pompeii and Sorrento. The coach ride from the pier to Pompeii was
probably the ugliest drive we have had so far. The streets were riddled with
liter and junkyards; not very pretty, but, well worth it to get to Sorrento.
Pompeii, as expected, is a major tourist spot but actually wasn’t that crowded,
compared to how crazy it can get during the summer months. Pompeii is massive
and it is virtually impossible to see all of it in one day, let alone 3 or 4 hours. It is unbelievable how much of this lost city
is still intact. Almost every building still has walls and floors, but no
ceilings. Every ceiling collapsed due to the weight of the ash, not the actual
lava. You can actually see the tracks of rolling doors for the old shops that
were once setup on the street and the marks from the wheels wearing on the
stone walkways from the heavy horse drawn carts. We also saw one of civilization’s
first fast food joints! They had about 30 places where you could grab cooked
food and go. They must have always been super hungry (or super full).
After Pompeii we jumped back on the coach to head to
Sorrento. When we first got to the city we had free time, so with maps in hand
we got comfortably lost and wandered around the streets. Naples is said to have
invented Pizza, the Margharita to be specific, and from that pizza the colors
were taken for the Italian flag: red for the sauce, white for mozzarella, and
green for the basil (or some people said oregano). DELICIOUS was what it was,
delicious! The dough they use for the pizza is supposedly the same recipe they
have been using for centuries (dating back to Pompeii’s demise even). After we finished eating we ran across the
street to have some Gelato and let me tell you, it was goooooood. J
Next, we met up with everyone to go to a farm in the city
that makes Limoncello, oil, wine, and mozzarella. This place was amazing, they
had lemons and oranges and olive trees all growing together. At one point the
oranges and lemons had grafted together, and to save even more space they grow
grape vines on trellises on top of the trees. The farm is really small, but
they have tons of produce (and it’s good, too).
After the tour we saw a demonstration on how each type of mozzarella is
made (ricotta is made from the water of the mozzarella, genius) then, we got to
taste it. YUM! They had the all the fixings ready for us to eat and enjoy (and
buy!). On our way back to the ship we
got some amazing views of the Sorrento coast.
Yesterday we docked in Rome and headed out to the Eternal
City to see the Vatican City! We even got a surprise drive through the old city
to see the coliseum and forum, it was from the coach, but at least we got to do
a drive by. We started with the Vatican Museums and caught a glimpse of some
famous statues, beautiful tapestries made by nuns, and maps of Italy. At the end of the museum you go straight into
the Sistine chapel. Michelangelo’s work is amazing (I can’t wait to see the
David tomorrow in Florence) and flawless. I just kept staring, waiting for
someone to move. We had a full 20 minutes there and it went by so fast. After
the Sistine Chapel we walked over to St. Peter’s Basilica. This massive
structure is the largest church in the world and houses my most favorite statue
of all time- the pieta. An ambassador came to the basilica as we were leaving
and made quite the entrance. The Swiss Guard was there in their tights alongside
some Cardinals. After St. Peters, we went
over to San Giovanni in Laterano which is considered to be the most important
church in Rome. It was were the papal seat was before St Peter’s Basilica and
is also still a part of Vatican City. There is a line that you cross over that
designates the border between Italy and the church. It was a gorgeous (and it
had an amazing cloister).
And TODAY! We went to Orvieto, a small fortified medieval
town. The duomo there is huge and daunting (you should google it to have a
look, we couldn’t take pictures of the inside L)
The inside and outside are striped horizontally with black and white stripes (a
Moorish influence) the inside looks empty and plain until you get to the transept.
When you turn left you enter a chapel that houses the miracle of the blood
stained altar cloth housed in the tabernacle. The blood was tested and is type
A--the same blood type as the Shroud of Turin. Then, to the right, is the
Cappella di San Brizio which has walls that rival Michelangelo’s Sistine chapel.
It’s said that this is where he got the inspiration for the ceiling, and I can
totally see why. These walls. Holy cow. Luca Signorelli painted powerful images
(in fresco) of the anti-Christ, the prophecies in Revelation coming to pass,
demons flying, angels glowing, and Jesus watching it all come to pass. Amazing.
Afterwards we had free time to go shopping and such, we enjoyed a latte
(literally a latte, we didn’t realize that saying latte would only get us
steamed milk. Don’t worry; we got an espresso to mix with it) and some amazing
views with many stray cats.
Now, we are back on the ship excited for tomorrow! I,
unfortunately, got a cold a couple days ago so I am using my time on the ship
to sleep and Ron is dutifully taking care of me (and enjoying shows, too!).
Here’s to a good night’s sleep and feeling better for Florence (or maybe at
least being able to breathe through the nose, that would be nice).
Love you guys!
R+A
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