Italia Part Two!

Sta. Maria Maggiore.

Dad in the Colosseum

On Saturday our first order of business was to go get a cannoli for breakfast. And that is exactly what we did. We got cannoli and cappuccino and were very content.  Then we wanted to go check out what time mass was on Sunday at the Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore.  When we got there we went in and looked around. It was, in my opinion, just as beautiful as St. Peter's in the Vatican.  After that we were going to head to the Colosseum but we took a wrong turn somewhere so we decided we might as well visit another basilica.  So we went to Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano.  We ended up seeing 4 out of the 9 basilicas in Rome. I think that's quite the accomplishment for a 5 day vacation. Finally we made it over to the Colosseum.  We decided to do an impromptu tour of the Colosseum and the Forum.  It was really cool to go inside these buildings that have been around for thousands of years.  In the Colosseum a season lasted about 10 days and over 5,000 animals were killed each season.  I think the Romans are the cause of extinction.  The Forum was also amazing.  After finishing our tour there we were pretty much exhausted so we went back to the hotel for a little bit.  After that we went to a special wine store so Dad could buy a bottle for Mom.  Then we went out to dinner at the same restaurant we went to the night before because we liked it so much.  I had the biggest plate of gnocchi ever. It was delicious.  The tiramisu was disappointing however. 
     

In the Roman Forum with the Colosseum in the background.

The next morning we finally ate breakfast at the hotel.  Then we checked out and left our bags in the storage room so we could go out for a little bit longer.  We went to the Latin Mass at Sta. Maria Maggiore.  It was long and had a lot of incense but it was interesting.  Then after that we went to the train station and bought our bus/train tickets to the airport.  After that we went to the Bernini Art Gallery and saw some ancient art.  After browsing the gallery for a while we got lunch at the same place that we had eaten cannoli at the morning before.  It was more expensive than we expected, but it was good nonetheless.  Then unfortunately we had to go back to the hotel, get our bags and start heading toward the train station.  We said a tearful goodbye and I got on the bus to go to the airport.  I was really sad to leave my dad but I had already made it more than halfway through the semester so I knew that the second half would be easier.  It was an all too short but amazing five days in Rome.