Roma

Last week we took a last minute trip to meet up with some friends in Rome. Fortunately they were seasoned Italian travellers so they were able to point out our Italian faux pas. Like me drinking cappuccinos after noon and DJB yelling randomly at people on the street. Also, don't ever order tap water instead of bottled water; you might as well tell them you voted for Silvio Berlusconi. 

Needles to say, we took up the famous sights of the city. The Colosseum is likely the most recognizable Roman tourist attraction and there is a reason for that...it's massive. It could hold up to 50,000 people.

The floor was made of wood and beneath that was the hypogeum. This is where they kept the animals that Russell Crowe had to kill.

The Roman Forum is a short walk from the Colosseum. The Forum was the epicentre of ancient Rome and now it looks like a pile of rubble. Here is a recreation of the intact Forum.

After being all ruined out, we decided to head to an intact Roman building. Again, this thing is massive and it's 2000 years old. Pictures can't do it justice.

There is a hole in the top of the dome and when it rains the water drains through the floor. Also, Raphael, one of the ninja turtles, is buried in here.

Trevi Fountain is an excellent people watching place.

You're supposed to throw a coin in the fountain and make a wish. We wished that it would get warmer but it got windier and colder.

Last major stop of the trip was the Vatican. We waited half an hour in front of this door only to realize this is where you wait to have a private audience with the Pope.

The Vatican has it's own post office, so a big thing is to send a postcard.

Papa Joannes!

Finally, the Spanish Steps...it was super cold so there were only people trying to sell us stuff there. Maybe it's better people watching in the summer.