"Yo bro, can I borrow your Rosary beads?"

...frat boys do the Vatican. 

Our journey to Rome went significantly more smoothly than our journey to Interlaken.  No things were stolen.  No trains were missed.  No busses were ridden.  We did so good that day.  On the train, Alice read her regular teeny-bopper book.  Except this time...it came with this:

Figure 10.1 - Companion Soundtrack?!?! AAHAHAHAHHA BOOKS

We also passed by what we thought would be the Jersey Shore's prime hangout spot.  There weren't there though...what a weird problem.

Figure 10.2 - But it's such a classy locale.. 

Finally, we have proof that the king is alive.  He speaks Italian now, KEWL!

Figure 10.3 - So tired from all that hiding.

We spent two walking-filled, action-packed, heat-strokey days in Rome.  WE SAW ALL THE THINGS!!!

The first day we saw the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, the Palatine, the Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain.  Wow.


The line for the Colosseum was the longest.  I was getting really bored, so I drew Alice this picture of where we always want to be. 

Figure 10.4 - I think I was inspired by all the museums we'd been going to.

Apparently we also stepped into the hot tub time machine while waiting to see the sees, and found some Roman guards chiyyin outside.

Figure 10.5 - He's doing a great job protecting the emperor.

We finally made it inside!! 

Figure 10.6 - They did horrible things in the Colosseum...you can't really tell from our smiles though.   

Before we left, we were lucky enough to find a place to meet up.  We'd been having trouble with this the entire trip.

Figure 10.7 - If you're meeting someone anywhere else, you're breaking rules and causing problems.

After the Colosseum, we ventured over to the Roman Forum and the Palatine.  It was there that we found a lady wearing the very same dress I was wearing and had bought a mere 16 hours before in Switzerland.  We actually ran around other people to snap this photo.

Figure 10.8 - Who wore it best???

That night, we decided to go on a bar crawl that met at the Spanish steps.  

Figure 10.9- They were so Spanish that they were eating tapas and  doing other Spanish things.

Figure 10.10 - How excited we were to be going on a bar crawl.

We met up with the group, which included 45 kids from a study abroad program that all knew each other.  As we were walking to the first bar, we got handed bottles of white wine from Brandon and Max, and had found a built in group of friends.  But then they split us all up, and we wound up with 4 other kids.  They also promised us pizza, a t shirt, and an open bar.  They LIED.  An hour later, we wound up at the Trevi fountain where we were still waiting to get into the bar.  So we ditched, took our Trevi pic, and went home.  

Figure10.11- Dayumn.

On our second day, we saw the Vatican, the Parthanon, and some temples.


The line for the Vatican was super long.  Not surprising.  Here's some insight: lines bring out the absolute worst in people.  They have no respect for the social norms of waiting your turn!  So rude.  Same goes for when you're not supposed to take pictures or speak in holy places.  Arrogance.  

Figure 10.12 - The green arrow is where the line rapped around.  The red is where people were cutting.  Scum.

We'd been noticing a certain theme of pictures being taken in holy places.  The subject, normally a done up girl, looks up in reverence at the sacred thing, and her friend takes one thousand pictures from different angles of them.  It's so....poetic.  It's really art.  We felt left out, so we did one too.  

Figure 10.13- Look at that respect.  That poise.  That perfectly placed religious thing.

Last, we saw the Sistine Chapel.  The Sistine Chapel is at the end of a super long museum in which there are no shortcuts.  Art is cool, but we were tired.  We did manage to stumble upon a Map Room, and since Alice loves maps so much...

Figure 10.14 - WE LOVE MAPS. 

As eluded to earlier, you can't take pictures inside the chapel.  AND WE LISTEN TO AND RESPECT RULES BECAUSE WE AREN'T THE WORST.


That was Rome.


Trip Revelations:
1.  Greece is in turmoil. Sadly, our trip was cut short due to the fact that Athens is literally on fire and I only have a temporary passport.  This post is comin at you live from California.
2.  Rome is filled with hilariously odd couples.  See four examples below.

Figure 10.15- This one isn't that odd, but I wasn't even trying to get their picture.  They were just perfectly posed while  I was photogging the steps.

Figure 10.16 - We call them PDA couple.  This was the most G-Rated it got.  GROSS GET A ROOM.

Figure 10.17 - We are willing to bet these two met at an Anime convention.

Figure 10.18 - No words on this one.

3.  The more southern you are, the more blisteringly hot it is.  All the sweating.
4.  Wifi and air conditioning have been upgraded from luxury to necessity. AKA we are spoiled.
5.  Everyone loves to ask me if I'm Mexican or Spanish.  Trip total: seven. SURPRISE!! Neither.


The trip is over, but stay tuned for our journey home fun times.  There will be a celebrity appearance.