Italy!!!

I have just returned from Italy! The land of my ancestors!! It was beautiful and so much fun. Everyone thought that I was Italian! I felt at home. Now I need to learn Italian so that I will not disappoint people the next time I go there! I greatly enjoyed the pizza and ice cream. I recommend that if you visit Italy that you get ice cream every day. Try different flavors!

 I first visited Rome.  It was really hot…I would recommend that if you visit Rome, you do not go in July. It is also very crowded and expensive during that time since everyone is on summer break. I still had an amazing time though. The Roman Forum and Palatine Hill were so cool! Here were buildings hundreds and hundreds of years old! One can actually see much of these ruins from the street. It always amazes me how well the Romans built things. The Colosseum is remarkable. There is a small restaurant near the Colosseum from which you can see it while you eat. I went there several times. I visited Capitoline Hill and went in the museum. The art work and sculptures were breathtaking! I saw The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius by Michelangelo.

I also visited the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica. Both places are worthwhile. St. Peter’s is stunning! I would love to experience a church service there! I wanted to sit down and take it all in, but there were no chairs or benches to sit on. I think one could sit and take it all in for days! After the basilica I went to the Vatican, and because I had ordered my ticket online, I was able to skip the very, very, very long line. If you ever go to the Vatican make sure you buy your ticket online, or you may stand in line for hours. The Vatican is huge! And the sculpture collection includes pieces from Greece. The ceilings of the Vatican are all stunningly decorated and designed differently. There are also rooms full of paintings by many famous painters; including The School of Athens by Raphael. Michelangelo’s paintings in the Sistine Chapel are a must see. Make sure you are really quiet or else the guards will make you leave! Yes, Rome is a fun place to visit! Remember: Rome was not built in a day, nor can it be toured in a day.

My next stop was the beautiful land of Venezia! Venice is so beautiful! The water isn’t very nice, but the old buildings and canals are lovely. It was so neat to see gondolas and boats everywhere! I even saw a cruise ship and private yachts. Make sure you take a water taxi or bus to get a view of Venice from the water. I decided to do this after getting lost trying to find my hotel. Venice is a maze if you have never been there before. I was able to make my way around without getting lost by the second day. My hotel was right next to San Macro Piazza, and so I was able to enjoy the many festivities happening there. It was restful in Venice and I was able to just sit with my feet in the water and read. One day I decided to just wander around and see what I could find. I stumbled upon many nice areas, and even found the Ghetto. The Rialto Bridge was very interesting with the many shops built on it. I had fun going into the hundreds of Murano glass shops. Venice is definitely a place I would recommend people to visit! It is beautiful and refreshing!