We have arrived...

June 30th, 2015

Hello All! We have arrived...6 days ago...

Sorry this has taken so long to post but we have had no internet access.

After a long flight that neither of us could sleep through and almost losing our luggage (the airline only sent our bags as far as Dublin) we finally landed in Rome at around noon on Tuesday.

We opted to get picked up by our hotel from the airport, which was Anna’s first taste of how Italians view driving. Rules are suggestions but there is a beauty in how it all flows. While Chuck smiled in the amusement of the journey, Anna was pressing that imaginary brake…we made it just fine.

Once settled, we ventured out. We found a place to get lunch. It was a good first meal, but they tried to charge for bread we didn’t eat, and Chuck can finally say the three and half months in Rome literally paid off, and they removed it from the bill.

We then headed to the Vatican, but before we got there, the 90-degree weather forced our hand and we went straight for gelato at Old Bridge. Now we have arrived!

Through a hoard of people, we got to the piazza in front of St. Peters. Being exhausted we just sat and watched the world around us. While sitting under the epic pillars, we people watched and couldn’t help but be amazed/annoyed at how “selfie-sticks” dotted the piazza. They have been everywhere thus far, but here’s hoping it’s a fad!

Chuck decided that there were places we had to go see, starting with Piazza Navona. Strolling the piazza, we enjoyed the wonderful sounds of the fountains and saw people walking in a nearby church. It turned out to be Sant’Agnese, which we walked into during a choir rehearsal. It was actually several childrens’ choirs that came from all over (Indiana, Oregon, and Italy) and they just made beautiful music. These are the treats of Rome…

One more place we had to see on our first day was the Pantheon. Before getting there, it was wondering the streets for the first time that really woke us up to being in Europe. Roads follow an organic path and that’s what makes cities like Rome a place you want get lost in. Walking up to the Pantheon, it surprised us, not seeing it’s grand proportions from a mile away, but from around a corner. Rome will continue to surprise us.

Though, the first day was enough to put us in bed by 7:30…

Ciao!