Rome, Italy Part 4: The Colosseum

Sybil and I missed out on part of the tour bc we were trying to help a little lost girl who spoke neither English, Spanish, nor Russian (Sybil would have considered herself a professional translator with the Russian, but only to ask if she wanted to eat, swim, or play Zombies).

On our last night of vacation, we tried to soak it all up, maybe a little too much. 

Everyone was exhausted, as you can see on their faces. 

Iris wasn't even excited to discover that someone in Rome loves her enough to write it on a wall.

Tired: Sybil got a ride with Claire.

Elijah was also kind enough to give a piggyback.

 

Rome, Italy Part 3

Vatican City

We couldn't take pictures in the Sistine chapel, but it was pretty amazing.

St Peter's Basilica

Pantheon

Pantheon front door

We were walking through town and stopped in this chapel where a foreign choir was singing.

The ceiling was amazing

And of course, we lit candles for Abuela Maria

A guide called this the wedding cake building.

Rome, Italy Part 2

Rome Temple

We went to church on the same grounds as the temple. Sheri Dew happened to be walking up to the door of the church building the same time as we were. She also skipped out on the second hour and went to the visitor's center, presumably so she could meet us.

 

My favorite graffiti of the trip:

Scala Sancta

These are the stairs that Christ climbed several times on the day of his death. Pontius Pilate walked Him to His judgment on these stairs which were brought to Rome by Helena, mother of Constantine. 

Nobody is allowed to walk on these stairs, only to go up on knees, praying on each step. I wouldn't allow Sybil to do it; I wasn't sure she could make it and I didn't want her to interrupt the reverence of other visitors. She threw a bit of a tantrum. The other 4 said it was a painful experience, but gave spiritual insight. David: there was an impressive painting of Christ that could only be seen from the angle of kneeling (reverence and humility are necessary to come to know Him). Claire: if you found the grooves in the marble steps where other people had gone up, it was easier on your knees (forefathers have paved our way). Iris enjoyed reading the story/prayer on each stair that the guidebook offered. Elijah: once you started, you couldn't stop nor turn around. You had to keep going.

The chapel at the top of the stairs is known as the Holy of Holies

This church is across the street. It is the seat of the Pope: The Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran.

There are colossal statues of the 12 apostles that I loved looking at (similar in theme to those from the temple visitor center). The skull of the apostles Peter and Paul are in this church.

Rome, Italy, Part 1

We started our time in Rome with a tour of the the vast underground catacombs, with over 26,000 people buried. Our tour guide referred to Rome as "archeological lasagne": epochs of history lying on top of each other. 

Rome's city wall encloses 1000 churches. The first churches had double use as domiciles. 

This church was from the 4th century, with a 17th century facelift. 

We were told it is where the Nicean Creed was first read.

Saint Angelo Castle has a sweet view of the Vatican.

Romantic pose #1

Romantic Pose #2

Was I trying to kiss him or put my thumb into his eye socket?

You will never know.

On top of the castle

Looking down the famous Spanish Steps in Rome.

I found it humorous that a policewoman was employed specifically to tell people not to sit on the stairs.

Trevi Fountain

Throw a coin into the fountain with right hand, over the left shoulder = a promise to return to Rome. 

2 coins = you will find your love in Rome

3 coins = you will marry your Roman love

We met the POPE!!!

This pope tried to swindle us.

Florence, Italy

Florence was David's most anticipated stop: the birthplace of the Renaissance and the Merici family. David developed a heavy crush on the Merici family via a 24 episode Netflix series.

Our first stop was a tiny, meaty, restaurant in the middle of downtown. Trying to find a parking place in city center + dinner close to midnight created a situation perfect for napping on a restaurant table.

The church known as: il Duomo (the dome) because of it's incredibly-architectured, huge dome, which took 140 years to build.

Uffizi Gallery

    

Sybil heard the meaning of her name while listening to the guided audio-tour of this Michelangelo painting. "Sybil" means "angel." We debated as a family whether this was an appropriate translation. Elijah weighed in with "devil" as more appropriate and Iris with "demonic angel." Sybil was indifferent, while others opined that "picara" was the best meaning of Sybil.

Strolling around the city

We strolled into the world's oldest pharmacy (600 years old):

where we bought "Iris" toothpaste.

Flexing angels

I believe this is the church where many of the Merici family were buried. 

This is the bridge where we had recently seen a few men running madly down the middle, dodging quickly through the pedestrian traffic with bulging bags. A few moments later, we saw a policeman running and panting, about to give up the chase.

We were staying just down the street from il Duomo, so we passed it often.

David meets David

Claire inherited that side-glance from me.

Morning run with my man.

David and I told the kids that we were going to do a fake wedding proposal in this square and see if we could start a mosh-pit. Elijah said he would find a new family.

On our last night, we went to an opera concert in St Marks Anglican Church. It was intimate with only about 40 people there, The operatic voices filled the church with perfect acoustics. The singers were so close that I could see their tonsils vibrating and that the tenor had probably sucked on a blue jolly rancher just previous to the performance. Iris jumped when the soprano hit her first high note. Claire said, "I don't understand how that noise can come out of their mouths without them exploding."

A common theme throughout the trip was amazement at the size of Sybil's bladder. 

After the concert, she professed another needed emergency bathroom trip....

until she saw the carrousel. We waited our turn as a teenaged choir group filled every spot on the carrousel with lively singing and intermittent giggling.

This was the night Elijah whipped out his green laser. Nobody knew that he had secretly bought it on the streets of Bosnia. He had a great time seeing how far it could reach (it was quite far).

This is right around when I started trying to kiss Elijah in all pictures.

My love is so huge that it cannot be contained.

Inside il Duomo

In the baptistry of il Duomo

We climbed the bell tower of il Duomo.

463 steps, 82 meters

Almost got Elijah in this one. So close.

The Crypt under il Duomo.

According to Sybil, dancing and singing is always appropriate, even in a crypt.