The following morning of our adventures, we had to wake up at 2:15 a.m. to head to Rome! Our plane did not actually leave until about 6:30, but we still had a fairly long bus ride to the airport. After our flight to Rome, we jumped right into the activities of the day. We started off by visiting the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. Our tour guide, Louis, informed us of a myth surrounding the fountain - throwing a specific number of coins over your left shoulder with your right hand will lead to favorable outcomes. He said that throwing one coin will result in you marrying someone, throwing two coins will result in you marrying someone attractive, and finally, throwing three coins over your shoulder will result you in you marrying someone attractive and Italian - and of course we had to throw some coins in. Mid-way through the day, we were on our own to find lunch and have some time to shop around. This was unusual to be able to be set free after just arriving in the city. We did not have have much of a bearing of where we were, and we were already on our own. We went through a few souvenir shops and bought some things. Once we were ready for lunch, we went to a local shop and ordered a few sandwiches. Once it was time to meet back with the group, we had a designated meeting place at the Trevi Fountain. From there, we started heading toward the Colosseum. In Rome, it was extremely hot. I can honestly say this was one hottest places I have ever been at that time. It was in the high 90s and we were doing TONS of walking. The Colosseum was amazing to see, even though we were suffering through the heat. While also seeing the Colosseum, we got to tour the Roman Forum. It was really cool and interesting to see all the ruins and remains of “old Rome." After our touring, we headed back to the hotel. The hotel was pretty far away so we had a long bus ride. At this hotel, it was almost set up as a house. Each room was different, and ours was especially small. There were two twin beds and one full, all crammed into a room with a few feet of walking space between the walls and the beds. We did have a balcony, which was very nice, since there was no air conditioning, so we ended up leaving the balcony door open overnight. For dinner that night, we ate at the hotel. They began with serving us lasagna, and we were somewhat confused on why we were only receiving a small portion. After that, they brought bruschetta and salad. Once we were done with everything, and offered seconds, they brought us tiramisu for dessert. It was interesting to see this unusual style of presenting the meal. At this hotel we had a pool, and many people went out to use it later that night. My friends, Regan, Katie, Grace, Isabelle, Don, Noah, Kate, and I did not feel like swimming so we went out to the deck and spent the rest of the night playing the card game, spoons, expect we didn’t have spoons so we used twigs off the ground! The next day, we had the opportunity to walk around and explore again. We saw St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican, and the Sistine Chapel. There was also a market going on, which had everything from clothing to food products. I bought some different types of olive oil for my parents, and some of my friends bought clothes. Being able to walk around this market and just see everything that the people had made and were selling was really cool. This was the very last night of our vacation, and everyone voted to stay out later in the city, instead of going back to the hotel. After eating even more gelato than we had already had, and doing our final souvenir shopping, we decided just to sit down in a plaza area to hang out, talk, and people-watch until it was time to go back to the hotel. The following morning, we were on our way back home. It was a long and exhausting trip, but definitely worth it. I would recommend to anyone to travel whenever they have a chance, and to encourage them to not spend all their time doing tours and hitting the “popular” spots. Of course you want to visit the major sights of the city, but always take time to relax and absorb what is happening around you.
This trip was a once-in-a-lifetime vacation and I am so thankful I had the opportunity to go on it. I would go back in a heartbeat, and certainly hope I will have the chance in the future :)
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AuthorMy name is Alyssa MacDonald, and I am a senior at Dunlap High School. I will be writing about some of my exciting travels that I have been able to experience! Archives
April 2018
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