Ah, Rome, I've read so much about you! Okay, not really other than in Romans and other miscellaneous literature. But it was cool to think about all the major historical events that have occurred in this city, good and bad. I was definitely eager to go to a place that contributed so much to technology and the arts. It's just such a... cultured place. I also hoped that when I left Amsterdam for Rome, that I would leave the rainy weather behind and be greeted with sunshine! Or at least just... not rain. Too bad Rome was really hot AND rainy. Must have been a Mediterranean thing. Or just a Europe thing. #sandiegoproblems
Also met some interesting people in my hostel: a girl from Taiwan who was studying German in Munich and working in a small bakery, and two girls from Montreal who educated me on the strange bastardized English/French hybrid language they speak. Thankful for people who initiated conversations with me when all I wanted to do was curl up in bed and watch Veronica Mars.
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| The biker in the background originally tried to photobomb my photo (he was unsuccessful). After he rode past my camera, he turned back and gave me a quirky smirk as if he thought he was soooo cute. Okay maybe he was. Ahem anyways... |
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| This place charged me for bread without even asking me if I wanted it! Sigh... |
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| Who cares about rules when you're in the Colosseum. |
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| Delicious paper thin pizza. And Romans, of course. |
Instead of taking a day trip to Pompeii, I chose to take the metro instead to Ostia Antica, which is another ancient archaeological site. It was a very spacious area that allowed you to imagine how the old buildings and houses may have looked like (but it all started looking the same after a short while...).
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| That's not a lake; it's what was leftover from a rainstorm. |
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| Sausages and octopus salad :D |
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| Ostia Antica beach |
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| Mmmm mushroom fettuccine. Too bad it tasted like water T_T. The tiramisu made up for it. |
I also, naturally, visited the nearby Vatican City. But I feel a bit weird about counting it in my "countries visited" list since it's about 1/20th the size of UCSD.
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| Lovely museum, but way too many people. Imagine: squeezing through rooms with a bunch of tourists packed together like a can of sardines, with no AC. Yikes. I am glad I bought my ticket beforehand though so I wouldn't have to wait 3 hours in line. |
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| I don't even know how to caption this. So I'm just going to leave it here. |
