Thursday June 1st – Fortresses and Crypts

Alas, this was our last day in Roma, but we were still going to to go a few more places before departing from this wonderful city. Today we went to Castel San’t Angelo which apparently a movie called, ‘Angels and Demons’ was filmed, but I’ve never seen the movie and all I knew was that it looked hella cool from the outside.

It looked like a little paradise that was surrounded by high walls and fences you know, for protection and all. I think the most awesome thing was seeing the actual cannons and cannonballs they were just there in the open and piled high (cannonballs) and getting to touch them was pretty neat too!

The only thing that I was a little hesitant about was on the way up to the top of Castel San’t Angelo, there was a section where after we walked up little, tiny steps, it was just a little incline that continued on, but it went down on either side when you looked over the railings that were on both sides.

Not liking heights and walking up an incline on something like that, I took baby steps, yeah, my professor was laughing at me and telling me I’d be fine, but still! I don’t trust it!

Up at the top of it, they had a mini museum packed with original shields, helmets, swords, military uniforms and flags from past wars. Seeing actual weapons that someone held in the past was so awesome. Just imagining what those relics have been through really makes you wonder.

Emily and I went off on our own for a hot second because I got distracted by something large and colorful and it turned out to be a huge ass ceiling that was decked out in gold trim and a beautiful painted scene spanning the entirety of the ceiling.

Of course we got a wonderful view of Rome from above and the scenery of beautiful as usual. Seeing the top of the Vatican, the flowing canal with the bridges and just how far the city stretched out in front of us – it went on for miles and miles, the buildings becoming little tiny shadowed dots at one point.

After leaving, we went back to our hotel and packed up our bags because we were going back to Florence after dragging our luggage across Rome and visiting the Capuchin Crypts which had to be hands down my favorite part of this day! You enter surprisingly through the front of a church which makes it all the more creepy when you think about it. After going through check-in, you walk through a small museum telling the history about the Capuchin Monks and where they’re located, their mission, etc.

You also get to see relics from different famous Monks of the Capuchin and then at the tail end of the museum there was a giant story of how the Capuchin Crypts came to be and how they were made from I think 13,000 real human bodies.

Walking towards them, it’s down a long hallway with 6 rooms to be exact and they’re decorated with those real human bones from the floor all the way to the ceiling. It’s something so unreal and unlike anything I’ve ever seen before in my life. I know I said I enjoyed creepy shit, but this was a whole new level of creepy that I wasn’t prepared for at all. Everything was made of bones – the butterfly designs, chandeliers and the different designs in each room – all legitimate bones.

Not only was it grotesque in nature, but it was also beautiful, the designs I mean. They were so specific and went with each room it was assigned to. It was obvious that a lot of time and thinking went into the design of the overall place.

It was interesting to see that each room was assigned certain bones like the ribs or skulls. There were also full mummified corpses dressed as the Capuchin Monks themselves were neat yet creepy as fuck I have to be honest. It felt like they were going to start moving the more I stared at them. If you looked hard enough, you could see where the eye sockets were sunken in, some eyes were still closed, their lips were in tact too and you could make our smiles and frowns on certain ones as you walked through.

Of course photos were not allowed within the areas where the actual Crypts were and for good reason – these are actual human beings and to take pictures is a huge sign of disrespect and I wasn’t going to get any bad juju from being a rebel and taking sneaky photos and honestly if you wanted to you couldn’t. They had people posted in there to make sure nobody took photos.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Wednesday May 31st- “Death March” part 3 (The dope Pope and some Catacombs)

Let me start off by saying that I was not expecting to go and see the Pope in person today. Of all the things I thought I was going to do while in Rome, this wasn’t even close to what I was thinking and considering I haven’t been to church in years, I felt pretty weird going to this massive gathering at this holy place and all.

It was a nice thing to experience though, to see all of these people from across the globe gathered in the same area and praising each other and to be engulfed in a sense of love; which is the best way I can describe it.

Being blessed by the “Dope Pope” as our group was calling the Pope was a once in a lifetime thing to be present for. I never thought I would be blessed, I always felt like I didn’t deserve it, but the Pope said everyone deserved it. I felt lighter afterwards, like all my problems were gone for a moment and I remembered how to truly be free- from issues, responsibilities, just problems in general. It was a wonderful feeling that I wish to get back one day.

A few of us did leave early from the Popes service just because there were so many people trying to get in and out and it was just a huge mess in the sense of trying to get to one place or another and being claustrophobic totally doesn’t help anything either!

After finally getting back to the hotel from our little detour from getting gelato, since it was so hot out that day, we got a few hours to relax and have time to ourselves before going to the place I was so excited about – the Roman Catacombs!

I mean, getting there was a bit hellish since we had to walk so fucking far firstly for the bus and then from the stop which took like almost 30ish minutes to reach, we walked a bit farther too – shit, even the cafes wouldn’t let us sit and rest while we used their facilities, but I was already too hot and tired to even argue.

It was a blessing to finally arrive there, though it didn’t really look like a place where catacombs from ancient times would be but of course, looks are deceiving.

Walking in, you’re automatically in the gift shop which was a bit strange, but there was a door on the side they opened that led you down this huge flight of stairs to essentially what’s a church with small windows near the top so sunlight could peek through. After having the tour guide explain to us to stay together, not to wander off since there are 11 miles of catacombs under us and we’d be hopelessly lost if we separated and of course not photo taking down there too – we were led to another set of stairs, of course more rustic in looks and probably a bit unsafe in my opinion, but whatever.

Stepping into the actual catacomb space, I totally felt like I was apart of an episode of Ghost Adventures. Like, I was about to explain where we were and that we were going to find some dope ass spirits during tonight’s lock down and all.

But in all seriousness, it was creepy, eerily so and I loved it! I really dig those creepy, dimly lit places with a messed up history… I know, wonderful things for a young woman to be into, right?

Not only was the cool air welcoming, but so were the other parts of the catacombs our tour guide didn’t take us too. It was so tempting to just split off and explore since I enjoy to look at everything I can in new places, but the thought of getting and lost and dying down there really didn’t appeal to me, so I just stuck with the group and be happy with what we were shown.

Now, the bodies were not in the catacombs since they were taken out in 1994 due to people actually taking the bones of those who were buried in there. So, there were just giant rectangular holes in the sides of the wall and above where the coffins were. Even though it was just a hole essentially, it was awesome just to see where exactly they were.

It was cool to know that whole families had plots there and the grave diggers guild was an interesting aspect – all the grave diggers in the catacombs actually had a plot of their own in there where they were buried and it even had  a beautiful mosaic that was sadly stolen many years ago.

Seeing headstones from ancient times as well as some small trinkets and pottery inside the coffin spaces. It was an experience that I truly enjoyed and I totally want to explore more ancient catacombs because you’re literally walking through history.

After trekking our way back to the main city of Rome, we split off – Emily and I actually and decided to get something to eat. Okay, I’ll say it, I’ve had other food besides pasta and such while I’ve been in Rome which include places like McDonalds and Burger King. I know, I know, it’s totally awful – sue me, but I regret nothing!

Honestly though, it tastes way better than the ones in America- more fresh, no grease and best of all, it didn’t hurt my stomach later on like it usually would back in Illinois. Though the one thing that was a bit off was the Mexican food which I found out from getting some from a take away place that someone in the group suggested.

Most of us decided to eat on the roof with out Mexican grub and have a few drinks, beer and wine of course and just talk and enjoy the view. The food was a bit foreign to me even though I’m Mexican myself. There were some things they got right which was the chile and others that were way off like the beans and salsa, but it’s all about the experience and trying new things that you usually wouldn’t try, right?

Some of us decided that after dinner on the roof, we were going to go back to the Trevi Fountain at night. Wanting to see it again all lit up by the lights and a few drinks in, I was totally in! Getting there, it was even more beautiful at night – the lights shining on the statues and such creating wonderful shadows and making the water glisten… truly a sight I was happy to see.

After 15 minutes of staring and taking in the beauty of it once again, we had to high tail it back to the metro station so we didn’t miss the last train back to our stop. Needless to say, I went to bed very, very late that night, but it was totally worth it!

(Unfortunately, I only have one picture from the Catacombs and it’s on my Instagram if you all would like to see it and I think I have a video from the Pope’s service that I’ll include in my final video!)

Tuesday May 30th – “Death March” part 2 (Ancient sites and holy grounds)

Even though the feeling in my legs have yet to come back, I continue on with “Death March” part 2! The main reason I was so eager and energized this morning was because we were going to see the Roman Coliseum!

The Roman Coliseum, the one you always learn about in history all through your school career. Where battles and games were held, everyone gathering to watch them – that Roman Coliseum. The awesome thing about it was when we exited the metro station, it was literally right there in front of us in all its glory.

Seeing pictures and watching documentaries about this place did no justice to it in all honesty. Because, I was there in the flesh, walking up the stairs and around the Coliseum where year ago, people in ancient times did the same. It’s just insane to think about that. I mean just touching it, I was losing my shit man! I was in nerd heaven!

It was a dream come true to be there and experience it in all of its glory and totally something that I can cross off my bucket list for sure! I mean, I touched ancient history today, fuck, I walked through ancient history! I’m set for life now!

Walking away from the Roman Coliseum, we made our way towards the Roman Forum and oh my gosh, it was so gorgeous. It literally felt like a miniature ancient city we were walking through.

The ruins of old palaces and baths decorated with detailed columns and statues was truly a sight. To have the sunlight shining down on these beautiful pieces of history with the hustle and bustle of the city surrounding it was such an interesting mash-up so to speak. I was all smiles on the inside from this even though on the outside I was a huffing, puffing burnt wheat thin that was lagging behind the group.

I mean, if I ever got separated from the group, all I had to do was sneeze and they’d find me in an instant! Side note here, since my allergies were so bad most of the trip, I was sneezing a shit ton and it wasn’t any delicate, little sneeze, oh no. It was big and loud and it drew a lot of attention. So, it became a running joke in the group if I ever got lost, I just had to sneeze and they’d hear it no matter where they were.

Thank goodness we got to rest after the long morning we had, it was a fun one, but I was already beat. Resting in our hotel room for awhile, we got ready for our afternoon trip to the Vatican – honestly the most holy place in the world, right? I think that’s right.

Either way, it seems like a place I shouldn’t be going to, I might get hit by lightning as soon as I walk in the door with my luck.

Of course, I talked to my mom and told her I’d be going to the Vatican and all and that turned out to be a huge mistake on my part because after telling her, she in turn told the rest of my very Italian and Catholic family that I was going. So, I had messages from that side of the family asking me questions and all kinds of stuff and basically I had no choice and was told to take a lot of pictures and say prayers for certain people and such.

The silver lining was I didn’t get hit with lightning when I walked in, so that’s a plus! I never researched the Vatican, so I was really clueless about it when I walked in which I really don’t like to do with places, but what’s a little adventure gunna hurt?

It was huge, that much was clear and the rooms, gosh, those rooms were filled with marble statues, busts, various pottery, trimmed with gold, red and other rich colors. It was like walking through a millionaires mansion and getting the V.I.P tour.

I wanted to take a picture of everything and anything! The tour guide we had was nice, though, his accent was really,really thick and because of that I really didn’t understand what he was saying half the time so I did what I usually did when I’m in that situation – smile and nodded.

I will say, the main Church of the Vatican at the end of our tour was insane! Everything was plastered with gold – it was just everywhere! I thought I was going to go blind with how much gold was shinning and gleaming.

The one things that caught me off guard and truly surprised me at the Vatican was the fact that we got to see the Sistine Chapel. You know, the one you read about in books and art history articles, the famous work of the Michelangelo – his most famous ceiling painting.

The mere fact that I was in there seeing this masterpiece was really a dream come true. To see the evolution of his art just by looking at this giant art piece. You could see where he started it, but you can tell he made the people too large at first and through the years, they got smaller and more detailed.

The wall piece which he started in his 60’s was magnificent – the detail in the faces, bodies and just overall space was connective. There’s also somebody holding this grotesque body of flesh, no bones or anything inside, just like a sort of shell of somebody that is supposed to be Michelangelo himself.

This information was so great to learn about because this was stuff I was not taught in school or even college about this piece and to have somebody who knew legitimate facts that most history books never touched on was so wonderful.

Now, we weren’t supposed to take pictures inside the Sistine Chapel at all, but there were people around me doing it in secret. So, I decided to try too! I only got about 5 pictures, and some are blurry as hell, but you can still make the shapes out. I did get into trouble though, but it was honestly worth it!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Monday May 29th – Death March Part 1 (When in Rome, baby)

Let me start off by saying that being short and briskly walking through crowded streets with a duffel bag full of shit doesn’t mix well, especially in Rome. I was hitting people left and right, yet I showed no mercy.

In that certain situation, I’m really happy I don’t know a lot of Italian because I might’ve been called a few not so nice words. The hotel we stayed at was very neat and totally reminded me of Girl Scout camp with the whole bunk bed situation.

There were three of us in this room. With two beds on the bottom and one on top in a weird three person bunk bed? Yeah, that sounded weird. But, the room also had a small kitchenette filled with pots, pans and plates. A small two person table against the wall and a small bathroom with an even smaller shower.

Big people and small things really don’t mix, so showering in that small ass space was really interesting to say the least.

Anyways, there was a running joke in the San Zanobi house (my house) that this day was proclaimed as “The Death March” because of how far and long and overall how much we walked on that first day in Rome. I swear there’s a saying of “seeing Rome in a day” or something like that, either way, it sure fucking felt like it! I couldn’t feel anything from the waist down when I finally got to sit on my bed.

Aside from my bitching and complaining and not feeling certain limbs on my body, Rome is absolutely breathtaking.

Seeing the Piazza Novana which is Bernini’s fountain of the Four Rivers was incredible. It was very detailed and put together and the craftsmanship that was put into such a piece is truly mind blowing.

It was a piece that I just stared at and took it in, of course I kind of wandered from the group and I think I did something illegal? There was a railing that circled around the fountain itself that separated the people from the fountain, but I saw kids and other people over the railing so I thought it was okay to do.

So, that’s what I did, I climbed over the railing and touched the edge of the fountain and dipped my hand in the water since it was hotter than Satan’s ass crack out and sat on the edge of it and just relaxed.

Meeting back up with the group, some kids got into trouble for doing the exact same thing I did which made me just walk away. Yeah, I felt like a rebel after that. Moving on from my criminal ways, we went to see the Spanish Steps which were really cool to look at, but in the back of my mind I was howling because of the very thought of walking my fat ass up all those steps, but luckily, we just looked at them and checked out the little boat fountain in from of them.

Being the adult I am, I got water all over myself from trying to get a drink from the fountain like everyone else was doing, but I also got a dope ass Facebook profile picture – so, it all worked out in the end!

Okay, out of everything we got to see in Rome on that first afternoon, hands down my favorite place was the Trevi Fountain. I’ve seen pictures of it online because my mother has always talked about wanting to go there. Of course, I just wanted to take her with me on this adventure, but of course, I couldn’t.

It was unreal. I know I say that a lot, but it’s the truth. The Trevi Fountain was just huge! So many pillars, statues, water spouts, the detail etched into these giant slabs of marble I just don’t know how they did it. The fact that it’s still in tact too, is I don’t know what to think about that honestly.

My pictures really don’t do it justice, but it’s as close as it’s going to get. I stood there for a good 15 minutes, no talking or picture taking, just standing. I looked at the details, the things that people pass over when they look at it. I looked at the expressions chiseled into the faces, the way everything was positioned – everything.

Continuing our “Death March”, we made our way to the Pantheon. Now, I didn’t really know much about this place even from all the history classes I’ve taken.

It was interesting to know that the Pantheon was like the “blueprint” so to say for the Duomoty Brunelleschi later on. It was a nice surprise too seeing the top of the place just being open. There wasn’t any glass or anything covering the top – just wide open!

The next stop wasn’t really a stop, it was just something extra on the way to our next destination. The Trojan’s Column was neat because of the design. The spirals and very small extra fine details were amazing and they even had a story behind it all.

The column itself had to do with an Emperor and his accomplishments, and each detailed spiral was a certain accomplishment in his life time and it told of that accomplishment through the detailed etchings in the marble.

What trip would be complete without another church? That was our last stop, well close to it. Now, if I offend someone, I’m sorry, but all of these churches look that same after awhile and that’s no lie.

We went to three in a row this day – Saint Ignazio di layala, Santa maria Sopra Minerva, and Church of Luigi al Franceri (I think that’s how you spell all of these churches and if not I’m sorry). Looking back at my pictures, I honestly don’t know which church is which at this point, but they’re all pretty in their own right.

Of course, after what I thought was seeing the entirety of Rome in that single afternoon, I was practically dead when we got back to the hotel, but as I laid on my bed contemplating everything in my life, the sights I saw and things I learned that day were great and having a broken down body was worth it!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.