Some of our favorite photos of Italy!

Pantheon Ceiling

Amalfi Coast

Duomo di Amalfi

Alleyway in Rome

Streets of Pompeii

View of the forum and St. Peters

Mouth of Truth

Hat Guy 

View from Spanish Steps

King David

Italy...Finally!!!

I added about 9 posts of Italy, so make sure you see them all!

Italy...The best vacation ever!

Italy was in fact the best vacation ever! We walked at least 20 miles a day...Ryan is really big on the whole walking thing...me not so much. Though for Rome, I was willing to comply. Rome was more incredible than I could imagine. I still cannot believe those ruins are in such great shape. I was constantly speechless, because just around any corner leading to a piazza, there were different ruins to discover. I hate history, but once you see it in person, it's hard not to like it! Rome was big, dirty, loud and very old! I hope to one day return...unfortunately I threw my coin into the Trevi the wrong way... Oops...that means my return trip to Rome is not guaranteed! 

My one wish for Italy was to see an Italian do that o' so famous hand gesture they do when angry...and I saw it! Even the double hand gesture..that was an exciting day! We took almost 1,000 photos in Italy, so I tried to only pick a few-but there are still a bunch of photos. Look at the posts below to see the pics! 

Aww...look at the cute little car!

Julius Caesar was assassinated here!

Piazza Navona-we bought our paintings here

Famous statue of King David 

Caesar Augustus lived here!

Spanish Steps

Mouth of Truth

Lovely view at the end of our walk from Hell! Needless to say this was a moment of travel tension between me and Ryan

The Forum-Rome, Italy

The Vatican-Rome, Italy

Vatican City was so much larger than I thought, and very impressive. Since Ryan and I are not catholic, some things were really strange. For example, people came to St. Peter's cathedral (that big building with a dome on the top in the pics below) and inside there was a line of people who would walk up to this statue of St. Peter and rubbed his foot. His foot has been rubbed so many times that his toes are almost non-existant...creepy that so many people have a Saint foot fetish!!! We ended up eating with a girl who was there for a catholic conference and she explained why they were rubbing all up on Peter...I still don't get it, but whatever...I won't judge. Regardless I think people should leave poor Peter's' foot alone, since when is it ok to touch a statue that should be preserved for future generations? Anyway I'm done with Peter's feet. He was a very special guy for our faith, and it was neat to see the place where his bones are buried and he has a pretty sweet church. 

St. Peter's Basilica

Alter in St. Peter's

Famous statue of Mary and Jesus by Michelangelo

Colosseum-Rome, Italy

The Colosseum was more amazing in person than I could have imagined! It's incredible that something so big was built before modern machinery. They rebuilt a piece of the arena's floor, so you could see what it would look like. It was awesome! All of the paths you see under the floor were the holding areas for the animals. 

Pantheon, Rome, Italy

This building happens to be my favorite in Rome, and I think it's Ryan's favorite too. It emerges from no where when you turn the corner from the small alleyways. It is such an amazing building, especially since it is so well preserved. We stood in a building that was built in the B.C. time frame. Wow! Although we did that several times, it did not seem as real to me anywhere else. We returned to the Pantheon over and over...we never got tired of seeing it. We ate a lunch and dinner at one of the 5 cafes that face it. Greatest meals ever!

Trevi Fountain, Rome, Italy

The Trevi is much newer than most of Rome's well known ruins, but it sure is impressive. There are always hundreds of people crowded in this piazza to get a glimpse of the fountain and toss a coin in. Apparently, you are supposed to throw a coin with your right hand over your left shoulder. I threw it over my right, so I guess I'm not guaranteed a trip back to Rome...but I think we'll figure out a way to get back!