Rome

We had a busy day today. After leaving the port of Civtavecchia we travelled about an hour to get into the city of Rome. Very interesting to hear about the different regions of Italy and the different kinds of food they are famous for; I suppose that's true for Canada too but we just don't emphasize it as much as we should.
Our guide Phillipa was an energetic young man full of information and enough humour to make things interesting. When we got to Rome we had to take a detour to get into the city because there was a demonstration blocking the way. Once we got to where we let off from the bus we were given an hour and a half to walk around the old city and meet back up in time to go to the Vatican. I like big cities and I enjoy old cities but this was amazing. So many streets running in odd angles making it easy to lose one's bearings. We went to.. And then ... And then... (I will post a picture of a map of our route) before heading back to our starting point. It takes some getting used to being a pedestrian in Italy. The lights and crosswalks seem to be suggestions as if there's a small break in traffic or even if there isn't if you confidently walk out across the streets the cars just avoid you or stop to let you pass. He who hesitates is lost.
Marisa found us some delicious pizza near the square. Very tasty crust and the toppings were delicious. Then it was on to the Vatican.
As Philipa was going through the process of getting us organized and making our way to the Vatican museum I couldn't help think about all of the field trips I organized over the years. Kids are just adults who haven't gotten big yet. They don't listen, assume from incomplete information, ask questions that have already been answered, follow the wrong people and complain when things don't go as they expect.
The Vatican was amazing. Philipa handed us off to Giuseppe who was our guide through the Vatican museum, the sisteen chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. He was excellent, knowledgeable about the history of the world, the traditions of Catholic Church and of course the art and architecture of the different sculpture and buildings we saw.
The tour ended with us in St. Peter's square. What an awe inspiring place and when Giuseppe explained how the construction embodied the mission of the church it made me proud of our Catholic heritage. The dome is the head of the church, the square where the people gather is the body and the surrounding columns are the arms gathering it together.
Have I said it enough times but the weather for this trip has been fantastic. When we left I thought we might need to be wearing costs and rain gear but really it's all been rolled up shirts and just comfortable sunny or slightly overcast weather the whole time. I think in July or August things would have felt and smelled much different. I think we will be doing our big trip travel either early spring or later in the fall like this just because of weather and lighter crowds.