Rainy Rome

Bongiorno!

This has been my fourth day in Rome, and only the first day i've seen blue sky and the sun. Up until last night, Rome had been a dreary wet place where people keep trying to sell you umbrellas and roses. I came here with my friend Ziyi and met her friend Debbie who gave us a pretty amazing tour of the heart of Rome. This city is OLD. There's ruins scattered everywhere in the Roman sector, it's a shame theres no way to let you just roam around on the grounds next to still standing pillars, i think it would make for a great park. To keep the ancient taste, they've decided to make most roads out of cobblestones, and theyre never flat. Walking is a bloody effort here, roads are rough, and people walk slower than an amputated tortoise. The cracks between stones are practically an inch apart too. This makes me wonder how women in heels dont fall in and snap their shoes. Anyone care to enlighten me?

Anyways, unlike Paris, all the sights to see in Rome are outdoors, it's kind of nice how everything somewhat free to see, but the outdoorsyness results in an obscene amount of tourists in the city. There's probably a piazza every few streets, yet each one manages to be filled to capacity with tourists. A latte in hotspots like piazza navona costs 6euros instead of 1.50! Despite this, they are absolutely beautiful, especially the Trevi fountain. Like most fountains, you toss in coins for certain reasons, 1 coin brings you back to rome, and 2 ensures you find true love. I threw in 3, we'll see what happens.

The Vatican is a whole other sight to behold, despite my "lack of culture" according to ziyi, I can still appreciate the art and architecture and history behind these sights. Plus she bombards you with history and art facts anyways so theres no point reading it up yourself. The vatican is huuuuuuuuuuuge, its just a shame the only time it's empty is at night, when you're not allowed onto the grounds. I haven't seen the sistine chapel, don't really plan on it after seeing all of michaelangelo's other works. La Pieta is a BEAUTY. Absolutely stunning, no wonder no one believed he sculpted it when he was 23.

The other highlight of Rome is the food of course! The only downside is its freaking expensive, sooooooooooooo expensive to eat here. I've had pizza an obscene amount of times, i actually find it greasier here, but the ingredients taste better. And gelato, i had 3 cones in 1 day, on a rainy cold day. That's canadian right there. After a while, the 3 of us finally found some decently priced trattorias to dine at. We ordered enough to stuff a family. Buffalo's milk mozzarella is delicious, it's probably my new favourite cheese. Having bread anywhere after having it in Paris is going to be a disappointment. The meals are amazing though! An antipasti + primi + secondi will kill you, I'm sure the waitress stared at us in disbelief when the food vanished into our tiny asian bodies. Here's a photo of pasta with lobster ziyi had, i wish i had ordered it...

(she eats like a monster.)