Day Eight: All Roads Lead to ROME!

After a long day, we arrived in the bustling city of Rome. I was surprised by how congested it was (I don't know why, it is the roots to so much of our civilization). I was also shocked by the amount of graffiti, despite it's ageless draw, it's still a city with all the grime that comes with that word. Our guide assures us this grafitti will be the '20th' century art addition a thousand years from now as tourist make the trip to Rome. It's not exactly the contribution I'd like to make to the art world, but there it is....We had a quick stop at the hotel to drop off our things, and then we headed out for a tour of Rome by night, and a four course, Italian meal. We drove through parts of the city and saw some of the famous sights like the Vatican, and Angels and Demon's Bridge, and then we were dropped off near the Four Season fountain. We walked through the Piazza where artist were displaying their work, and street performers were trying to earn a few Euro's (a very common sight in Europe). There are fountains, and buildings that represent so many of the centuries sandwiched together in the little squares. There are also more Egyptian Needles here than in Egypt, thanks to Roman's carrying these souvenirs home after trips to Egypt. There are hundreds of beautiful churches in every nook and cranny.

We then headed over to the Pantheon before it closed. We got to see the last of the day's light spilling through the roof.

We also made our wish in the Trevi fountain. 1st coin toss over the right shoulder=a guaranteed return trip to Rome, 2nd coin toss brings good luck, and the third toss grants you an Italian husband. I guess I'll have the good fortune to return to Rome with my Italian husband sometime in the future. ;o)

Our last stop was one of the best meals over the two week period at the Mangrovia Restaurant. Musicians played Italian music, and we sang along, and our waiter ended the night by joining in, and then administering kisses, and roses to all the ladies in the group. It was a fun night of laughter with our new little tour group family.