RrrrrrrOMA! And the Popemobile.

BonJOURno! [insert wide sweeping hand gesture]

Dear Rome, you are now my favorite city.  Despite the whole purse stolen thing (more on that later).  Still, you have won my heart.  Top five reasons why you're just the best:

1.  The Vatican museums. OH. MY. Rafael rooms are jaw-dropping. Sistine Chapel is jaw-dropping. It's almost impossible to appreciate it all because you start acclimating to room after room of incredible beauty and get symptoms called "breathtaking-sculpture fatigue" and "gorgeous-painting overdose."

I was most overwhelmed with how it demonstrated the power of the Catholic Church.  They commissioned some of the most famous works in the world.  They monopolized the time of the most influential painters of the era.  It's like if they took Britney Spears or Oprah or Michael Jackson or something and bought five years of their time, like they did Michelangelo.  Incredible influence.

2.  Pizza. Pasta. Italian pizzas are thin crust and swimming in grease and you have to fold the pieces to eat them properly.  But man are they good.  When you find a place that makes true Italian pizza; all the places around the tourist sights all make bad, not-Italian style pizza (first day misstep).  But turn down a charming side street and your taste buds will be thrilled.

3.  Colosseum.  Jaw-dropping for other reasons. It's a bit chilling to think how many people died in the structure, how people used to watch others fight to the death from the very balconies you're strolling. How the floor was covered in sand to soak up the blood.  It is just huge though, and it's not every day you get to wander through a building built around 80 A.D.

4.  Nana-nana-nana-nana Popemobile! [cue the Batman tune] Here we were, sipping caffe in a caffe last Thursday. Little did we realize that it was one of the many Catholic holidays (something about the virgin Mary I think).  And the Pope was due to make an appearance.  My friend facing the caffe window casually commented "Hey, there's the Pope." And indeed, for a split second, there he was carting down the street in what looked like a space-age vehicle from the Jetsons with a white frame and a glass top.  Then followed about 100 other guards. Win!

5.  I'm having trouble picking only one 5th reason. Amazing fountains.  Crazy statues of Athenian gods and allegorical figures of Justice and Liberty and Strength, etc. The Via Sangra.  The Swiss Guards' outfits. The ruins of the palaces where the Roman emperors lived, on top of the Palatine hill.  The embarrassing huge self-serving monument complex the last king built himself. The weekend trip to Naples that will be saved for another blog post. Actually, my fifth reason will have to be the Italian language.

To speak Italian: Gesture. A Lot. Especially if you're speaking on the phone and the person can't see you.  Over-emphasize. A Lot.  BonJOURno!  ItaliANo! BellISsimo! Also as a side note to pass as Italian you should probably smoke a lot, own a motorbike, and wear boots (female) or extremely nice scarves (male).

I tended to revert to Spanish and then just trying to speak it with an Italian accent.  About half the time I'm pretty sure they had no idea what I was saying and I would've been better off staying in English because at least they've heard it from other tourists. Half the time it was real effective. I even bartered effectively.  I think I could learn Italian pretty quickly, it's a lovely lovely sounding language.

Italy has one strike against them due to the theives that stole my purse.  Sad day.  It had my camera, so the memories I have will have to be enough.  And it had my passport, which may cost me more than the whole trip combined.

But, in the course of life, lost passport and camera < amazing experience of seeing Rome.  Grazie mille, Italy, I hope dearly to be back.