Heidi Visit, Part 2: Rome and Return to Florence

After our amazing trip through the Tuscan hillsides, we left early in the morning and took a foggy drive to Rome to return the car and show Heidi as much as we could in just over 24 hours! 

Trying to find a place to fill up with gas before we returned the car was stressful for me (navigator) and exciting for Taylor (driver) and Heidi as we passed next to the Collesium and made our way through the traffic of the city! Finally the car was returned and we were able to leave our luggage at the hotel and set out to explore. 

First stop: a quick margherita pizza then a large gelato at Giolitti's! We love sitting outside Giolitti’s and watching the people. We ordered a large gelato with 4 scoops to share: Oreo, hazelnut, pistachio, and chocolate. Delicious! 

We wandered the alleys headed for the Pantheon. It's free to enter and worth seeing with its large oculus in the center of the dome, and its rich history. The Pantheon is approximately 2000 years old and remains the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome. Originally a Roman temple dedicated to all the gods of pagan Rome, it was later commissioned as a Christian church and remains that way today. 

Drinking water at the fountain in front of the Pantheon.

We next headed towards the Collesium. Logan fell asleep in his stroller so we took an opportunity to stop at a cute cafe for a snack, coffee, and hot chocolate for Heidi. Turns out, hot chocolate at this cafe is pretty much like chocolate pudding heated up with a hint of spiciness to it! Very interesting  and rich!

When we arrived at the Collesium we found a very short line despite the touristy time of year. Heidi took her opportunity to go in and explore while we waited outside relaxing in the shade letting Logan nap. He awoke just in time for us to take some pictures when Heidi finished her tour.

Feeling like we had been successful in our sightseeing for the day, we headed back towards the hotel. We found a restaurant for dinner, thanks to Rick Steves, far enough off the main street to feel less chaotic and somewhat less touristy. We enjoyed a wonderful meal of antipasto, mixed fried foods, pizza, pasta, beer and wine! We followed that with, you guessed it, gelato (coconut gelato with fresh pineapple layered in). 

The next day happened to be my 33rd birthday. We had reservations to see the Vatican museum at 10:30am, including the gorgeous Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's Basilica. I could think of many worse ways to spend my birthday! I kind of laugh that maybe God was making up for last year when we awoke to a very sick Logan and ended up in the ER getting him an IV. But this year was much different and very blessed! Below is a picture of a mini birthday cake that my parents got for me, despite me being halfway around the world. I got to enjoy this picture of it, and they got to eat it! 

Arriving at the Vatican Museum, we bypassed the extremely long line of tourists without reservations and headed inside.

We spent the next two and a half hours meandering through the maze of crowded, winding hallways full of artwork, sculpture (including lots of broken penises), and tapestries. In one small outdoor patio, Logan enjoyed throwing coins into the fountain for good luck.

Finally we ended up at the highlight of the museum, the incredibly stunning, colorful, overwhelming Sistine Chapel. Shoulder to shoulder people crane their necks upwards to take in Michelangelo's indescribable masterpiece. The highlight for me, as I'm sure it is for many who visit, was "The Creation of Adam," depicting God reaching out and touching Adam's finger, giving him life. No pictures are allowed, but I found a picture on the Internet so you can all see it.

We snuck out through an exit reserved for groups that we read about in our book. This exit would lead us directly to St. Peter's Basilica without having to return to the museum entrance and then walk back around the huge building. 

Logan pointing at St. Peter's Basilica from the Vatican Museum courtyard.

St. Peter's Basilica is one of the largest churches in the world and is overwhelmingly beautiful inside. The church is the burial site of its namesake Saint Peter, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. The church is so large that birds flutter in the eves above, and statues of cherubs are larger than a grown man.

We began to explore, first coming upon Michelangelo's gorgeous sculpture, Pieta, which rests behind bullet-proof glass. Michelangelo's incredible works of art from paintings to churches to sculpture show up over and over throughout Italy! His talents and contribution to the history here is unbelievable. 

Michelangelo's Pieta.

Bust of Michelangelo, on the climb up to the top of the dome.

By this time Logan had reached his limit in the stroller. Thankfully Taylor had previously been to Vatican City years before, so he took Logan out to let him play outside, which left Heidi and me to explore at a leisurely pace. We went down into the crypt to see the remains of the original church which lies beneath the floors of the rebuilt building. Also there is the resting place of previously deceased popes. 

At the urging of Taylor, Heidi and I got in line to climb to the top of the church's dome. 

The dome that we climbed up.

See all the people at the top, that's where we were headed!

I wasn't originally planning on doing the climb, and honestly didn't want to, but Taylor insisted that I would really be missing out and regret it if I didn't. After the fact, I can honestly say he was right. We bought a ticket which allowed for an elevator ride halfway up (skipping 200 steps) and then a final climb of 330 more steps through narrow, spiral stairs. 

We headed to the top for an up-close view of the gorgeous mosaics that make up the artwork of the dome, and then a complete view of Rome from above. It was all absolutely fabulous and worth the effort! Heidi and I are very thankful we listened to Taylor's advice!

Mosaic artwork lining the dome.

Looking down into the church from above.

View of St. Peter's Square from above.

I'm such a tourist, always carrying my Rick Steves book!

After a long morning of enjoying Vatican City we returned to the hotel to pick up our bags, had a quick lunch, and hopped on a train to return to Florence. 

We got back to our flat and had our favorite dinner of bruschetta, and pesto pasta at home, then headed out for my birthday dessert. I was pretty worn out so we tried a new gelato place right in our favorite piazza near our house, and it was awesome! What a blessed 33rd birthday!

The next day we had one full day in Florence before we would hop on a train and head up to Venice. On our day in Florence, Taylor and Heidi spent the morning exploring the Palazzo Vecchio (one of our favorite museums, and a big part of the Dan Brown book, Inferno, which Heidi was currently reading). They got the exciting opportunity to catch a tour going into the secret door in the map room!

Logan and I grocery shopped and had a somewhat restful morning while they were out and about. We had reservations at 1:30pm for the Accademia Gallery which houses Michelangelo’s David, as well as his unfinished “Prisoners.” We headed that way, and found a long line, even for people with reservations. A very kind lady in line ahead of us mentioned that if we have a child we can go right to the front of the line and they will let us in. I took Logan and our tickets to the front to inquire, and she was right! Grabbing Taylor and Heidi, we all headed in, ahead of the long line. 

Italy has been extremely accommodating to us with a small child. People seem to love children here, stopping to say hello or play with him, pick him up, even give him kisses on his head or cheek! Nobody seems annoyed with normal toddler behavior, but more than anything they seem delighted by him. It’s such a relief to not feel like you are irritating people all the time simply because you have a child with you.

The Accademia Gallery is very small by museum standards, and its highlights no doubt are Michelangelo's David and the Prisoners. Giorgio Vasari introduces you to David by saying, “When all was finished, it cannot be denied that this work has carried off the palm from all other statues, modern or ancient, Greek or Latin; no other artwork is equal to it in any respect, with such just proportion, beauty and excellence did Michelangelo finish it.” David, clothed in solid white marble, really is a beautiful specimen. He is 14 feet tall, and depicts the biblical hero, David, after slaying the giant, Goliath. Michelangelo worked constantly for over two years to finish him. David rests now in the Accademia Gallery under a skylight which was designed just for him in the 19th century. 

Entering the museum, you turn left and immediately you are in the hallway leading to David. Lining the sides of the hallway are Michelangelo’s Prisoners, his unfinished sculptures. They are absolutely beautiful, and you can clearly see his chisel marks where he was working and never finalized these pieces of art. 

Michelangelo believed that he was inspired by God when he worked on his art, and that his subjects rested within the blocks of stone. He believed that it was his job to help unveil what was already there within. Because of this, the forms coming out of the stone look as if they are breaking free and slowly revealing themselves after being submerged. 

History tells that Michelangelo would get a vision of art in his head which he believed to be inspired by God, and then he worked tirelessly to bring it to fruition, even going days without sleeping, and barely eating. Seeing the Prisoners and David, it is clear that Michelangelo had an affinity for precision and was a man with talents that are out of this world. 

Also in the Accademia Gallery is an unfinished Pieta by Michelangelo showing a larger-than-life Jesus after being pulled down off the cross. The belief is that Michelangelo was trying to portray that Jesus was God but came to Earth living and dying in a very human way as a man.

After our quick stop in Florence, we were headed out the next day for Venice! The next blog will cover our time in the gorgeous, sinking city surrounded by water!