Day 03 - Rome (Day time)

       Man oh man, Clearly the "Married Blog" Is not going to be any better than my old one..... Oh well let's continue on with the trip shall we? Here is another long post, but I’m beginning to think they will all be long when posting about Europe. We’ll get back to short and boring later on.

       To begin with a side note:    The hours of the night were always spent watching the movies I previously loaded onto my laptop, and Googling information on the different monuments we had come across. Not to mention, we had to keep up on Facebook posts, and Skyping home to everyone. Mom in particular loved that she could hear all our stories from the end of each day.

       Day three started off a little better than day two.  Basically, it had stopped raining, which for us Utahans is pretty much sun tanning weather, so we were a little more enthusiastic about having to walk around. (Poor Scott had forgotten to change his shoes before we left so he had been walking around in shoes with holes along the bottom and had soaked his feet the night before.)  The day was also pre-determined to be "Colosseum Day," therefore; I loaded up my bag with extra water bottles and we stopped for some more terrible breakfast. Walking the same route as day two, we started joking about all the McDonalds signs we were passing. People seemed very excited to have some of America’s cheapest food around. We had taken a picture of it thinking it would just be a funny joke, but Scott would be very happy to have found it later that night….

       Did I mention that we had decided to walk everywhere in order to save money?? Well I believe that was one

of the best decisions we had made. See I tend to have A.D.D. about most things in the world, but with all this I couldn’t get enough of it all. I had to stare at the ruins, I had to walk down through them and take pictures of everything. I had to watch the cats living in the ruins and wonder what exactly made them decide this one was the best one. (Which then resulted in a long, made up story about the Romans being re-incarnated in the form of animals)  I loved watched the street performers like they have in Vegas and even the people just walking down the street speaking to each other in Italian. I loved it all.  

          Now, we all know how excited I can get when doing something fun, and we all know how nerdy and unafraid to be a dork I truly am. Well, let's just say that when I got that first glimpse walking down the sidewalk I managed to skip around and sing to Scottie. "Guess what I can see!" You know, not like he was standing right next to me walking down the exact same street. But then again, my eyesight does not require the use of glasses so I like to think that I really did see the Colosseum before he did.

We still took our time walking and taking pictures of the different ruins.  Along the way until we got to a street corner that I’m fairly certain was made just for taking pictures of the monument. This, of course, made an excellent opportunity for people watching again. People make very interesting poses for their cameras, including the classic "I've got this entire thing in the palm of my hand!" We took a couple ourselves, but they were pretty much just us smiling, because we are boring like that.       
      As we walked closer we noticed a line, and decided to just go ahead and start waiting since it looked like it would be a while. Luckily though some of the workers were offering "special passes" that allowed you to jump the line in order to take a tour with a leader.  The little extra cost fit into the budget for the day, and seemed like something that would be worth it. Once we had tickets in hand we both decided to be little rebels and walk around on our own time. Truth is, we actually taught each other quite a lot about everything, having been in Art history lessons from two different schools. I'm pretty sure Georgi had spent an entire week teaching us the ins and outs of the
      Colosseum during 8^th grade. It was so cool to finally have the visual of what she had been talking about. Scott for example, didn't know about all the secret passageways underneath the floor that the kept the gladiators and animals inside until it was their turn to fight. I didn't know about the rumor that the building had once been flooded to put on a "boat fight" type of show either. Who needs a guide when you have your nerdy best friend right?  At one point I even wanted to make a video for Dillon since he has always loved the movie "Gladiator" but I could not think of a single line from the show, which to this day bothers me. I mean, Dillon and I always ran around yelling "ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED! IS THIS NOT WHY YOU ARE HERE?!" Picture that in Russell Crowe’s deep voice though. 

                   After a while we decided to find some shade to cool off, which we found in this nice little corner with a breeze. I started filming the view from the balcony and Scott started reading off names that had been carved into the bricks next to me. I was kind of zoning him out when I heard him read "I Heart Alex" and I got all giddy and yelled "WHERE?!" He pointed to a brick that sure enough was carved with an "I heart Alex." (Aww I love you too, Colosseum I love you too.) We walked around some more and found that the Stairs in there are a lot worse than they appear!! It made me realize just how out of shape I truly am. Nothing like reaching the top of a small staircase and not being able to breathe, but It was worth it to get the view of the entire stadium

      Once we walked back out, I taught Scott some history behind the Arch of Constantine that shares the square with the Colosseum. (Once again courtesy of Georgi.) I made a mental note to thank her for teaching me so much about this place, and we started walking back……





So I also feel like giving you guys more of my favorite pictures so here is a bunch!!!

Day 2 part 2

Vatican City continued......

  
  When we had made the decision that we would add Rome onto our trip my mother had made one simple request. She wanted to relive a little bit of her catholic child hood and requested a rosary from Vatican City. She even told us it could be the simple plastic beads that the nuns make, as long as she could say it is really from there. Naturally when we walked into the square I began looking for them. I saw a little man with a tiny box that had some, but something told me to keep looking. He only had the plastic ones and I really wanted to give her a nice set that would last through the years. Plus Scott had noticed that the line into St. Peters Church was really kind of long so we may want to jump in line now.  I decided he was right and we got in line to go inside. As we waited we realized the line moves fairly quick, so I wasn't too worried. I did notice that as the day started getting closer and closer to noon line grew HUGE. It literally wrapped around the square. I quickly thanked Scott for not letting me get carried away with shopping like a silly girl. *wink*

       Ok now I don't even know how to describe those first few steps walking inside that church. I literally just walked in and went wwwwoooooowwwww....... Everywhere you looked it there was gold or a painting. Scott and I both love art and the history of it all so we were like little kids watching their favorite movie. Just standing there staring (and possibly drooling a little)  Don't get me wrong Rome in general is that way, but inside St. Peters was incredible. My pictures will never do it justice with my rinky dink camera, but I can at least try to demonstrate it. I also am so happy that we decided to go there on a Sunday, because several room were holding church. You could hear the priests singing and everyone was very quiet and respectful. For a little while I wandered around not paying attention to other people (including Scott) and just stared. I honestly could not believe where I was. All the hard work of planning this trip and suffering through all our tourist moments did not even matter anymore. I was living a dream.

     Once my brain snapped back into the reality that I was walking around with my fiance I realized he was gone. I panicked for a small moment and started looking for him. I found him doing the same thing I was, getting completely lost in the building. I tried to snap a quick pic of him so forgive the blurry-ness but I still loved this one. I was so happy He decided to come with me. My best friend and I got to "Nerd out" about the world together. 
     We walked out of the church eventually because we were both getting tired from all the walking and standing and we wanted to find the Sistine Chapel to see the ceiling. We checked out little picture map to no avail. There was a lot of construction  going on that seemed to be blocking the streets that would lead us there. We decided to finish the hunt for moms rosary and see if someone could help us out. We walked around the corner and found a little shop cart FULL of different trinkets and a huge variety of necklaces. I started to look through them while the nice man chatted with Scott about the "Joys" of living in America. I thought it was a little Ironic because this man was CLEARLY from India and had no idea about our part of America. He asked if there are a lot of Indians living in this "Utah" place and Scott just laughed and said, "Not that kind of Indian, but there are a lot of the others" The man was confused at first and then caught on so he then engaged into the life of the Native Americans. Meanwhile, I had found several beautifully beaded necklaces and was trying to decide between two when the man handed me a small silver box. Scott had told him what I was looking for so he decided to help me. The Box had a picture of the pope on the front and when I opened it there was a completely silver Rosary inside. It was stunning, I asked him the price difference between this one the the plastic ones and of course he said for us it was the same price. (good thing Scottie can chat at times) So we bought it with the little change I had left in my pocket.
     We still had 4 euros left afterwards, so we stopped and got some gelato. We sat on the corner in the shade to give our feet some rest, and sip on some water before looking for the Sistine Chapel. We asked the man at the cart how to get there and he just pointed around the corner and said to follow the street straight up. We walked around and found the street blocked off. It was starting to get very frustrating. We decided we both had walked so much and we still had to make our way back so we would come back another day to find it. So we started the walk back. We stopped at an ATM and had lunch along the way then rested for a few hours to fix the sore feet issue. Not to mention it had started raining. I love rain so we relaxed with the windows open to listen.

     Later when the storm had calmed down I asked if we could make an attempt to see the Trevi fountain today. Our map made it look like it would be quite a walk, but nothing like we had done earlier in the day. Scott said it would be ok if we could stop for dinner on the way. I agreed and told him about "That's Amore" which was a place Georgi and Belinda had told us to try on facebook. Georgi had mentioned it was right around the corner from the Trevi and had the best carbonara.  I was so excited to get down there so we left right away. From Georgi's direction's I thought we would pass the fountain before reaching the restaurant, but Scott stopped me and pointed to the sign along the way. So naturally we had dinner first, and let me tell you guys. Georgi was right about the carbonara. *yum*

     We made it to the Trevi with a little bit of sunlight left, so we snapped a few pictures. There were people there but not really too many, so I made the way down next to the water for some better pictures. Making my dad's favorite picture of our trip! We didn't have a coin to toss into the water (other than a 2 Euro coin and we were on a very strict budget) So I didn't get to toss a coin in to make sure we came back. Scottie had taken the map from me while I took pictures and he made a suggestion that we head up the street and see the fountain of Triton. Another awesome spot. So that's how we ended the night. We stolled over there and watched several guys with dead flowers try to sell them to the tourists. At one point one of them walked right into someone's picture to put a rose in a womans hand claiming it was "free." Taking a few more pictures we then went on back to the motel to get some sleep before it started raining again. Of course I slept with the window open.

Day 2 in Rome (part 1)

The title says it all I guess, I know it's a little boring but, hey, it gets the job done. So here we go Day 2........
     
      We woke up the next day feeling hungry. Luckily for us, the hotel we booked offered us a "free breakfast" however;  not luckily for us, Italy doesn't really count breakfast as a meal. Usually people will drink Coffee and if they are feeling extremely hungry they will have a small pastry. Naturally, what was provided was warm milk, coffee, and a very small basket with some strange sort of stale bread covered in powdered sugar. (not great) I figured we could grab something else while exploring the city anyway so no big deal. We had made a plan the night before that today we would make our way towards Vatican City to see St. Peters and the Sistine Chapel.  I asked the guy at the front desk if he had a map and he gave us one that had pictures of major points on. The map that would later become, "our bible." Since we were still on the early days of our trip, we decided we would save the money and take the whole day to walk to the city. Instead of paying for a bus or taxi. Our plan was to take our time and hit the different pictures that were on the way, so we began walking. Along the way we quickly realized the whole "no breakfast anywhere" thing. Unless we wanted to pay 20 euros to get one meal. We both decided it wasn't really worth it and just stopped for a soda.

     Of course, I wanted to revisit the Pantheon in the daylight and see what it was like. So we went back around the corner to continue our daily ritual. There wasn't really anyone in the square except a couple of young muscular men dressed up in novelty gladiator costumes to take pictures with the tourists for money. I really wanted to go inside but the doors were shut and I could hear music coming from inside. I later learned that it was because they were having church. Apparently a lot of old monuments are still used as such. DESPITE the fact that there is a church of some kind on almost every corner of the city.

     Along the way, we actually ended up getting a little lost and went the wrong direction around the block. In doing so, we ran across the Column of Marcus Aurelius. This CARAZAY column that tells stories of the wars fought by Marcus Aurelius with an angel on top. I forget which one. It was still early in the morning so the sun was coming up right behind it making for an awesome view. (so there may be a lot of pictures in these posts.You can click them if you feel like it) We also went through the Piazza Navona which had Scott's favorite fountain. "The Fountain of the Four rivers" but I'll talk about it another day.
     
     We decided to place checks on the map next to the different things we had seen. So "check" next to the column, "check" next to the Piazza, and moving onward! We had a choice of different bridges to cross and chose one that would take us next to two more landmarks. The Justice building and the Castel St Angelo. It also set us up for my mothers favorite picture of our trip. A view of St. Peter's Square from across the Tiber River. It was gorgeous, like just sit and stare for a while gorgeous. I really feel as if we could have done that through most of the city. I was, after all, in my dream destination. I honestly wish we would have slowed everything down a bit and just took the world in. At least we did it there. We even spent time in the park behind the Castel St Angelo to sit in the shade and people watch. It was a wonderful place to watch the local people just be with their children and pets. Nobody being a silly tourist except us. We found our first "Caesar" statue there as well (more on those later). Scott was even kind enough to take a picture with me. 

     Once we got close to the Vatican we walked past two (not so muscular) men dressed in gladiator costumes. Asking to take pictures with us. I tried to say no, having walked through Vegas and knowing they only want your money, but Scott (bless his heart) Jumped at the opportunity. So we took silly pictures and had a good time, but then one gentleman comes up to Scott telling him he owes them money. I started to tell them we didn't have any and can delete the pictures when Scott proceeds to mention the only thing he is carrying is a 20 euro... *palm to face* ugh. OF COURSE they then say. "That's perfect because it is 10 Euro's a person".... not cool Scott... not cool...  Second silly tourist moment? CHECK. We give the man the LAST 20 euros we have with us "guess we're finding an ATM on the way back" and FINALLY make it to the Vatican....

    

Our days in Rome

You thought I forgot about this, didn't you. Well I did.... Until now. So here we go, ROME! Now bare with me here people, I'm going off memory and pictures. So the details may be a little scattered. Before we begin let's just say I did my homework for this trip, contacted the banks, looked up the best credit cards to use, common phrases to know, the ways to travel the city, EVERYTHING. I had planned to go to a local bank and request to get some Euro's before we left, but everyone we talked to said there was really no need because any Visa card will work in any European country. I felt stupid and, therefore, decided not to do it. Next time, I'll go with my gut. ;)

Day 01
 So, we flew out of SLC on Friday and had the longest flight ever! The whole time I tried to sleep, but it was not happening. So Scott and I chatted and watched "The Avengers" which was the in flight movie for everyone. After the movie I managed to pass out for a few hours, and woke up to Scott telling me about the movie they had played next. He couldn't really sleep on the plane. (poor guy) So he had manged to watch a couple more movies without me and even gave me his shoulder for my own comfort. We had a short layover in Paris and then we were off! When we landed in the Fiumicino Airport we got our bags and immediately began looking for an ATM. We found one and for some reason it wouldn't work. Eh, no problem we passed a bunch, right? Wrong. We kept trying machine after machine because OF COURSE the taxi services do not allow you to pay their booth with a card. So we figured we would give one more machine a try and that is where our first big disaster occurred! The machine ate Scott's debit card. It had some Italian error message displayed across the screen. and we didn't know what to do. Of course I wasn't about to just walk away with his debit card stuck in this ATM in the airport.  What if the thing spit it out and someone else walked up and grabbed it. So naturally I threw a fit and refused to leave the ATM's side. Scott walked around some more trying to get some help and maybe make a different card work in another machine. (not our smartest moment) Luckily an Italian gentleman walked over and tried his best to help. He spoke , literally, no english, so after a few moment of trying his best to tell us what the error message said he just walked away. I just looked at Scott and went, "Umm ok?" Scott just shrugged and tried some more button mashing on the machine to see if the error would go away. Eventually the Man came back with a lady who he had apparently asked to translate for us. He told us the people who run the machine can be contacted by phone and usually will fix the machine right away. So we tried the phone number for the machines! UNfortunately, the business was not open on the weekends. gggrrreeaaatt.... I refused to leave without the card, and Scott started trying to calmly explain the situation and convince me that the card is gone. and we can call the emergency line with his bank and get it shut off. The little Italian man apparently was not happy with this idea either and unplugged the machine. When he plugged it back in we got a "windows" screen and the computer restarted, meanwhile it started to spit out Scott's card!!!! BONUS POINTS FOR THE ITALIAN MAN! He then explain that the ATM's in the airport are very touchy and if we needed money we should get it in the city. So, we went over to the taxi booth's and explained our dilemma. The lady at the counter completely understood and offered us a ride to a bank near our hotel. The driver then took us into the city where we met our first australian's that rode with us. They had been backpacking and were talking about their latest party sessions/"we are in another country let's blackout and forget the whole thing" story. Which made no sense to me. (Then again drinking in general makes no sense to me) They wished us luck and headed off. We then got our cash from the bank, Of course it worked no problem, paid the driver, and arrived at the hotel. We unpacked a little and took a small nap since the plane rides were complete torture. When we woke up it was only 9:00 that night, so we went to find some late night dinner. We walked around and came across what would become my favorite square of the city. The Piazza della Rotonda, which houses the Pantheon. After spending some quality time there taking (terrible) pictures and people watching we kept walking and found a bar called "Miscellanea." We order 2 cokes and a "pepperoni" Pizza. (Just a side note) In Italy a Pepperoni pizza doesn't have any pepperoni on it. It is only sauce cheese and sweet peppers, but it was by far the best pizza I've ever had in my life! We then just took our time going back to the motel and crashed for the night.

Following the crowd

      It seems the trend with blogs is to have one, get married, and then start a new one with your significant other, and well since I was terrible at it the first time around anyway,  I figured. Why not. So here we are!!! Welcome to "The Wall's House" I know, I know. I'm a "Wall" and that still seems strange even though we have officially hit our 1 month-iversary. I do however, LOVE being married. Having my cute hubby home every night to have dinner with, chat with, and OF COURSE cuddle with while watching a movie is completely awesome. We also have a lot of plans that I would love to have documented so I will do my best to keep up with this one. (hopefully the husband will help remind me)
       Plans for the first few though will include some "backtracking" a lot of people seem interested in our European trip and our wedding day so I'll be posting them here as well. Love you guys and I'm sorry if a couple blog posts go up each day instead of just one. (I need a distraction though I think the guy in the apartment above us is making a coffin or something. You know considering I have heard the couple fighting like everynight this past week, and last night It was total silence. Not to mention right now he is "drilling" something and it too is extremely loud. With my over active imagination I'm sure he killed her and now wants to hide her body in some sort of furniture to get it out of the apartment discreetly.) So I'll be staying quiet to make sure he doesn't come down here to get rid of any witnesses. and THAT'S my real motivation for blogging all this stuff out! ;) Let's get started.