This post is a little over due, but, better late than never, right?! In January, we were lucky to have my long time friend, Rebecca, come and visit us for a while. We surprised her with a trip to Rome the first weekend she was here. Rebecca has been my friend since, well, from before I can even remember. The past year had a lot of ups and downs for her and when she told me she was coming over to see us, I knew it had to be a special trip! Let’s just say- she was surprised and we had a blast!

DAY 1:

Our first stop in Rome was Vatican City. What an amazing place! We had an afternoon tour, and our photographer, Nate, took way too many photos for me to post them all, but posted are his best shots from our tour inside.

The outside of St. Peter’s Basilica

The tour of the Vatican City and a view of Rome from inside. The paintings are so beautiful!

After the 3 hour tour we HAD to stop and get some pizza, obviously. When in Rome, right?! Hands down, the best pizza I have ever had!

DAY 2:

Our second day was filled with seeing some of the most famous places in the world!

First stop, The Pantheon. Built between 27-25 AD, it’s actually the third temple built. This is NOT the original Pantheon. This ancient temple was dedicated to all the pagan gods. Did you know that the US Capital architecture was inspired by the Pantheon?!

A clerk at our hotel told us about the biggest gelato shop in Rome, so we had to stop for a taste. Over 150 flavors of gelato!

We did get to see the Trevi Fountain, but it was under construction, which was a HUGE bummer. Guess we will just have to go back! 😉

We were told not to do an organized tour of the city and I am so glad we didn’t. We walked down little alley ways, off the beaten path, to find little gems we would have never seen on the main road.

Look at this cute little alley way!

On our way to the Coliseum, we walked and found the gorgeous Victor Emmanuel II Monument, which took our breath away. It was so grand and right in the middle of a very busy intersection!

Our amazing photographer was able to capture some very candid photos, I know Rebecca and I will cherish for a long time. Who says you need an iPhone to get around these days.

We wanted to get to the Coliseum before it closed to do the tour of the inside. To say the least, it was absolutely amazing. To think something like this is still standing after so many years just blows my mind.

We had to go back when it got dark, just to see it lit up!