Roma - Europe part 9

After spending time in Venice and Florence we arrived in Roma. And loved it! As in Venice, it was quite tricky to find our accommodation. But, it was well worth the find. We stayed in the Marta Inn which was less then a 10 minute walk from the main train station. It was run by a lovely Nepalese man and he was extremely helpful. I would absolutely recommend this place if you are visiting Rome.

We started our tour of the city with a walk and ended up at the colosseum! What a lovely afternoon walk that was! I hadn't been organised and pre booked tickets, so i was feeling a bit disappointed when we arrived that we couldn't go in. We had heard that the lines were horrendous and that without buying a ticket before hand you would be waiting a very long time!

I don't know if it was because of the 38 degree heat, the time of the day, the day of the week or the alignment of the stars - but there was barely a queue to get in! We waited about 10 minutes to buy a ticket and then walked straight in.

We were both completely impressed with the Colosseum. We hired an audio tour which was excellent! We spent a few (very hot) hours lost in the history and grandeur of this incredible place.

In our usual style, we spent the next few days wandering aimlessly around Rome. We certainly developed a travel style over our vacation - set out for the day with very little planned and enjoy the ride wherever you may end up!

The second day, we visited the Vatican City. Before we left for Europe, I luckily met up with a wonderful friend's Mum who advised me to book tickets to the Vatican Museum in advance. To be honest....as we walked past the hundreds of people lined up to get into the museum at 8.30am..... I had a wee smile on my face :)

The Vatican museum was beautiful, overwhelming and and impressive. We had a fantastic time wandering the Museum, admiring the endless collection of art. Of course the Sistine Chapel was the highlight!

After the Museum, we wanted to visit St Peter's Basilica. The lines for the Basilica were extremely long to say the least! We went away and returned in the late afternoon..... to no queue! We went straight in after getting our bags checked by security and our clothes checked to make sure were appropriately dressed. Girls - be sure to have something to cover up your shoulders and wear a skirt, dress or shorts to your knees. They were strictly enforcing this at all the churches in Rome, so be sure to avoid disappointment!