Roma, Italia!

Since Grandma and Grandpa Neal are trying to attend each of their grandchildren's baptism's, we took serious advantage of this opportunity (when they gave us an inch, we took a mile). They helped us battle our five as we toured London. And then battled our five as we abandoned them on a honeymoon that couldn't really exist as Beau was in the middle of midterms when we got married in Nov. Also we're marking it as our celebrating 10 years of marriage this year in Nov.

Getting off the plane was a bit new to me tracking down a taxi. Beau said the driving and traffic were pretty third worldish (as bad as I hope to ever get). Scooters, or Vespas or motorcycles truly are everywhere too. I would maybe even say 1/3 of the traffic. (We saw a couple of girls with pink suits, pink helmets, and pink scooters too.) Then we got to our hotel - graffiti EVERYWHERE. So why am I here? vacation? Well, our hotel room was quite nice. It was pretty relaxing not worrying about the kids. Apparently the babies acted for Grandma like they never really knew we were gone - relief! So yeah, after zipping around through crazy traffic, unmarked roads, and all the graffiti, I was ready to call it as four days in a nice hotel. But my knight in shining armor forced me to brave the city. I am SO glad he did. We walked in to find LOADS of ruins, HUGE cathedrals, AMAZING statues. Pictures do not do them justice. We tried video too, all trying to get the point across as to the size and just understated beauty of it all. You'll just have to go to really know. And I truly hope you can. Now that I am safe at home with my kids, I'm really glad Beau made me take this opportunity. A HYYUUUGGEEE shout out to my mother in law Rene and Beau's 13 year old sister Alina for holding this circus tent down, and having a fabulous dinner ready for us, and having our house sparkling clean when we got home!
Beautiful Trevi fountain - if we would've had any time left over, I would've gone to see this again. Something about fountains seems peaceful to me. And this fountain was amazing, water falling from everywhere. Supposedly if you throw a coin in the fountain you'll visit Rome again. Oops, wish I would've known that when we were there.

Feelin the love (hate my hair though)

Obulesques all over Rome from Egypt

"Lookout point" at dusk?

Coliseum

You'd better not want variety from Italian food. Though it was amazing and unique. The pizza crusts were almost as thin as tortillas. Basil was always larger chunks if not whole leafs and the vegetables (even at "fast food" places were zucchini, eggplant, yellow pepper, tomato, and carrot) We had pasta, pizza, I had a potato soup at one place but it was tomato based with loads of pasta in it.

Roman forum ruins dating back from 500 B.C.

Sexy beast overlooking the river to the Vatican city.

St. Paul's Basilica in the Vatican city.

Replica of Michelangelo's first stunning sculpture showing his brilliance in musculature and his understanding of body movement and muscles. The real one being out of marble behind bulletproof glass after some crazy Hungarian broke off Mary's arm and maybe something else. (memory failure)

Artwork before Renaissance in medieval times when they hadn't figured out body sculpting or when the stomach muscle folds this way, this arm is bent that way. Figures aren't depicted in front of each other. This one is a bit more progressed as it has scenery behind it though.

We learned that fresco's are taking wet plaster and having ground gems that are the color you want to paint on the wet plaster. As the plaster dries the deep colors are soaked into the plaster. This was how Michelangelo did the massive ceiling on the Sistine chapel. He was not very social and went through several assistants at first as this was a newer art form they were not mixing plaster or dye to his expectations. Near the end he did it all without assistants. Near the beginning of the Sistine chapel a section fell down maybe 200 years ago when some ammunition went off at a nearby castle shaking the buildings. The piece that fell off could be proof of some assistants faulty mixing methods. We were not allowed to take pictures in the Sistine chapel. But they are all scenes of the seven days of creation and some of Noah.

Fresco

Tapestries done by German tapestry place "back in the day" Each thread had to be dipped in actual gold where you see gold, actual silver where you see silver, and snails being squeezed for certain red dyes where you see certain red threads.

Rafael - it's amazing how much info. we receive and how much I've already forgotten. I could never be a tour guide and remember 4 hours of information and tell it fresh and exciting day in and day out. I think this was done by Rafael, it may just be a painting not a fresco. All about faith. Above is Christ Annunciation when he sees Moses (with ten commandments tablets) and Elijah (holding book of prophecies) and apostles down below with possessed boy, when Christ preaches they need faith even as small as a mustard seed that could move mountains. Woman in pink and blue depicting faith.

Same rare marble as below, emperor's tomb that has another tomb inside.

Emperors bathtub. Red marble, super huge piece, had to have come from (Africa? maybe?)

Looked like plaster moulding and pictures. No, just fresco's made to look 3 (or 2?) dimensional.

Maps - fresco. The pictures on the ceiling took place where the maps depicted. There were even birds frescoed(?) unique to the area map that was frescoed (sp?) below them. The maps were quite accurate.

We found this picture very fitting for our family. My life 100% last year! Raphael's students in the Vatican - fresco!

Swiss guards - During (I'm not sure, hundreds of years ago) a siege, the pope heard of how the swiss guards defended him, and to honor them made a law that for a hundred years they would be the only one's allowed to defend him. Their post is two years, trained in the swiss army for two years, single, and catholic.

Spanish steps - wiki it if you don't know much about them- Obviously I should too.

Huge monument to the first king of Italy finished in 1911. Pictures do not do the size justice!

St. Peter's Basilica - That gold banner with writing is 6.5 feet tall to give you an idea of how massive everything else was. Supposedly Peter is buried under here. Maybe 50 years ago? they dug and found a mans bones dating from the first century, same build, and no feet bones (consistent with being hung upside down so as not to defame? Christ's hanging.

Up on Palentine Hill, overlooking the Forum and the city.

colliseum