Our First stop was Rome
First of all I should start by saying that I am the only one in our group of 5 that had never been to Europe. Mary Ann, Joe and Julie had been there multiple times and Dan was stationed in Germany 60 years prior so he saw the sites while on leave. Apparently this visit was quite different for even the seasoned visitors due to the number of tourists. Every place we went their were huge crowds of people and we soon learned to dread the sticks in the air sporting bits of fabric or a stuffed animal because they represented the many tour groups.
For me, our first night in Rome was, to use an overused phrase, an awesome experience. Such an ancient City with its many ruins. In the photos that I will showcase below, one gets the notion that excatation never ends. In some case we could see tags where pieces were likely being catalogued. And then of course there was the Coliseum which deserves a post of its own.
As I noted earlier, I was mesmerized by the age of the city, its buildings, narrow streets and ancient ruins; but, as I look over my photos I now wish I had a bit more pictures of modern life, such as the many street side seating areas for dining. Every inch of space is used and the parking, oh my what can I say!
The photo above I left for last as it brings such good memories to mind. Following the dinner, which was early in the evening, we took a walk through the old City and saw the amazing ruins. We walked lots of miles during our 3 country trip but I believe this was our longest. We walked 5.41 miles that evening. It was perfect with cool weather and felt quite nice after the many hours sitting on a plane. We were short on sleep but long on excitement and anticipation. What a perfect night!
