#trading trevy was random

[aybaybader]

yo so who the fuck is actually on our team now

[beomwiki]

day two: rome — the colosseum, the roman forum, and 8 hours of personal exploration

→ top 9 pics feat. the pantheon, the trevi fountain, the tempio maggiore di roma (the great synagogue of rome right on the tiber river), the fontana dei quattro fiumi, and some random beautiful sights.

somehow, it still hasn't set in that i'm in another country. i was touring the colosseum and acting like it was just another normal day, like i go to the colosseum regularly. it's so weird, but so fun. my feet are so sore from walking nonstop for 10 hours, but i wouldn't trade it for the world.

[prague-lematic]

ROAMIN’ ROUND ROME Helloooo to my favorite humans! This weekend was legendary and beautiful. We started by checking into our hotels, which were just around the corner from the central metro in Rome and each other. If you close your eyes and picture the Lizzie McGuire movie or just Rome in general, it’s exactly that. It looks just like the pictures and the movies. We met the boys at a nearby restaurant named Capitello and I got penne ala vodka- unreal. My 6 Czech pasta from Alberts will never taste the same or even like real pasta. We then took off running to the Vatican where we saw the entirety of Vatican city. We saw St. Peters Basilica and the Vatican museum with the Sistine chapel. I saw endless paintings through the museum that were absolutely breathtaking. It was so peaceful and nice. The Sistine chapel was the craziest thing I’ve ever seen. I pulled out my phone at first, forgetting you couldn’t take pictures and got yelled at by security but then just put it away and walked around, enjoying everything. People were sitting, lining the walls just taking it all in. You could sit in there for hours and still not see everything. We also found an old water fountain right outside the museum and we all took sips, while security looked on. Thank you @thevatican for having free water. My god, never ever take free water for granted US homies. We then went to Saint Peter’s Square and saw the collumns and St. Peter’s Basilica (where the Pope resides!!!!!! what a guy) We quickly got some pictures then got in line to go inside, which closes around 6 pm. We had an hour inside, where we listened to a choir that was singing inside. They sounded like angels. We complimented them afterwards and told them we were here with a choir. We also helped a little kid find his family, who had lost him in the basilica. Did our good deed for the day! Then we got pizza at this cute little restaurant all family owned near St. Peter’s Square. We then stopped minutes later to grab gelato and I got a huge canoli…. heaven. bring me back! Then we got a couple hours of sleep and got ready for the next day. We woke up bright and early to get in line for the colloseum, which we knew would a tourist disaster on a Saturday. We waited around 45 minutes and then we were in! The most magical experience ever. Crazy to think of all the people that had stood there before me. Then we hit the ruins right next to it. We found a cool tunnel that had amazing acoustics and we all started singing a song from our choir rep, O Magnum Mysterium. A small audience quickly formed and then applauded us through out the ruins. We tried to capture a few more quick pop up performances around the ruins and colloseum before getting pizza and pasta at a place by the colloseum. It was also family owned and felt super intimate and cute. PS also the amount of vespas here is CRAZY! Lizzie McGuire wasn’t lying to us. Then we quickly chased the sun and headed out to the Trevi Fountain. It was sort of hidden down a random path, but we found it with signs and it was magical. Truly. We took the cliché pictures by the fountain and all get ready to throw our coins in. The second we all tossed them in with a million other people, a huge crowd erupted and we heard a shriek. When we turned back, we were happy to find a guy that had just proposed to a girl as they embraced and she grasped flowers. It was the most romantic thing I’ve ever seen in person in my entire life. I felt like my coin did some good. Then we got gelato right next to the fountain and went back for a few mandatory gelato/fountain pictures. The man at the gelato place told me I have a beautiful smile and that I should smile all the time and I knew I’d found my people. Italians are just wonderful and friendly. Then we headed to see the Pantheon (a former Roman temple, now a church). It was having a service, so we couldn’t enter but we stood outside and could peek in which was amazing. It was just down the road from the fountain too, which was super convienent. There were tons of street performers too on our way over. When we were done near the Pantheon we stopped in to see a little trumpet concert at a nearby church right in the center there. It was stunning. That night, we all got ready and got “the tourist deal” on food and paid 17 euro for a three course meal. Amazing. Spicy mac and cheese was something different and delicious. Italy, you never do me wrong. Thank you. That evening, we hit the town and went to a nearby bar to begin the night. They had cheap drinks and an indie vibe. Super local and fun. We met a masters student there who helped us find good places to go out after the bar which was awesome. Then we headed to this club called Akab, which was super fun and only a little far by taxi. The taxi drove right by the colloseum on our way there and home. It was surreal. It was a fun packed night. The music in Akab was all American, which was awesome because that’s not the norm over here but every once in awhile they’d throw on an Italian song and everyone around us would erupt and start singing and dancing crazily. It was so fun! We then opted to just not sleep, because we had to leave for the airport by 4:30 AM. We all rushed back just in time to pack and head out. Rome was a whirlwind in the absolute best way. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything. I definitely fell in love with Rome. I will for sure be back for you, Rome. Xo