Roaming in Rome

Saturday morning I was in a hurry because I had gotten a ticket to go on the tour of the crypts beneath St. Peter's Basilica. These were not the tombs of the last popes but of the burials that were there before the Basilica. I was quite excited about this because it was so last minute and I was told you usually have to book months in advance. They only allow about 200 people down there a day, and I was one of the lucky few. Anyway, my tour started at 9:15, but I had to leave my room at 7:30 just to have plenty of time to get there and also time to get through security. It took me a good hour and 15 minutes to get to the Vatican, and then I had to go through security and check my bag. I was afraid I wasn't going to make the tour, but thank the Lord the lines were not long. I hustled my way to the place I was supposed to be, but before I got there I was apprehended by the Swiss Guards. I actually was not allowed to enter the area I was supposed be at until 10 minutes before the time. I therefore had to wait outside the gates, and then I realized the few other people waiting there with the same ticket I had. I went to approach the friendliest most American looking bunch, and started to ask if they were on the Sacvi Tour, when suddenly I found a hand in my face. Before I could complete what I was saying the lady had put her hand up and told me harshly, “No, we do not want anything”. She then realized what I was saying and tried to laugh it off, saying she thought I was a local trying to sell her something. After this encounter with her, I realized that this was the short, round, annoying lady that manages to be on every tour. She was the one always asking questions, making jokes, laughing at everything, and just putting a slight damper on everything. I of course, somehow managed to have this lady next to my side the entire tour. I really could not get away from here. If I was in the front there she was, and if I fell back to get away, soon she was by my side. She even went as far as questioning why I was there and whether I should be. She preceded to tell me about her wonderful daughter who was going to be the world's best archaeologist. It was because of this daughter that they deserved the right to be on the tour, so what was mine? I just told “cause I could.” She could tell by then I was just slightly annoyed with her.
Anyway, they tour was amazing, and I really got a could picture of how the area of St. Peter's was before it was constructed. Our guide told us about why they believed St. Peter was buried there and all about the findings during the excavation. It was really something. One of the funniest moments was when we went to the first level below St. Peter's and these kids above us could see us through the grates in the floor. They got really excited and started asking us if we saw dead people down there. We ended the tour in the crypt of the popes. Afterwards I walked around and found myself in a line. I had no idea what it was for but just went with the flow. It turned out to be the line to go up into the basilica. I paid my fee and started climbing. We got to go up on the inside of the dome and look down into St. Peters. Then we went outside and climbed to the cupola. The staircases were tiny and very steep. At one point this Spanish couple in front of me came to complete stop and they started arguing. It appeared that she was afraid of heights and that she refused to go any further. Of course he was yelling at her to keep going and that there was no going back. And really there wasn't. She broke down into tears, and that got him even more upset. It was slightly humorous, because she was this tiny girl, and this huge fat guy was pouring down sweat from climbing yelling at her. I made it to the top of the cupola with no more incidents, and the views from there were amazing. Definitely one of the highlights, however it was rather packed up there. Once back down on the ground floor I went inside the basilica and toured around. It was amazing, but I was really into the people watching there. There was so many different people and they all acted differently since some of them were just tourists while others had made a pilgrimage to there.
I then went on to the Vatican Museum after a while in the basilica. The museum was enormous, and it was hard to take it all in. After the first hour and a half, I found myself not really taking it all in, and just glancing around. I tried to slow myself down and really look, but your mind just gets so overloaded, and there really is to much to take it. I also did quite a bit of people watching there, and I always watching the faces of people first entering a room. The first thing they did, was to always look up to the ceiling to see if it was the Sistene Chapel. Quite a few of them would look quickly and move on to the next room searching for Michelangelo's masterpiece. When I reached that room, it was obvious where you were. The room is amazing, and packed with people- all looking straight up. The ceiling is quite impressive, and the more you look, the more impressive it becomes. I finally found a seat and just sat down to take it all in.
After the museum, I was starving, so I walked around trying to find one of the restaurants that was recommended by my book. Of course all three of the ones I tried was closed, so I ended just finding one that looked alright, and that was open. I had an amazing dish of pasta stuffed with cheese and pears, covered in a cream sauce along with a carrot cream sauce. I had really lucked out on the restaurant choice. Afterwards I finally found the little gelato place I had been trying to find. They had several strange flavors, and I had to try them all. I ended up having cheese and cherry, fig with almond and cheese, and lavender peach. I know they sound really strange, but they were delicious with only slight hints of the different flavors. I decided to call it a day, because I was so tired and went back to my hostel.
The next day I was going to try to do some more museums. I was going to go to the Musei Capitoline, and on the way there I stopped at the Monument of the Unknown Italian Soldier. It is a massive monument and it houses the museum dedicated to Italian military. I spent a little time there and then went on the the Musei Capitoline. The museum was really great, and I got so confused with the layout. They have an underground tunnel that connects the two buildings, and I got mixed up thinking I was in one, when I was really in the other. I spent a good deal of time just wandering around trying to figure out where exactly I was. After the museum I tried to make my way to the church with the Statue of Truth. However, when I got there the line to get in wrapped around the building and there was no way I was going to wait in line to stick my hand into some statues mouth. Maybe next time. I decided to go grap something to eat on the other side of the Tiber river, in the more Bohemian neighborhood of Trastevere. I found the place that supposedly has the best Napoli style pizza in Rome, and it was good. The pizza there has a paper thin crust that reminded me a communion wafer. I then just wandered around looking around and ended up going in a huge loop. I finally got to one of the churches I really wanted to go to and I was really happy I did. The church was amazing, and the entire back of the church was made of mosaics showing the life of Mary. They were magnificent.
I then made my way back to my new favorite gelato place from the other day, and I tried raspberry sage. This was the best flavor I had tried. I continued to just walk around looking around, and ended up on the shopping street with all the designer labels. It was insane to look at all the people going in and out of the stores. At the LV shop they had a line to go in because there was a bouncer at the door with a velvet rope. You had to be let in by him to actually get inside the store. Absolutely craziness! I then went to the different piazzas, like the Pantheon and Colosseum to people watch. At Trevi Fountain the funniest thing happened. I was on the ballisters overlooking the left side of the fountain. There were people all around and I was just watching the people at the base of the fountain going through the ritual of throwing the coins over their shoulder. This group of old people come up to the left side of me and they were obviously Americans. Really loud and not caring what is going on around them. They were going to perform the ritual of the coin throwing from the ballisters and hopefully make the coins into the fountain. The men went first and had no problems. Then the first of the ladies was supposed to go. She of course had so many questions about what she was supposed to do, and the men were very sharp with her and slightly annoyed. She finally told them she made her first wish and that she was ready. The men impatiently told her to just throw the coin then. She chucked it over her shoulder and instead of throwing it up she threw it down, straight into the side of this guy's head below us. The old men with the lady started laughing and told her to go again. This whole process was repeated 5 times with different ladies, and they all hit different people right upside the head hard. It was hilarious because the victims had no idea where the coins were being chucked from, and they would look around rubbing their head. I was bursting out with laugher and of course several victims spotted me thinking I was the culprit. I quickly pointed out the ladies next to me that were taking up aim again. I hung around a little longer and then went to the Colosseum to watch the sunset. After the sunset at the Colosseum I tried to go back to my place a different route, which took me two hours out of my way. I ended up in the section of the city due to me getting turned around, but luckily I realized it and backtracked. I was a little worried at one point, but it all worked out and I got back safely, and not to late.