Hey everyone! As I'm sure most of you know, we are back in the US! We safely arrived home Wednesday afternoon and have been enjoying these past couple days in CA. We've been eating at all our favorite restaurants (Chilis, In'n'Out, and El Torito) and going to the beach trying to soak in as much sun as possible. We have lots of catching up to do as far as the tanning goes! Well, I do at least. :)
I would love to do a post on our last major trip before we left for home... however, there's been a slight problem with my laptop which stores all our pictures from the last 3 months! I don't know exactly what the problem is with the darn thing, but it's at CompUSA right now hopefully being fixed. Also, Bret, I totally forgot about this when we were talking on the phone earlier today... but I can't send you a CD with all our pictures on it until I get the laptop back. So I'll get right on that for you as soon as my laptop is restored and returned! Unfortunately, you all will just have to wait a while to hear and see about our time in Scotland... sorry.
Until then, I decided to at least write this entry updating you all on our United States lives. So yeah, stuffing our faces with good food and heading to the beach pretty much sums things up. We are glad to be back. We went to church today which was quite enjoyable! We missed attending that wonderful Mosaic.
Fun things in our near future include:
- Celebrating my hubby's birthday on Tuesday!! WOOHOO!! My boy is just growing up so fast! ;)
- Amy is coming to visit this weekend!!! :) We are going to take a trip to San Diego and Santa Barbara... Hooray for sister visits! I love them!
- I get to go visit Meg in Vermont for 7 whole days starting August 31st! Good times with the best friend! I can't wait!!!
- Brandon gets to visit Adam Huff in San Jose, CA over labor day weekend. Fun boy bonding times for them.
- AND one of the best things of all... I still have over a month before school starts! Thank the Lord!!! (Sorry to Brandon who starts on Monday.)
So as you can see life is pretty rough right now. No, actually I'm really enjoying this time of relaxation and vacation. I'm trying to take in as much as I can now in preparation for a not so fun upcoming quarter in school. I'm sure some of you miss being a full time student, but frankly, I'm just sick of it. It's hard to be married and just want to spend time with your husband, but instead you have to sit down and do homework. Ugh! Well, only one more year... I can do it!
Also, it's been great being in a normal time zone with the rest of you! Hooray for similar schedules. No more 6-8 hour differences, only 1-2 hours. :) It makes life easier with the communication to all you wonderful people. Anyways, that's all for now. Buhbye.
Aug 21, 2005
Aug 11, 2005
Cha bhi luathas agus grinneas an cuideachd a' cheile.
The time has come to tell you about our trip to Ireland! If you notice the title of this post... it is not just merely jibberish, but rather it's Gaelic... some crazy language the Irish rarely use. The meaning of that sentence remains a mystery to all of those who are not curious enough to look it up, haha. I'm so evil. ;) So we went to Ireland July 11th, exactly one month ago today. Therefore, my memory is a little hazy of all the fabulous details, but I will do my best. We flew into Dublin, the capital of Ireland, on a Monday afternoon/evening. We first checked into our hotel room and then focused on dinner for a very hungry girl named Lisa. We ended up going to this pizza/bagel place that served the best pepperoni pizza ever!! I know, it's not very Irish-like, but so delicious! That evening was fairly low-key due to the fact that we had an early rise the next morning with much to do. We basically just walked around the city, checked out the scene, went to a local pub, slept.
Day #2 began by taking a tour of Trinity college founded by Queen Elizabeth I in 1592. Up to the year 1973 all its students were Protestants, but today most of the 9500 students are Catholic. On this campus lies one of Dublin's prime attractions, The Book of Kells. Anyone ever heard of it? It's a 9th Century manuscript of the Gospels, renowned world-wide for its rich and varied illustrations. You can find this book on display in the Old Library for all to see. After all that excitement was over, we took in "The Dublin Experience," a 45 minute movie giving an introduction and the background of the city. It was very educational.
Next, we headed to the infamous Guinness Brewery, a Dublin must-see for beer and non-beer drinkers. The place was 7 stories tall and quite impressive. They seriously must have hired a top-notch Interior Designer for this project. You can tell by the very effective lighting and cool, trendy materials used. :) There's even a waterfall in one part of the brewery! Another neat design feature is the huge atrium in the shape of a pint glass! So clever. Here's a little snippet I stole from the website, to share with you: "Imagine a family name that, within 250 years, has become a globally recognised brand. At GUINNESS® STOREHOUSE, we take you to the very heart of what makes GUINNESS® beer so unique. Experience the people, the process and the passion behind GUINNESS® as you trace the journey of this fascinating and world-loved beer." Sounds pretty thrilling, huh? Oh, I have to put this in here too. I just read it and it's a great quote. "All great stories begin somewhere, and ours begins with Arthur Guinness who staked his future on a rundown brewery at St. James's Gate. The year was 1759. The rest is history. And it's all waiting to be discovered as you explore 250 years of brewing heritage and walk in Arthur's footsteps." Ooohh... fascinating. Anyways, the brewery was a lot of fun and really interesting.
Afterwards, we headed back into town for dinner and more fun. This night's activities included a Musical Pub Crawl. We were to meet our musicians and guides for the night at an Irish pub in town at 7:30 PM. There were two guys, one Irish and one British, that were in charge of this thing. They began by giving us an explanation of traditional Irish music... what it is, its background, what's popular, etc. After talking a bit they would then play some songs for us. One guy played a guitar and sang while the other guy played an accordion. They would talk, play, talk, play. After a few songs, they'd pack up and all 75 of us who signed up for the Musical Pub Crawl would travel to the next pub where they would set up and play another 5 songs. We went to 3 pubs total and got to hear about 15-20 songs. It was very fun! A real cultural experience and insight into the Irish lifestyle. At the very end, they were asking if anyone in the audience had a song they wanted to sing or perform. Two people from Arizona (oddly enough) got up and sang. And then a 3rd volunteer from Baltimore said he knew how to do an Irish dance. So the two musicians played a song while this guy from the crowd danced for everyone. It was so cool! It all ended at 10:00 PM and the two guys recommended going to a pub where they were heading next. So Brandon and I went along and there were 7 Irish people performing including our 2 guides. There was one drummer, two violinist, one flute player, 2 guitarists, and one accordian player. Just sitting there and soaking in the music and atmosphere was such a neat experience!
On our last day, we decided to see the countryside of Ireland. We booked a day trip with some tour company and met them early that last morning to head out. There were lots of beautiful sights as you will see from the pictures. We went to a monastery called Glendalough as well as a stop near where they filmed 90% of the movie Braveheart. Although Braveheart is supposed to be set in Scotland, it's a little secret that the majority of it is actually filmed in Ireland. Who would have guessed?! Heehee. After our enjoyable day trip we headed back and prepared to leave. Tear, tear... :( We went to the airport and headed home. Ireland was wonderful and provided a fantastic time for us!! We only had time to just scratch the surface of what this beautiful country has to offer, but from what we saw, we loved it! :)
Day #2 began by taking a tour of Trinity college founded by Queen Elizabeth I in 1592. Up to the year 1973 all its students were Protestants, but today most of the 9500 students are Catholic. On this campus lies one of Dublin's prime attractions, The Book of Kells. Anyone ever heard of it? It's a 9th Century manuscript of the Gospels, renowned world-wide for its rich and varied illustrations. You can find this book on display in the Old Library for all to see. After all that excitement was over, we took in "The Dublin Experience," a 45 minute movie giving an introduction and the background of the city. It was very educational.
Next, we headed to the infamous Guinness Brewery, a Dublin must-see for beer and non-beer drinkers. The place was 7 stories tall and quite impressive. They seriously must have hired a top-notch Interior Designer for this project. You can tell by the very effective lighting and cool, trendy materials used. :) There's even a waterfall in one part of the brewery! Another neat design feature is the huge atrium in the shape of a pint glass! So clever. Here's a little snippet I stole from the website, to share with you: "Imagine a family name that, within 250 years, has become a globally recognised brand. At GUINNESS® STOREHOUSE, we take you to the very heart of what makes GUINNESS® beer so unique. Experience the people, the process and the passion behind GUINNESS® as you trace the journey of this fascinating and world-loved beer." Sounds pretty thrilling, huh? Oh, I have to put this in here too. I just read it and it's a great quote. "All great stories begin somewhere, and ours begins with Arthur Guinness who staked his future on a rundown brewery at St. James's Gate. The year was 1759. The rest is history. And it's all waiting to be discovered as you explore 250 years of brewing heritage and walk in Arthur's footsteps." Ooohh... fascinating. Anyways, the brewery was a lot of fun and really interesting.
Afterwards, we headed back into town for dinner and more fun. This night's activities included a Musical Pub Crawl. We were to meet our musicians and guides for the night at an Irish pub in town at 7:30 PM. There were two guys, one Irish and one British, that were in charge of this thing. They began by giving us an explanation of traditional Irish music... what it is, its background, what's popular, etc. After talking a bit they would then play some songs for us. One guy played a guitar and sang while the other guy played an accordion. They would talk, play, talk, play. After a few songs, they'd pack up and all 75 of us who signed up for the Musical Pub Crawl would travel to the next pub where they would set up and play another 5 songs. We went to 3 pubs total and got to hear about 15-20 songs. It was very fun! A real cultural experience and insight into the Irish lifestyle. At the very end, they were asking if anyone in the audience had a song they wanted to sing or perform. Two people from Arizona (oddly enough) got up and sang. And then a 3rd volunteer from Baltimore said he knew how to do an Irish dance. So the two musicians played a song while this guy from the crowd danced for everyone. It was so cool! It all ended at 10:00 PM and the two guys recommended going to a pub where they were heading next. So Brandon and I went along and there were 7 Irish people performing including our 2 guides. There was one drummer, two violinist, one flute player, 2 guitarists, and one accordian player. Just sitting there and soaking in the music and atmosphere was such a neat experience!
On our last day, we decided to see the countryside of Ireland. We booked a day trip with some tour company and met them early that last morning to head out. There were lots of beautiful sights as you will see from the pictures. We went to a monastery called Glendalough as well as a stop near where they filmed 90% of the movie Braveheart. Although Braveheart is supposed to be set in Scotland, it's a little secret that the majority of it is actually filmed in Ireland. Who would have guessed?! Heehee. After our enjoyable day trip we headed back and prepared to leave. Tear, tear... :( We went to the airport and headed home. Ireland was wonderful and provided a fantastic time for us!! We only had time to just scratch the surface of what this beautiful country has to offer, but from what we saw, we loved it! :)
There stands a tall and mighty tower. The opening at the bottom is the door to get inside. It is approximately 10-15 feet off the ground and impossible to get into. (Without a ladder of course, which isn't supplied) Why would they build the door so high you might ask? Well, I would certainly tell you, if only I could remember. Oh, who cares why the door is so high anyways. :)
Aug 5, 2005
The last two stops...
We arrived in Paris late afternoon so we didn't have too much time the first day. We drove around the city and were given a tour by our Contiki manager, Ken. During the course of the drive, we began approaching the largest roundabout in the world. As we were heading in its direction, Ken was telling us that no insurance company will insure any vehicle in this roundabout or even anywhere around it because it is so crazy and dangerous. He said "On average an accident occurs every 12 minutes in this roundabout and it is far too risky and dangerous for a coach full of 40 people to go into it." He is saying all this as we are getting closer and closer... "Sorry guys, we're just going to have to skip this one... you know, with having no insurance and all, we just can't do it" ... When suddenly "Highway to the Danger Zone" song comes on as our driver, Howie, drives us straight into it. Everyone was screaming, clapping, and taking pictures. It was so wild... there are no lanes whatsoever and cars and just going everywhere. You can refer to the picture below for how unorganized and psychotic it is. We went around the whole thing twice before we escaped accident-free. If you've ever seen the movie European Vacation with Chevy Chase... this is the roundabout that they get stuck in and can't get out of, haha!
Anyways, the other big event of the night was going to the Eiffel Tower, designed by Gustav Eiffel, a genius. It was built in 1889 for the World Fair held in Paris commemorating the centenary of the French Revolution. It took 300 steel workers 2 years to construct it. It's 985 feet tall, has 1,652 steps to the top (also 4 elevators available), used 40 tons of paint and 2.5 million rivets. At the time, everyone despised the tower and thought it was the ugliest thing they'd ever seen. There were 100s of people that protested its existence. The tower was meant to be temporary and was supposed to be torn down in 1909. However, it was spared only because they discovered it proved to be an ideal platform for the transmitting antennas needed for the new science of radiotelegraphy. Over time, however, it became widely accepted and loved and is now a huge tourist attraction and a symbol of Paris. Can you even imagine the Eiffel tower being torn down?!
The next day we could do whatever we wanted. We started by going to a perfumery with our group. Then Brandon and I headed to the Louvre Museum, where the Mona Lisa painting is located. You could literally spend an entire day in there becasue there's so much to see, but since we had such limited time we only stayed for a short while. We also went to the Musee d' Orsay, another art museum with works dating between 1848 and 1914. We loved this museum and spent several hours enjoying the Impressionist, Post-impressionist, and Art Nouveau artwork. I never knew Brandon was such a fan! :) We made it to Notre Dame's entrance, but unfortunately, they weren't letting people in because of some big conference that day. Oh well... Another main site we visited was the Arc de Triomphe, the largest triumphal arch in the world. It was commissioned by Napoleon for his imperial victories. Lastly, we walked the Champs Elysees, a very famous street. It was once the most fashionable place to live in Paris. It now has lots of shops, cinemas, cafes, restaurants, etc. This street was also the scene of many triumphal marches including the Germans in the beginning of WWII and the allies after the liberation of Paris. At the end of the day we went to a lovely French restaurant for dinner with a bunch of friends. The food was divine!
The next morning we made the long haul from Paris to London and arrived at our destination in the afternoon. The Contiki tour had officially ended. We got our hotel room and took a good, long nap. It was much needed. Later that night, we all organized a dinner at a nearby pub at 7. It was a lot of fun, we said our final goodbyes, and went to bed.
Other interesting things about France/Paris before we move on... They are famous for Napoleon Bonaparte, fabulous food, world-class wine, cheese, and bad plumbing. (Also for not discovering deoderant yet... smelly.) However, fragrance and all, Paris remains the benchmark for beauty, culture, and class.
So the following day was devoted to London. And of course, we did more sightseeing... We rode the London Eye, the world's largest ferris wheel that goes really high for great sights of the city. It takes 30 minutes to rotate completely so it's not a very fast ride; it's more about soaking in the views. We also toured Westminster Abbey, one of the most visited churches in Christendom. I found it to be alright. It held a lot of tombs, memorials, and monuments of royalty and other famous, people. Charles Dickens was buried there and then William Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, and Winston Churchill all had a memorial/monument for them. Those are the main big name people from the Abbey. We saw a few more important sites like Big Ben, Piccadilly Circus, the Science museum, and the British museum. Brandon wanted to make sure that I pointed out that the Rosetta Stone is in the British Museum... and we saw it. Well, that ends our time in London. This concludes our long, but wonderful 18 day vacation as we next headed back to our small town of residence, Harrogate. Thank you, Contiki... you were good to us.
Anyways, the other big event of the night was going to the Eiffel Tower, designed by Gustav Eiffel, a genius. It was built in 1889 for the World Fair held in Paris commemorating the centenary of the French Revolution. It took 300 steel workers 2 years to construct it. It's 985 feet tall, has 1,652 steps to the top (also 4 elevators available), used 40 tons of paint and 2.5 million rivets. At the time, everyone despised the tower and thought it was the ugliest thing they'd ever seen. There were 100s of people that protested its existence. The tower was meant to be temporary and was supposed to be torn down in 1909. However, it was spared only because they discovered it proved to be an ideal platform for the transmitting antennas needed for the new science of radiotelegraphy. Over time, however, it became widely accepted and loved and is now a huge tourist attraction and a symbol of Paris. Can you even imagine the Eiffel tower being torn down?!
The next day we could do whatever we wanted. We started by going to a perfumery with our group. Then Brandon and I headed to the Louvre Museum, where the Mona Lisa painting is located. You could literally spend an entire day in there becasue there's so much to see, but since we had such limited time we only stayed for a short while. We also went to the Musee d' Orsay, another art museum with works dating between 1848 and 1914. We loved this museum and spent several hours enjoying the Impressionist, Post-impressionist, and Art Nouveau artwork. I never knew Brandon was such a fan! :) We made it to Notre Dame's entrance, but unfortunately, they weren't letting people in because of some big conference that day. Oh well... Another main site we visited was the Arc de Triomphe, the largest triumphal arch in the world. It was commissioned by Napoleon for his imperial victories. Lastly, we walked the Champs Elysees, a very famous street. It was once the most fashionable place to live in Paris. It now has lots of shops, cinemas, cafes, restaurants, etc. This street was also the scene of many triumphal marches including the Germans in the beginning of WWII and the allies after the liberation of Paris. At the end of the day we went to a lovely French restaurant for dinner with a bunch of friends. The food was divine!
The next morning we made the long haul from Paris to London and arrived at our destination in the afternoon. The Contiki tour had officially ended. We got our hotel room and took a good, long nap. It was much needed. Later that night, we all organized a dinner at a nearby pub at 7. It was a lot of fun, we said our final goodbyes, and went to bed.
Other interesting things about France/Paris before we move on... They are famous for Napoleon Bonaparte, fabulous food, world-class wine, cheese, and bad plumbing. (Also for not discovering deoderant yet... smelly.) However, fragrance and all, Paris remains the benchmark for beauty, culture, and class.
So the following day was devoted to London. And of course, we did more sightseeing... We rode the London Eye, the world's largest ferris wheel that goes really high for great sights of the city. It takes 30 minutes to rotate completely so it's not a very fast ride; it's more about soaking in the views. We also toured Westminster Abbey, one of the most visited churches in Christendom. I found it to be alright. It held a lot of tombs, memorials, and monuments of royalty and other famous, people. Charles Dickens was buried there and then William Shakespeare, Isaac Newton, and Winston Churchill all had a memorial/monument for them. Those are the main big name people from the Abbey. We saw a few more important sites like Big Ben, Piccadilly Circus, the Science museum, and the British museum. Brandon wanted to make sure that I pointed out that the Rosetta Stone is in the British Museum... and we saw it. Well, that ends our time in London. This concludes our long, but wonderful 18 day vacation as we next headed back to our small town of residence, Harrogate. Thank you, Contiki... you were good to us.
Aug 4, 2005
Jul 28, 2005
Pizza, Pasta, and Paninis!
You will soon discover that this is a very extensive entry. Please don't let the length discourage you from reading every single word of it. There are lots of fascinating things and funny stories to share with you. Hopefully you will find it to be interesting!
We started our enchanting Italian experience in the city of Venice. We took a motorboat ride to reach the city that is built on 117 islands with 150 canals and 400 bridges. Regular flooding and sky-high property prices make it a difficult place to live. Public transport is via the canals on water buses. The other mode of transportation is your feet. While in Venice we shopped, checked out the city, kissed on the famous bridge said to make your love eternal (since we really needed to secure that), and went on a romantic gondola ride. It was just as you would imagine with the black and white striped sailor shirt dude whistling away and steering you through the canals of the beautiful city. We ended the night with a group dinner Venetian fashion. That basically means there was A LOT of food! What a blast!
Next we headed to the ancient city of Rome. This city has more than 2500 years of history and is packed with some of the most amazing buildings and architecture ever! Some of these structures include the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, and Piazza Navona. I chose the most important places to tell you a few things about to give you an idea of their significance.
The Colosseum is Rome's best-known monument and was begun by Emperor Vespasian in AD 72. The massive structure could seat 80,000 and featured gory and deadly gladiatorial combat and wild beast shows. During the Middle Ages, it became a fortress, then later a quarry for travertine and marble to build Palazzo Venezia and other buildings. Restoration works have been under way since 1992.
The Sistine Chapel... okay, don't even get me started. First of all let me say there are so many freakin awesome, talented artists from Italy during the Renessaince and Baroque periods that I can hardly handle it. Ever heard of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Raphael? And no I am not talking about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Yeah, they rock. Anyways, the Sistine Chapel was a private chapel built in 1473 for Pope Sixtus IV. Michelangelo spent 4 years of his life painting an incredible fresco on the ceiling. The artwork depicts the book of the Bible, Genesis, including the Creation and the Fall. 24 years later after he finished this massive project he painted the back wall of the chapel known as The Last Judgement. You "technically" weren't allowed to take any pictures in the chapel because the flash of the camera slowly ruins the paintings, but I snuck a couple non-flash pictures for you to enjoy. Oh yes, one other quick story. It is not true that Michelangelo painted the ceiling lying on his back. For four years the dude leaned his neck back and painted over his head. The project permanently screwed up his vision and his posture. He could no longer bring his head down to a straight-forward, normal position. Talk about a sacrifice for the job!
St. Peter's Basilica is the most famous church in Christendom and stands on the site where St. Peter was buried... hence the name. In 1547 Michelangelo, at age 72, took on the project of designing the grand dome. Yeah, he was the man. The church has a strict dress code for visitors which I can testify IS enforced as I attempted to test the rules. Your shoulders have to be covered and no shorts or skirts above the knee are allowed. I miraculously got past the first and second set of security guards and actually made it in the church for 45 whole minutes before I got caught and kicked out with my scandalous above the knee shorts. When the guy just asked me to leave I just regretfully put on the pants I brought and reentered with the proper coverage. It was like a BILLION degrees outside so I was avoiding the pants and cardigan route at all costs. As you can see, I was all about breaking the rules while in Rome. :)
The Pantheon is the best-preserved building of Rome. The original building was built in 27 BC by Marcus Agrippa and the extraordinary dome is considered the most important achievement of all Roman architecture.
Personally, I am so blown away by the accomplishments of these artists and architects from 2 thousand years ago! These structures are so old but yet still remain to be some of the most impressive architecture in the world. Just goes to show you how brilliant these people were!
So you can see what we did with our time while in Rome. There was much to see and we were very busy. Now, moving onto Florence... We didn't have a whole lot of time here and to be honest, I can't even remember what we did besides dinner, haha. Uhh, let's see. We saw a leather demonstration and were able to explore the city. Other than that, I don't think there's much to say. For dinner, we got all dressed up and went to "Le Certosa" a charming 16th century restaurant set in the scenic Tuscan hills. There was a pianist to set a romantic mood, a dance floor, as well as an opera singer to serenade all of us. The dinner was like a 30 course meal. It just kept coming. I thought that I had already eaten (and finished might I add) the main course when out the real main course... It was a delight, but boy was I full. During the course of the evening the lights dimmed and a slow song came on. This is when Brandon took my hand and led me out to the dance floor. We were the only ones out there and everyone from our group was cheering, clapping, whistling, and taking pictures... it was a night to remember! So fun, so romantic. Okay, back to reality.
This is the end of our wonderful time in Italy. I highly recommend everyone going there at least once in your lifetime. It truly is an amazing place. The amount of history, art, style, and culture is overwhelming! Well, I hope you've enjoyed your tour... I'm working for tips only, so feel free to send them my way. ;) Til next time, peace out.
We started our enchanting Italian experience in the city of Venice. We took a motorboat ride to reach the city that is built on 117 islands with 150 canals and 400 bridges. Regular flooding and sky-high property prices make it a difficult place to live. Public transport is via the canals on water buses. The other mode of transportation is your feet. While in Venice we shopped, checked out the city, kissed on the famous bridge said to make your love eternal (since we really needed to secure that), and went on a romantic gondola ride. It was just as you would imagine with the black and white striped sailor shirt dude whistling away and steering you through the canals of the beautiful city. We ended the night with a group dinner Venetian fashion. That basically means there was A LOT of food! What a blast!
Next we headed to the ancient city of Rome. This city has more than 2500 years of history and is packed with some of the most amazing buildings and architecture ever! Some of these structures include the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, and Piazza Navona. I chose the most important places to tell you a few things about to give you an idea of their significance.
The Colosseum is Rome's best-known monument and was begun by Emperor Vespasian in AD 72. The massive structure could seat 80,000 and featured gory and deadly gladiatorial combat and wild beast shows. During the Middle Ages, it became a fortress, then later a quarry for travertine and marble to build Palazzo Venezia and other buildings. Restoration works have been under way since 1992.
The Sistine Chapel... okay, don't even get me started. First of all let me say there are so many freakin awesome, talented artists from Italy during the Renessaince and Baroque periods that I can hardly handle it. Ever heard of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Raphael? And no I am not talking about the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Yeah, they rock. Anyways, the Sistine Chapel was a private chapel built in 1473 for Pope Sixtus IV. Michelangelo spent 4 years of his life painting an incredible fresco on the ceiling. The artwork depicts the book of the Bible, Genesis, including the Creation and the Fall. 24 years later after he finished this massive project he painted the back wall of the chapel known as The Last Judgement. You "technically" weren't allowed to take any pictures in the chapel because the flash of the camera slowly ruins the paintings, but I snuck a couple non-flash pictures for you to enjoy. Oh yes, one other quick story. It is not true that Michelangelo painted the ceiling lying on his back. For four years the dude leaned his neck back and painted over his head. The project permanently screwed up his vision and his posture. He could no longer bring his head down to a straight-forward, normal position. Talk about a sacrifice for the job!
St. Peter's Basilica is the most famous church in Christendom and stands on the site where St. Peter was buried... hence the name. In 1547 Michelangelo, at age 72, took on the project of designing the grand dome. Yeah, he was the man. The church has a strict dress code for visitors which I can testify IS enforced as I attempted to test the rules. Your shoulders have to be covered and no shorts or skirts above the knee are allowed. I miraculously got past the first and second set of security guards and actually made it in the church for 45 whole minutes before I got caught and kicked out with my scandalous above the knee shorts. When the guy just asked me to leave I just regretfully put on the pants I brought and reentered with the proper coverage. It was like a BILLION degrees outside so I was avoiding the pants and cardigan route at all costs. As you can see, I was all about breaking the rules while in Rome. :)
The Pantheon is the best-preserved building of Rome. The original building was built in 27 BC by Marcus Agrippa and the extraordinary dome is considered the most important achievement of all Roman architecture.
Personally, I am so blown away by the accomplishments of these artists and architects from 2 thousand years ago! These structures are so old but yet still remain to be some of the most impressive architecture in the world. Just goes to show you how brilliant these people were!
So you can see what we did with our time while in Rome. There was much to see and we were very busy. Now, moving onto Florence... We didn't have a whole lot of time here and to be honest, I can't even remember what we did besides dinner, haha. Uhh, let's see. We saw a leather demonstration and were able to explore the city. Other than that, I don't think there's much to say. For dinner, we got all dressed up and went to "Le Certosa" a charming 16th century restaurant set in the scenic Tuscan hills. There was a pianist to set a romantic mood, a dance floor, as well as an opera singer to serenade all of us. The dinner was like a 30 course meal. It just kept coming. I thought that I had already eaten (and finished might I add) the main course when out the real main course... It was a delight, but boy was I full. During the course of the evening the lights dimmed and a slow song came on. This is when Brandon took my hand and led me out to the dance floor. We were the only ones out there and everyone from our group was cheering, clapping, whistling, and taking pictures... it was a night to remember! So fun, so romantic. Okay, back to reality.
This is the end of our wonderful time in Italy. I highly recommend everyone going there at least once in your lifetime. It truly is an amazing place. The amount of history, art, style, and culture is overwhelming! Well, I hope you've enjoyed your tour... I'm working for tips only, so feel free to send them my way. ;) Til next time, peace out.
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