Friday, June 2, 2023 and Saturday, June 3, 2023
After over a year of planning this trip to Italy and it was finally here! Ten of us are heading to Italy!
We had an afternoon flight from Columbus to Washington, DC and had a short layover before we boarded our United flight to Rome. Both flights went smoothly and we arrived in Rome around 8:30 AM. Saturday morning. Italy was 6 hours ahead of us.
We had a car service meet us at the airport and drove us to our hotel which was located on the outskirts of Rome!
Our rooms were ready so we all went to our rooms to clean up after our 24 hour day! We met and walked to the closest Metro station to head into Rome! We rode the subway to the Colosseum stop. When we walked up the steps, the first sight for our group was the Roman Colosseum! Dave and I were the only members of our group that had visited Rome before. The rest of our group was in awe. Their expressions and comments were priceless!
Even though our group was exhausted we spent the afternoon exploring “The Eternal City”! We walked by the Forum and visited the Trevi Fountain where we all tossed our coin over our left shoulder to ensure our return to Rome. The Trevi Fountain was the most famous fountain in Rome. It was built in the mid-seventeen hundreds. It was the largest Baroque fountain in the city and known throughout the world.
We also walked up the Spanish Steps! They were built between 1723 and 1726 and consisted of 135 steps and 3 different terraces. The steps began at the Piazza di Spagna up to the French monastery church, Trinita dei Monti. At the top was a great view filled with many tourists.
Below is a slideshow of more of the sights that we saw on our first day in Rome!
Picture 1- Piazza del Campidoglio, Picture 2- part of the Forum, Picture 3- Roman Forum as we walk by, Picture 4- walking from our hotel to the Metro station, Picture 5- the Pantheon from the side, Picture 6- the front of the Pantheon, Picture 7- Piazza della Minerva, Picture 8- Monument to Cola di Rienzo, Picture 9- Forum of Caesar
