Trippin'

Alone in my apartment needing something to focus on, I'll decide to write about the time with my family in Italy. On New Years day my family:dad, mom, brother arrived in Rome to spend ten days with me. We unexpectedly meet on the streets of Rome going to the hotel, I recognized them almost immediately but it took them a few moments to realize. It wasn't the great heart warming meet that I was expecting, instead we just said hello and we all continued to the hotel, Palatino, through the still dirty streets left after all the partying.

We couldn't check in yet so we left our bags and walked to the Coliseum only a few blocks away, it was so crazy to think that they could build that so long ago. We walked all around it and through the inside snapping photos of just about everything. That was really all we did before we checked into the hotel. We walked outside observing all the ancient ruins left and discovered.

The next day was an early day we took a metro train, during the morning rush hour; the trains were packed like sardines. Our final destination was the Vatican city. We waited in a line for at least an hour maybe two in order to get to the Vatican museum which holds the Sistine Chapel. We spent such a long time in the museum looking at everything. My parents mailed home post cards from the Vatican City, that's cool.

We saw everything worth seeing in Rome: Colosseum, Ruins, Pantheon, Vatican, the different Plazas; Piazza Navona, Piazza di Spagna, Piazza di St. Pietro. One of my favorite thing that we did was to go to the top of St. Peters cathedral, I think that was the highlight of Rome.

I loved, though, spending time in Florence, with my family. we again saw everything worth seeing: the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, The David, Santa Croce, The Uffizi. We spent every night making dinner in my apartment, except for one night out with my family and the other students here. Walking to the top of the Duomo and to Piazza Michelangelo give the best views of the city and at the Piazza there were so many recently married couples taking wedding pictures over looking Florence. We did so much stuff even things I haven't done in my three months in Florence like see the real David. We did things I wouldn't have done, like go to the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum, Gucci Museum, and shop in stores I wouldn't have; which is nice. We went to many market places and everyone bought all kinds of cheap things, my brother a cheap Luis Vuitton bag, my parents leather goods. We also went shopping in the streets there are so many nice stores my brother, dad and I got pairs of leather shoes.

All the shopping and time spent together was great, I wish they were still here. I'm so glad they came to visit me, and I know we all had a great time, can't wait to see them in May!