Colosseum, Borghese, & Trevi Fountain

Our day started slowly after a restless night of waking and sleeping until we finally crashed hard at about 4am until 9:30 or so.  We went next door for our uninspired, but oddly delicious breakfast of bread, juice and coffee.  Daniel, the lovely gal at the front desk, advised that we try the 3.50 Euro breakfast, but it is small and we might not like it... "small is enough for us, but some people want something more."  It was enough.

We had nothing on until the Borghese tour at 2:45, so thought we'd check out the Colosseum, which is about two blocks away from where we are staying.  We were accosted by a charming young man who is studying Engineering at the University of Rome (his father is in Dubai, mother in Pakistan, so he is multi national he told us) who quickly convinced us to take his VIP tour which was starting right away.  So glad we did.  Our guide was a spunky retired teacher from Liverpool, Figgy.  I wish I could remember all the stories, but I still don't have access to my full cognitive abilities due to jet lag, sleep deprivation, and holy-shit-I'm-in-Italy overwhelm.  Mind blown.

See Facebook (I recommend sending a friend request to Bill Pozzobon if he's not already your friend) for photos as I can't figure out how to post them here.

We had to hustle by very expensive taxi to get to the Borghese Gallery in time for our scheduled tour. I was hot, sticky, and tired, but we pressed on.  As soon as we walked into the first room of the Gallery, my whole being came alive and by the end of the two hours, I was near tears at the sheer beauty of what we had just experienced.

Caravaggio's boy with fruit
Raffaelo's dame with unicorn
Bernini's David... Bernini's everything

Oh my god.  Please see these things in your lifetime if you can.  Or pour your heart into something with the depth that these masters have done.

Tired and hungry, we followed Rebecca, our red headed art-nerd tour guide's suggestion, and had many tiny plates of olive oil soaked carbohydrates at Gusto's.  On our way home, we stumbled across the Trevi Fountain where we tossed a coin to ensure that we will be back in Rome again one day (two more to go on this trip, and then... anything is possible).  It was a mad house of selfie sticks and duck lips (I asked a beautiful young girl to please smile with her whole face, and was pleased to see that she did, for one shot anyway).

Bill continues to give me the benefit of the doubt that I do NOT deserve and allows me to steer us in the wrong direction almost every time.  After a very long walk home of backtracking to correct several of my wrong turns, with gelato in hand, we are back in our tiny air conditioned room, blogging to the sounds of for he's a jolly good fellow (in Italian) coming from the bar downstairs.

I wish I could capture it all.  So far, on day two, this is everything I dreamed it would be.  And so much more.  So tired.  So happy.