After the holidays, Ed and I planned a European trip with Ed's sister (Cherie) and her husband (Brian). Our first stop was in Rome. We spent four days touring around the city and Ed was able to indulge in the cuisine while I watched. It was depressing for me to have to pass on the prosciutto and cheeses and watch Ed enjoy himself, but I can only have cooked meats and pasteurized cheeses. So, obviously, my blog won't talk about cuisine; rather, I will be discussing the sites and my nap times, which occurred every afternoon (I'm not ashamed to say that I was tired during our trip -- at least I have a reason this time -- haha!)
We toured the Vatican and walked to the top of the Cupola where we were able to see the entire city of Rome. I really enjoyed the scenery, but I did not enjoy the walk up. We had to walk up over 525 stairs in order to reach the top. Fortunately for most of us, we were able to walk comfortably up the stairs, but Brian was a different story. I guess that the staircases weren't made for someone around 6'5". He had to stoop not only going up to the Cupola, but also at various other sights we visited. Not only did we go to the Vatican, toured the Sistine Chapel. Unfortunately, the line for the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel are two completely different lines. So, when we concluded with our Vatican tour, it was too late to visit the Sistine Chapel. According to the information desk, the line at the Sistine Chapel was atrocious. Upon hearing that we decided to make the Sistine Chapel our first stop Monday morning. When we arrived at the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel Monday morning, the line was out of control! A tour guide approached us and told us that he could get us into the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel within thirty minutes. Of course, we took him up on the offer because I was not about to stand in line for 2.5 to 3 hours (thanks Angie for the "skipping the line" advice for Rome). And yes, we were able to enter the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel within thirty minutes. After we 
received our tickets, we promptly dumped our tour guide and ventured out on our own. It took almost 2 hours to walk through the Vatican Museums to get to the Sistine Chapel! When we arrived there were signs saying not to talk or take pictures, but I guess that visitors don't read very well because everyone was chatting and snapping pictures. I couldn't believe it! Of course, when Ed saw all of the rule breakers, he decided to take a couple of pictures (not using his flash, of course). 
Our shorter tours included the "tourist usuals"... Castel Saint Angelo, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain (during the day and night time, of course), Colosseum, Pantheon, and Forum. I enjoyed all of the places that we visited, but many of them still had too many tourists there to really be able to appreciate their history (I would hate to see the crowds during the summer time). We stayed as long as we could stand the hordes of people and then we moved on.
Not only did we spend time in Rome, we also spent time outside of Rome at Ostia Antica. Ostia Antica was the old trade port during Ancient Rome because of its proximity to the Tiber River. Unfortunately the day we went to Ostia Antica, I wasn't having the best day and I had to sit down and relax for a while. What part of the city that I saw was very interesting and I would suggest that people pay the little village a visit. The day that we went to Ostia Antica, Ed and I also met up with my brother (picture below) and his family who are stationed in Naples with the Navy. We had a nice time eating lunch and chatting for about 3.5 hours. It was great seeing everyone again. Ed had never seen my niece, Victoria, and now she's five years old!
Our trip to Rome was fun and the history is amazing, but my one gripe about the whole city is that it's filthy. I mean...I had to concentrate on the streets in order to avoid stepping in urine and the historical sites were filled with cigarette butts and graffiti -- Don't these people respect and want to preserve their history? According to Ed, the next time we plan a trip, we're sticking with clean Germanic or Scandinavian destination.
Anyway, here's more Rome in pictures...
6 comments:
Italy is dirty isn't it! Matt visits Naples regularly and he says the driving and filth is much worse than in Sicily (where we went on Matt's leave). Portugal has dog poop and some "art" on buildings. But, not nearly as bad. I LOVE it here and was eager to get back here after the filth of Sicily.
You are so good about the food. I ate it all when I was pregnant (not with the first one, mostly with the second), including nuts, soft cheeses (most in the US and here in Portugal, I noticed, are pasturized now) a glass of wine (after the first trimester) on occasion, fish, coffee, and pan after pan of homemade brownies. I know, all bad. I did stay away from sushi. That counts, right?
Great pictures!
We really thought Italy was dirty, too. It was a huge shock after Germany, which is almost freakishly clean. I think it would have seemed less dirty if we were stationed there and had moved straight from Alaska.
We napped every day in Rome. All of us. Ashlyn, of course, always can use a nap, but we would just be so worn out from the heat and walking around. Naps are good, pregnant or not.
And, I had NO IDEA during my first pregnancy that deli meats were off limits until the end. This time I forgot about both the meats and cheeses, until right after I ate a brie sandwich. It was sooo good. I still ate a salami sandwich after every one of my doctor's appointments, though. And, what? No nuts. Crap, I had no idea you weren't supposed to do that.
My parents are getting back from their trip to Rome tonight. I hope that they had a good time, too.
The no nuts thing, I believe, is for people who have allergies, especially food allergies, in their immediate family. Since I have seasonal allergies and two sisters w/food allergies, I'm supposed to avoid nuts. I don't. I got the okay from a PA and midwife to have an occasional glass of wine after my first trimester. Helped me sleep.
Naps are always good no matter who you are or where you are! We love them.
Wow! I never heard of the "no nuts" thing either and I wished that I never heard of the "no deli meat" rule too. I must say that I was tempted to have proscuitto )I really miss it) and some soft cheese -- maybe I'll have to break some of the rules when Ed and I go to France in March.
The CDC says soft cheeses that are pasturized are okay to eat during pregnancy. Check labels. I hit a few mamma boards about cheese and some women have found pasturized brie, goat, etc.
If you really will miss out on certain cheeses, I'd discuss with your midwife or OB and see what he/she can find about cheeses in France.
Ed, I love the hat. Mick says hello, let me know if you would like anything from "down under"
Dan
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