Student Blog - Visit to Rome

Day 1 – Thursday, December 11th

This was a very exciting day for me. We were leaving Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport at 1:40 PM to begin our trip to Rome. Needless to say, I didn’t get much sleep the night before. All 27 of us making the trip met at the Delta ticket counter around 11:00 AM and slowly made our way through security. After everyone had time to retie their shoes, we paused for our first (of many!) photo opportunity. We hung out in the airport for an hour or so, and tried to remember everyone’s names. We finally took off, bound for Atlanta, and the trip was underway. All of us had no problems making our connecting flight to Rome (different story on the return flight!), and we all settled in for the 8 hour plane ride. Since we would be arriving in Rome at 7:30 AM and we had a full day ahead of us, I figured sleeping on the flight would be wonderful. It’s a good thing I was able to get a whopping 15 minutes. Other than the no sleeping part, the flight was rather smooth and I was able to pass the time watching movies, listening to music (mostly Christmas tunes), and eating. Before I knew it, we were landing in Rome and we were ready to go.


Day 2 – Friday, December 12th

Day 2 began in Rome/Fiumicino International Airport. After landing, we gathered up our luggage and started moving in a huge mass of people. We made it to the train station and bought our tickets for the trip to Termini Station and our Metro pass for the week. After maneuvering the train and the metro rides, we arrived at our home for the week, L’Hotel Cinquantatre. We were given our room assignments, where I would be with Jordan and Justin, and then we were on our own for the rest of the day. A few of us made our way to the Spanish Steps and explored around the hotel until we were ready to eat. We decided to try the pizza place right next to the hotel, which was amazing (we would end up eating it a few more times during the week). After eating, Nick and I made our way back to Termini Station were we bought calling cards to use for the week. I returned to the hotel to call it a day. I made a few phone calls to let everyone know we made it alright, and then relaxed with the rest of the group.



Day 3 – Saturday, December 13th

Day 3 started at 8:30 on the 6th floor were we all met and ate breakfast. We left as a group to begin our first day of site seeing. We all took the Metro to our first stop of the day, the Circus Maximus. Upon arriving to the site, I was quite disappointed. There was not much left at the Circus Maximus that made it distinguishable from any other field, except for the sign that was near the fence. After spending some time around the Circus Maximus, we walked to the Baths of Caracalla. The Baths were a great place to visit. It was a great example of what the ancient Romans were able to construct and it gave us an insight into the daily life of the Romans. After the Baths of Caracalla we made our way to the Theater of Marcello. This was one of the PBL’s that my group worked on, so we talked to everyone about what we had researched about the Theater. After this it was time for lunch and we were all on our own for the rest of the day.


Day 4 – Sunday, December 14th

We again met after breakfast to begin our day. Our first stop was the Colosseum. This was one of the most impressive buildings I have ever seen. Just the sheer magnitude of it and the building materials used made the Colosseum one of the best parts of the trip. After spending a few hours inside, a group of us made our way to a flea market about 45 mins. away. The market stretched for blocks and blocks and had about anything imaginable. While over this way we found a great place for lunch and then began the walk back. We next went to the Roman Forum where we spent a little bit of time. There were some really great buildings inside, but a lot of it was hard to imagine. After the Forum we were free to do our own thing the rest of the day. A small group of us made our way to the Trevi Fountain which was a great sight. It is hard to believe that the Romans had a capability to pipe and route water all the places that they did, but it was very impressive.


Day 5 - Monday, December 15th

Today was a great experience. We took a day trip to Pompei. Pompei was a Roman city that was perfectly preserved when it was completely buried by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. We were fortunate to have a very knowledgeable guide which made the experience great. This is a place that I will need to return to in the future.


Day 6 – Tuesday, December 16th

Today started out a little dreary. It was raining most of the morning. We started the day by seeing a few different churches around our hotel. After that, we made our way to the Galleria Borghese. There were many different paintings and sculptures by famous artists. After the Borghese, Nick, Andrew, and were stopped by the Italian Military, which asked for our documentation. It was a weird moment for a while, but we didn’t do anything wrong, so we were not worried. We continued to sightsee on our own the rest of the day. In the evening we all had dinner as a group. It was a great dinner, 5 courses, all delicious.


Day 7 – Wednesday, December 17th

Today was a long trip to Florence. Florence is a very historic city in Italy. We did not have much time in the city, but we were able to see many of the places. We were able to see two different churches. Both of them were magnificent. The huge vaulted ceilings and the painted domes were breath taking. We were able to climb to the top of the dome. It was a chore, but at the top we were able to get a great view of the city of Florence. After seeing the two churches we able to see Michelangelo’s Statue of David. It was very impressive and some of the people in our group were able to get some pictures.


Day 8 – Thursday, December 18th

Today was our trip to Ostia Antica. It is a preserved city that my group researched. We were divided up and I took group of four other students on a tour of the city. I relayed all the information that I knew about the city to them while we took our tour. It was a neat sight, but after seeing Pompei, it was a little bit of a let down. After Ostia we took the trip back to the hotel where we regrouped and went out for more site seeing.


Day 9 – Friday, December 19th

Today was our last day and we decided to go to the Vatican and see St. Peter’s. This was one of best days in Rome. The Vatican Museum was amazing. We were able to see the Sistine Chapel, which was something that you could take in for hours. Also, the construction of St. Peter’s is unbelievable. It can’t wait to go back and spend more time looking around.

Day 10 – Saturday, December 20th

Today was our flight home. We happened to be delayed 1 hour and 40 minutes leaving Rome, so most of didn’t think we would make our connecting flight in Atlanta. We arrived in Atlanta 30 mins. before our next flight was supposed to take off. Customs was packed with people and I wasn’t even going to try to make the flight. After going through security I noticed that our flight was still boarding, so I decided to try to make it. I ran from Terminal E to Terminal A in an attempt to make the flight. As I get the Terminal A, I see Jordan come up from behind me and he said, “we are almost there, just keep running.” We make it to the gate were they were about to close the doors and they let us board. We get on the plane and us two were the only ones from our group of 26 to make the flight. It was a great way to end a great trip.