Europe: Florence to Rome

We started off with the same wake-up/luggage/breakfast schedule again. The most spectacular thing about breakfast was that they had Nutella! It was my first time tasting it, and it was delicious. Why I haven’t had this before is beyond me. Then again, isn’t it like chocolate Yanyan? I put it on my croissant that had a tinge of orange marmalade flavoring.

At 7:30 AM, we went to Michelangelo Square to take a big group photo with the beautiful city of Florence as our backdrop. There was also a bronze copy of Michelangelo’s David so we got a few shots of that.

(Bottom right corner is us with our tour guide, Richard.)

From 9 – 11 AM, we were back where we were yesterday but we had a little free time for shopping. We started off at the Gold Factory, where the lady described how gold came into use in Florentine jewelry. She also showed us interesting pieces of jewelry such as a bracelet that an engineer designed for his mother. It can be worn two ways. One way was as straight strands. Once you let it go, it bunches up into clusters. Although the engineer designed it specifically for his mother, someone liked it so much that it was brought to some place and won four awards and produced for the general public. (Obviously, I can’t recall all the details/names/organizations.) Another designer created a necklace that is gold on one side and white gold on the other. We also saw gold “belts” to be worn as a lariat, necklace, or even a belt…and cost a fortune. All were so beautiful but none within our taste nor budget.

After the gold store, we went to Peruzzi, a leather factory. We saw a quick demonstration on how gold is embossed on a trash can. The craftsman took a ribbon of gold and used a tool with the leaf design that Florence is famous for, heated the tool up, and used the weight of his body to press down on the tool to transfer the gold. We looked around and I ended up getting an Armani “underwear” shirt to wear for the Vatican/Sistine Chapel tomorrow, since I ran out of t-shirts (I didn’t plan well because I didn’t know until it was too late). It came out to about $70. It has got to be the most expensive “underwear” I have ever owned. I kept telling Hubby that I was perfectly fine wearing an “I [heart] Italia” t-shirt, but he wasn’t hearing any of it.

Before we hopped on the bus, I got two scoops of gelato: one chocolate chip and one caramel. Both were delicious!

At 11 AM, we took off from Florence for Rome. We stopped at Autogrill again for lunch. We got to the Vatican Museum by 3 PM and met up with our local guide, Donatella. We walked for about two hours, looking at all kinds of sculptures/statues, frescoes, and mosaics. It was soOooOoO hot and unbearable due to the weather (hot and humid) and body heat.


After about an hour, we walked into the Sistine Chapel. It was absolutely breathtaking, surreal, and overwhelming. There is something so magical and holy about that place. I was practically moved to tears. Even though it was packed with hundreds of people (and guards shushing people every few seconds since we were not allowed to talk in there), it still felt like such a personal experience between me and God and His message through Michelangelo as His ambassador.

We were told of the history behind the Pope commissioning famous artists of the time to paint frescoes in the Sistine Chapel: Ghirlandaio, Botticelli, Perugino, and Roselli. In 1508, Michelangelo was commissioned to paint the ceiling. For four years, he painted frescoes every single day that began with Genesis' Adam and Eve and their Fall all the way to the famous Last Judgment. We were not allowed to take any pictures because all of the work in the Chapel is copyrighted. Of course people still did, but security was quick to run over to the person and rush him/her out. (Donatella said that it depends on the guards’ moods; sometimes, they are more relaxed and allow pictures without flash.)

Around 5 PM, we got picked up to go check in at Grand Hotel Palazzo Carpegna. We are in a standard double which was kind of small but nice. It is the nicest hotel we have stayed in.

Our optional dinner and tour began at 7:30 PM at Mangrovia. It was a 5-course meal! Our first dish was Caprese Salad with eggplant (fresh mozzarella on sliced tomatoes with a dab of olive oil, basil, and eggplant on the side). Our next dish was ravioli with ricotta and spinach. After that, we had fettucini alfredo. For our main entrée, we were given a choice between veal, sea bass, and chicken parmigiana. I originally ordered the sea bass and Hubby requested the chicken parmigiana, but we ended up switching because the sea bass was too fishy (and bland) for me. We were also served a side salad with our entrée. In the end, the chicken parmigiana was too salty for me, too. :( Our dessert was strawberry gelato on fresh fruit (orange, plum, kiwi). Yummy!

The drinks came literally nonstop and even before we were half finished with our current one! Hubby got started with 2 beers and then the waiter kept bringing the beers in twos. I just had Sprite. I also tried the red and white wine and spumanti. When dessert came, the little 9-year-old next to me got 5 scoops of gelato! I was so jealous!

During dinner, there were two musicians who entertained us (one guitarist and one flutist). Our head waiter was extremely entertaining, too. When he was serving the fettucini, he didn’t serve one person at each table (one older lady and then one father). He specially presented the dishes to a lady at each table– a red rose and “bocha”(?) (he kissed the ladies on the cheek and neck a few times). For the very last guest, it was a father from Hawaii. Ha! He made a big dramatic act by placing a blond, dreadlock wig on the father and pretending to kiss him.

At the end of dinner, all ladies received a rose and a kiss from the waiter. When it was my turn, I was so embarrassed. It was funny because the waiter looked at Hubby beforehand and said, “Don’t kill! Don’t kill, just one kiss.” Haha! When it was the little girl's turn, he didn’t kiss her, but he handed her a rose…and then another and another until she had half a dozen! That was cute.

Afterward, we took a nightly tour/walk to the Trevi Fountain. This was another highlight of mine. It was a little bit hectic because there were hundreds of people, all trying to get to the fountain to sit on the edge of the fountain to make a wish. Richard told us that in all its history, it has always been naturally powered. I’m not sure if we were supposed to throw one or three coins over our left shoulder, but Hubby and I both made a wish and threw a coin. Later on, xtn asked me what I wished for (just like when we were under the Sully bridge), but I didn’t tell him.

We also watched Richard stand, make a wish, and toss a coin over his left shoulder. He shared with us two that he has been doing this ever since 1950 something, when he was a little boy and went there for his first time. I think he was a bit embarrassed because he said, "It's a bit ridiculous that I have been doing this ever since I was a little boy, but I still do it every time I come to this fountain." I didn't think it was ridiculous at all. I did appreciate that he shared this personal statement with us.

Self-taken candid camera shot...

Since Hubby didn't want to look at the camera and smile, I went along with him, too.