This week’s blog will talk about my amazing experience in Rome. This trip was filled with forever lessons and memories.

This past weekend Taylor and I visited Rome, we were filled with so much anticipation because we had been looking forward to this trip for a while. We couldn’t wait to experience everything Rome had to offer. The anticipation grew stronger when we decided to not go on our last trip due to weather. With this decision, we knew we had to make the best out of our last trip.

When in Rome…

Our first day in Rome was spent just roaming the streets and getting familiar with the country. We went into the day with no plans and ended up at the beautiful St. Peter’s Basilica ( twentieth photo) and talk for hours. We honestly have the best conversations and seize ever opportunity to reflect on past and present moments. As we saw the sunset, I know we both were amazed at God’s creation.

Although this was Taylor’s dream country, I fell in love when I saw the Colosseum. I felt something that I never knew I was missing and at this moment I realized it wasn’t dream. Never in a million years did I think I’d just be roaming around the world so causally.

There’s No Place Like Rome

We spent the rest of our time exploring the Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Jewish Ghetto/Trastevere , and the Trevi Fountain. The Pantheon was absolutely overwhelming in person because I didn’t realize how big it would be. Taylor and I were at a lost for words because of how detailed the structure was.

We also visited the Spanish Steps, at first we were underwhelmed because we just thought it was so much more. However as we sat on the steps and looked into the crowd of people on the streets, we saw the beauty in simplicity. It was honestly the best feeling to truly be relaxed in the midst of chaos.

However we didn’t know what the rest of the day would hold. The biggest adventure on this trip was our Jewish Ghetto/Trastevere walking tour. I found it very intriguing to learn about the history of the Jews and the discrimination that was and is still is being pointed towards them. However our tour guide was completely passive aggressive. He made it his job to let everyone know plenty of times that he was very polite and basically if you weren’t polite back to him, he had a problem. He even went on to talk about a family on the tour when they stepped away because he thought they left the tour without letting him know. On this tour I learned how important it is to do things without the expectation that someone will do the same for you. Everything that you do , should be done out of the pure kindness of your heart.

Our final day was spent at the beautiful Trevi Fountain, which was another experience. It was a challenge even getting to the fountain due aggressive street sellers. However we made it, to hundreds of tourist that we had to fight through to get a picture. We expected this to be a big tourist site, but we were truly overwhelmed by the amount of people in this tiny space. So we headed for the bus stop to visit another attraction thinking that it would be an easy bus ride. However we sat at the bus stop in the spring heat for almost two hours waiting on a bus that never came. It was truly horrible and made it very clear that Rome’s public transportation isn’t ideal. With half the day gone, we decided to head for lunch. This is when we came across the best Gelato spot in the world. In such disbelief of what had just transpired, we decided to eat our Gelato on the steps at the Trevi Fountain. Our day was finally turning around as we took a shot at more pictures, conversed, and most importantly ate our amazing gelato. This experience showed us that once again nothing goes as planned but its always important to have plan.

Although we had to experience horrible transportation, feisty tourist, and aggressive street sellers, we would’t trade it for anything in this world. The beauty of Rome was absolutely breathtaking, we got to experience beauty that some will never get the chance to experience. I am so grateful for this journey that traveling has took me on. This trip taught me how to be patient , enjoy the simple things, and embrace unplanned moments. I am truly sad that this was our last trip on our abroad experience , but ecstatic to see what the future holds. It is now time to relax and explore the place that we have been living in for four months.

Enjoy the simple things in life because life is simple, but we insist on making it complicated. Life is short, and if we enjoy every moment of every day, then we will be happy no matter what happens or what changes along the way…