October 2026
More scenes from Firenze & Roma
Firenze
We visited Florence years ago when the girls were young. On this trip we were reminded why we enjoyed it so much! The old city is easily traversed on foot and it is SO picturesque; there are postcard-worthy scenes (and tourists like us) around every corner. We had a great 2 and a half days here roaming around. One of the highlights was a walking tour led by an archeologist/history professor. He was full of ancient and recent history facts which helped us understand and appreciate this gorgeous city even more. For example, we had never heard about the devastating flood of 1966 when the Arno overflowed it banks. Thousands of rare books and art pieces were destroyed and countries from around the world rallied to help the city.
At Piazzale Michelangeo
A friendly woman with a gigantic camera offered to take a picture and carefully positioned us so you could see the dome of Duomo di Firenze (aka Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore). The cathedral was commissioned in the 13th century and the dome - an engineering and architectural marvel - was started in the 15th century. It took 150 years to complete.
We saw hundreds of depictions of Mary and Jesus over the 2 week course of sightseeing in Italy. This one was one of my favorites because of the side-eye expressions and - what is Jesus even doing with his right hand (I'm sure it's religiously significant but still).
Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence
Shout out to my nursing colleagues!
Monument to Florence Nightingale outside the cloisters at the Basilica of Santa Croce, Florence
Roma
If the stories and sights in Venice and Florence don't overwhelm your senses, go to Rome. Actually, go no matter what. She is a huge, modern, hectic place like many big cities. Rome, however, somehow exists beautifully alongside mind-blowing antiquities that are everywhere you turn. It's not just the typical "top 10" sites I am speaking of; there are relics all over the place; so many that the city cannot maintain them all.
Pedestrians and cars pack the streets and motorized vehicles rule. You will not find any quiet pedestrian-only thoroughfares here, except around the Vatican. Sidewalk too narrow to handle the constant flood of humanity (i.e. around 30 million tourists per year)? Walk in the street and trust the scooters, motorcycles, medieval-street-width delivery/sanitation trucks, taxis, and cars know what's up. And they do. The locals on scooters have mad dodging and handling skills for the speeds at which they travel (and no one is afraid to use their horn). In Rome you definitely feel the gritty, no-nonsense big city vibe, but that part is easily eclipsed by the rich history and sights.
Go to Rome. Shuffle along with the crowds when necessary. The things we saw, read about, and pondered moved me in a way I would not have felt had I not been fortunate enough to see in it person.
The ancient, impressive oculus of the Pantheon. Read more about it and the ancient temple here:
https://thepantheonrome.com/pantheon-architecture/
The lushness of this fabric was mesmerizing. I looked up its purpose and found that is called an umbraculum - Latin word for "big umbrella." It is a symbol of papal authority and every basilica has its own. Fancy.
Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano is THE cathedral of Rome. As the head of all Catholic churches, it outranks St. Peters. The mosaic dome, walls and floors were incredible to see.
We visited the Vatican Museums one evening and our brains were overloaded by all the collections there! The Gallery of the Geological Maps was one of our favorites.
Photo taken at our first early morning attempt to see St. Peter's. The info we had said there wouldn't be a Wednesday mass on account of Pope Leo having surgery. Wrong. So we visited a few days later.
Too bad handwritten correspondence is not much of a thing anymore.
A 30 minute train ride from Rome will take you to the ancient port of Ostia Antica. Don't miss this when you visit.
Remnants of one of the 26(!) Roman baths at Ostia Antica
Photo montage!
We had a delicious lunch for €5. There were 2 pasta choices: pork (bacon) or no pork.
A conglomeration of icons in Rome!
The Post-It note!
There was a spectacular exhibition of artifacts from Herculaneum at Castel d'Angelo when we toured it.
Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D. and these are perfectly preserved dice that some humans played almost 2,000 years ago!
Roman gas station. Look carefully for the attendant.
Our morning café while in Rome
Arrivederci Italia!
Roman gas station. Look carefully for the attendant.
Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella is the oldest perfumery and pharmacy in Florence. It was founded in 1221.
Petite fashionista at the Vatican Museums
More scenes from Firenze e Roma
10/27/20265 min read