Italy Part VI: TIVOLI

So I am back on the blogging grind.  I've missed having something to Blog about, so this is nice.  Tivoli was the last place that I visited on my trip to Italy.  It was a spur of the moment deal.

I wanted to see the place that inspired my parents (their company is Tivoli Partners).

 So I went with my two buds James and Chase.

It was rainy and nasty, but still a gorgeous town.  It has rolling country side that even a downpour couldn't spoil.

 

This picture is of the last leg of the train ride.

 

I was looking for iconic pictures I could take for my parents.  I guess this works haha.

 

 Europe: the land of old stuff and Vespas 

Homies

A cool bit of modern art in the middle of an ancient town.

And the clouds were rolling in as we were heading out.  That's the end of my Italy experience.  

It was a blast.

I capped my trip with eating 7 scoops of Gelato in Pisa and flying back on the charming RyanAir discount airline.

I've got some more pictures of Spain that ended my trip.  They are pretty sweet - at least for me anyway.  Hasta Pronto - Dblog

Italy Part V: ROME 2.0

Wow.  It has been many fortnights since I have last blogged.

I can't believe it.  I've been gone for as long as I was in Spain.

I miss my friends and the crazy traveling lifestyle.

It's great to be back.  I'll be going to Chile soon and I'll have much more to blog about.

So I'm still in Italy (in my blogs and maybe in my mind).

Haha blogspot has improved tremendously since my last post - nice work guys.

 

 St. Peter's Basilica 

 This is on top of St. Peter's Basilica looking into Vatican square.

 

On top of of the Basilica there were all these prayers written on the stones.  This one has been answered since I took this picture.  Haha craziness.

 

This is a big thing around Europe that I noticed.  People write their names and the names of their love and lock it onto bridges (and in this case the Basilica) and throw away the key.

This is in the Vatican museum.  It was a shame how many people took pictures of the Sistine Chapel.  I personally didn't love it.

 

I loved these Obelisks.  They were old Egyptian monuments and when Christianity came about they just slapped a cross on top and dedicated it to Jesus.

 

And I'll end with the Spanish Steps.  There's another Easter Egg Obelisk for you.  Italy is one of the most beautiful places on the planet - Rome especially.  I'll see what other photos I can dig up.  I do hope that Italy survives this European crisis.  Until next time... Dbell.out.

Italy Part IV: ROME 1.0

Rome is probably the coolest place in the world (that I've been to). We had some adventures in Rome. Oh boy. I'll explain below, but check out some photos.





Trevi Fountain.



I believe this is the Piazza Venezia. Stuff like this isn't even that big of a tourist attraction.



This is inside the Pantheon. The Pantheon has survived 2000 years of vandalism.




The Pantheon at night.



The Roman Forum or Old Rome



More of Roman Forum



This is the Arch of Constantine



The Coliseum



Roman Forum



This is the beautiful story of Rome. My friends and I thought it would be a good idea to stay at a campground that was an hour and a half from Rome. The campground closed early and we needed to take a metro to a train to a shuttle bus. The main Metro station was closed for the beatification of the Pope. Needless to say, it was a horrible experience that ended with my 5 companions and I sleeping without pillows or blankets in a freezing tent. We thought Rome was lost. Luckily, we booked another hostel in Rome for the next 2 nights. More Rome to come!

Italy: Part III - Sienna

So it's been a while since my last blog post. I'm home, but the show must go on. Sienna was one of the coolest places ever. It is very authentic Italian without feeling touristy.

This is the main square in Sienna where they have horse races.






The Cathedral - We have some pretty good jumping pictures in front of it.












You can read the NY Times - just as long as you want to pay the equivalent to $17 USD











I will continue post - I'll be going to NYC soon.

Italy: Part II - Florence

Florence was our second stop on our trip. We were only there for one day, so we had to make it count.


This was a market we found when we were lost



This is by far some of the cooler graffiti I've seen.



This is the Duomo of Florence



This is the view from the tower.



This is the ceiling of the baptistry which is right across from the Duomo. The painting were really amazing and each ring shows a different bible story or book.



This is the famous Ponte Vecchio. It's a cool bridge filled with jewelry stores and other shops.



This couple was taking wedding photos on the Ponte Vecchio.



This here is a picture I took inside of Pitti Palace (before I knew you weren't supposed to tak photos inside of Pitti Palace).



This statue is sweet. I don't understand why they had so many Roman statues with centaurs.



This here is inside of the Santa Maria della Carmine - they had beautiful fresco paintings.



The one thing I regret is not sneaking a photo of Michelangelo's David. It was by far one of the most impressive things that I've ever seen. Florence was gorgeous. Our next stop was Sienna!

Italy: Part I - Pisa

Kicking off the Italy trip blogs. First we flew to Pisa because it was cheaper. I loved Pisa though. There is a place where you can get 2 euro gelato w/ 3 scoops.

This is the Duomo and the leaning tower.

Duomo

The Baptistry

Not sure what this is, but I like it.

Lion by the bridge.

This is a Keith Haring painting. It was awesome.

This statue is in Livorno. The guy has slaves - it was weird.

This is an American market. Apparently all we have in the US is Army / Navy supplies.

So this is Pisa. I'll get working on Florence.