Roma.

So, my second full day in Rome and I am leaving early tomorrow morning to go to Naples. Two full days here isn't by any means enough to explore this city properly, but I have managed to achieve some of the things I wanted to do.

On my first afternoon here I wasn't feeling too good and I arrived quite late in the day at about 4pm. I went into the city though (I am staying quite far out from the centre) and had a look round the Pantheon. It wasn't what I was expecting. I think my mind had built up a picture of a more Greek-style temple, so I was a bit confused when I got there!

My first full day (yesterday) was much better. I spent most of the day wandering around the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine hill. I was absolutely in my element! This was the main reason for my visit to Rome (and indeed Naples) this time round. The weather was beautiful yesterday despite forecast of heavy rain and storms. It probably sounds weird and geeky, but I actually had tears in my eyes at some points. I felt so overwhelmed by the sheer history and the power of this place. Just mind-blowing.

Today I had a bit of a lie-in as I'd been woken up by the aforementioned forecast thunderstorms in the night. I went with two of the guys from the hostel to Vatican City and we looked round St. Peter's Basilica. It seemed like a strange place for worship. Everything is so opulent and showy that I think I would find it distracting and difficult to focus on prayer. But then I'm not Catholic and probably pray in a different way. But all the same it was very beautiful inside. The camera on my phone could in no way do it justice but I took a couple of snaps anyway! I'll share them when I'm home so that they're not the wrong way round!

I kind of feel like I should have done more in Rome. Today involved a lot of wandering, but it wasn't fruitless. We came upon an excavated site near a tram stop which was he ruins of some ancient Roman temple, which also appeared to be the favourite sleeping ground for the local cats! Probably lots of lovely mice to chase, and plenty of warm, sunny spots!

Tonight I think about five of us from the hostel are going to go out for a meal and then I need to get pack up ready to go in the morning. I'm looking forward to Naples. Obviously, as I said, the ancient Roman stuff is a big part of it for me, but I will also have a full day to explore the city/Amalfi coast. And then it's home on Monday. I'll try to do a blog in Naples, mostly for my own sense of completeness. For now, I'm going to sit in the hostel garden, write in my journal, and make the most of these days of freedom.