The Knepper's European Adventures!: Spring Break Stop #1

Spring Break finally arrived and I was so excited to go to one of my favorite European destinations... Italy!! As I have mentioned before, the weather in Germany has been long, cold, and gray. We were looking forward to finding spring down south! Surprisingly enough, this is the first trip in which we flew. All of our other trips have been done via train or car. We booked our flight to Rome on Lufthansa Airlines. What a pleasant experience it was! As we waited at the gate, we enjoyed free coffee and hot chocolate. Then, as we boarded the plane, the flight attendants were very friendly and offered both Leena and Taryn an activity pack. Leena's pack included a couple of small strings and a book on how to tie knots. Taryn's activity pack included a 3D book complete with 3D glasses. So awesome! Plus, we got a small meal (again, for free!) on our short 1 hour, 25 minute flight. Why can't Lufthansa fly domestically in the U.S.??

After our arrival at the Rome airport, we took the train (the Leonardo Express) into Rome.

Oh yes! Beautiful sunshine! The girls pose in front of the Arch of Constantine.

Walking along 2,000 year old roads!

The Colosseum!

Exploring the ruins on Palatine Hill.

Leena in front of palace and courtyard ruins on Palatine Hill.

The girls discovered an ancient bathtub in the middle of the Palatine Hill gardens.

Entering the Roman Forum through the Arch of Titus.

Greg and the girls standing in what used to be the Basilica of Constantine, a mammoth hall of justice.

The girls and I outside the Temple of Antoninus Pius and Faustina which was built in A.D. 138-161!

Greg and Leena pause to listen to their auto guides in front of the Temple of Julius Caesar.

The spot in the Temple of Julius Caesar where his body was burned after his assassination.

Taryn stops to rest her feet on an ancient pillar. The Roman Forum's Main Square behind her.

Stopped to listen to more audio. So much history to take in!

In what used to be the busiest part of Rome.

In front of the Temple of Saturn built in 497 B.C.!!!

In front of the Victor Emmanuel Monument built in honor of Italy's first king and to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the country's unification in 1861 - so basically it's brand new.

The girls stand next to a huge statue in Piazza del Campidoglio (Capitoline Hill Square).

While waking around, we ran into a movie set. They were filming an Italian TV movie.

Bocca della Verita - the legendary "Mouth of Truth" at the Church of Santa Maria. If you're a liar, this statue will gobble up your hand!

Taryn was a little too freaked out by this legend to put her hand in the mouth!

The girls take a rest in the middle of what used to be Circus Maximus - an old chariot course.

Back at the Colosseum for a look inside!

Checking out the interior and imagining what it used to be like.

Greg's buddy from NATO, Marco, met up with us for a part of the afternoon.

Marco and his wife Claudia took us to get the best gelato in Rome!! It was awesome to have some locals take us around for a little while.

Outside the Pantheon. Built 2,000 years ago, it's the only building in Rome continuously used since it's construction.

The hole in the dome of the Pantheon. An amazing piece of architecture, rain does not enter through this hole in the ceiling!

Inside the Pantheon.

Throwing our coins in the Trevi Fountain (well, Leena and I did but Taryn did not). They say if you do this, you are certain to return to Rome one day! It worked the last time I was here in 1999!

After explaining again to Taryn why she needed to throw the coin, Greg takes her back down to the fountain for attempt #2! Success!

Day 2 - Vatican City! In front of St. Peter's Basilica. We waited an hour in line to get in.

The "foyer" or atrium of St. Peter's Basilica. This area alone is bigger than most churches - and we haven't even gone in yet!

Entering the church. Mouth dropping. Truly a sight to behold and worth the hour wait in line.

The altar. Look how it dwarfs the people!

I had Taryn stand in this picture so that you could get an idea of how big the statues are!

While we were inside the Basilica, we heard a loud roar from outside. We ran outside to see this crowd had gathered in the square in front of the church. The Pope had come out and was addressing the crowd. We could not see the Pope from where we stood, but we could hear him.

The view of St. Peter's Square from the top of the dome! We took an elevator part of the way and then went up the remaining 323 steps to the top!

Coming down!!

On the roof of St. Peter's. These are the statues that line the roof and overlook the square below.

Filling up outside St. Peter's!

After a long morning touring the church, we were finally seated for a late lunch. Taryn ordered a pizza that was the size of her plate and YES, she ate the WHOLE THING!!!

A self portrait taken outside the Borghese Gardens. Note the straps to his backpack. Yes, they are completely covered in duct tape!! Despite getting a new back pack for Christmas, he still insists on wearing this one (for reasons I do NOT understand)! So embarrassing!

We rented this bicycle and cruised around the Borghese Gardens which is basically Rome's equivalent to Central Park except with more ruins! This bike had a bad back wheel and it was a workout to get it around. NOT something we were looking forward to after a full day of sightseeing. Fortunately, we got a full refund.

We walked past this beautiful building which turned out to be the Swiss Embassy. I've never seen a building complete with it's own grotto!!

Ah, finally some rest for our tired legs on the Spanish Steps.

Day 3 and our last day in Rome. We only had a half day and the girls begged to go back to Borghese Gardens and rent another bike. They had been such troopers, how could we say no? For our second time around, we got a bigger bike and made sure it was in proper working order. The girls talked us into letting them drive and it made things A LOT more interesting, to say the least!!