Italy Adventure- Ciao Roma!

I realized I haven't shared our last three days in Italy! I can't believe we've been home for over three weeks now. It's true what they say about getting the travel bug. Before we even left, we were planning our next trip to Italy (insert monkey hiding its eyes emoji).

Day 8 

We decided to take the fast train out of Florence to get to Rome rather than drive. We dropped the car off and headed to the train station. When we arrived in Rome, we took a taxi to the apartment. Our apartment was in a FABULOUS location, right next to the Pantheon and close to shopping and restaurants.

Our apartment building 

Our apartment building was just to the right of the Pantheon... amazing view and location!

We got to the apartment, unloaded and settled a little before getting ready to go to the Vatican...

Inside St. Peter's Basilica

We went back to the apartment to change and then ventured out again for the evening. We walked to the Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps (they were closed for renovation).

Finished the evening off with pasta and wine! We walked back to the Trevi Fountain to see it at night too!

Day 9

We stopped at the cutest cafe for a fresh croissant.. yum! 

We then took a taxi to tour the Colosseum..

Seriously...amazing!

We also toured Palestine Hill or known as Old Rome

We returned to the apartment after our tour and went shopping for the rest of our souvenirs we wanted to get. 

We went back to the apartment to pack and get ready for dinner.

Views from our apartment at sunset... overlooking the square. It was truly picturesque.

And then.. we had our last dinner in Italy! 

Day 10

Our trip home was very uneventful.. until we got to Chicago. We boarded the plane on time and then were delayed for an hour on the tarmac due to weather. We finally deplaned and were told our flight was cancelled. We tried to get on another flight through a different airline but it didn't leave until 10:40. And then it got delayed until 1AM. And then it was cancelled. After some begging, we ended up on a last minute flight to DSM and got in around 11:30. It was so good to be home! 

Ciao Italy! We will see you again someday! 

A wonderful sight to see after a long day of traveling...

We are extremely blessed to have had the opportunity to go to Italy and spend time with the entire family. It was an amazing trip that I will always remember. 

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to check back here on Friday for Friday Favorites! Have a great rest of the week y'all! 

Italy Adventure Days 1-3

Bonjourno friends! We're back from our 10 day adventure in Italy and I have a lot of pictures and memories to share with you all! Let's get started!

We left on July 3rd at a decent hour and took a quick flight to Chicago. We met up with some more family and Brooky, too to board the plane to Rome. The flight took just over 9 hours. Needless to say, no one got a whole bunch of sleep and once we landed, it was time to pick up the rental car. We were headed 4.5 hours away to La Spezia for our first overnight stay.

Day 1

Italy, here we come!! 

Will was our chaueffer to La Spezia and most of the roads were typical highways and the traffic wasn't terrible. The closer we got to La Spezia, the scooters came out and the roads got a little smaller. We struggled to find parking near the hotel but once we did, we got checked in, settled and took the train to the first village in Cinque Terre, Riomaggiore. We took in the beautiful sights, walked around and finally settled in to eat our first Italian dinner! 

Riomaggiore

Day 2

After crashing, we woke up for our second day in Italy. We took the train to visit the remaining four villages that make up Cinque Terre. We shopped, ate, walked around and soaked up the absolutely stunning views. I would say this part was probably my personal favorite. 

Vernazza

Monterroso

This is the place you go to for a beach day. We walked along the boardwalk, snapped a few pictures and made our way back to the train. As beautiful as it was, this was really all there was in this village. If I were to go back, you'd definitely find me under an umbrella soaking up the sun! 

Manarola

My favorite out of all the villages

Corniglia

We got off the train at this stop, looked around and realized that you had to trek it up a steep hill to make it to the town that, according to the map, had only a church in it. We decided to skip this one but am sure the views once you made it to the top were beautiful. 

We decided to head back to La Spezia to make the 2.5 hour drive to Greve in Chianti (a villa in a winery that my grandparents were at) We couldn't NOT stop in Pisa, where of course, the Leaning Tower of Pisa resides.

After being serious tourists, we hopped back in the car for the rest of the drive to Greve. We decided to stop in Greve to eat before heading to the villa. We got to the villa, said our hello's to my grandparents and the other family members were there and headed to our rooms to get settled in for the night.

View of our apartment (to the left) on the morning we woke up 

Picture of the main villa where my grandparents and other family members stayed in. 

Day 3

We woke up bright and early to head to the train station in Florence (about 50 minutes away) to take the train to Venice. 

Shot of espresso anyone? 

Venice, here we come! 

Our hotel, to the right (brownish-red building)

San Marco Square 

Beautiful bridges and walkways in Venice

We took a ferry to Murano, which is known for glass blowing. Unfortunately, almost all the stores did not allow cameras. 

Charming buildings all around

After leaving Murano, we headed back to the hotel and got ready for a gondola ride and dinner.

Ended the night with PIZZA!

So, there's day 1-3 of our Italy adventure! Come back later in the week for days 4-7! 

Also, I want to add that while we were gone, a lot of scary stuff happened that was in the news and that we continue to hear about now that we are home. It is a frightening place right now but I want to say that I refuse to let fear set in. I have a post that is in the works about this but wanted to say that I will continue to pray, remain positive and do my small part in the world by extending grace, gratitude and kindness in all that I do. I hope you can do the same. 

Happy Monday!