Candace, Jimmy and I went to Castel de Santangelo in the morning. We got really lucky because there was no line to get in. Over the years it's been a fortress, prison, castle and is now a museum. There was a special exhibit by BVLGARI showcasing "jewelry throughout the years". I preferred the cannons and lookouts as opposed to the jewelry but to each their own.
After exiting the castle we grabbed a sandwich on the go and continued walking to Vatican City to meet mom and dad. We had scheduled a 12:00pm entry time for the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. We made it through everything in about 2 hours but it was PACKED.
After, we grabbed a cold drink and soaked in some A/C in a small cafe before heading to St. Peter's Basilica. Candace, Jimmy and I climbed the steps to the dome where we had a 360 view of Rome. The stairs leading up were really tiny and the wall started to slope downward following the shape of the dome which was a bit unnerving. The top was incredibly crowded. While the view was really pretty, I'm not sure if it's a must do activity. We walked back down and explored the main level of the basilica which is for sure a must do activity. It's by far my favorite. It's large, ornate and absolutely stunning.
After our reverent afternoon we headed back to the airbnb so that we could all get packed. Even though tomorrow we'd be leaving this beautiful country we still had one more night and we weren't going to let it slip away. First on the agenda was drinks at a small wine bar. I should clarify, the building itself was small but the drink menu was huge. There were over 100 bottles to choose from and we were completely lost. Our waiter offered to help and chose a subtle red for us. He then asked if we wanted any olives or cheese to go with it. We had already told him we weren't eating, just drinking, so we assumed these treats were free, just like at some of the cafes before. However, once the cheese arrived we knew it wasn't complimentary. In fact, it was almost as expensive as our bottle of wine. That was the first time we had experienced something like this. After finishing our wine and unnecessary, uncomplimentary cheese plate, we walked to dinner.
We sat outside at a beautiful local spot with live music across the way. Dad, Candace and I shared carbonara (dad's favorite) and amatriciana, while Jimmy had pizza with ham and mom had gluten free cracked black pepper pasta with grilled veggies. So Italian of us! Not to mention our house liter of red wine, obviously. After dinner we went for gelato at our favorite place in Rome, Gelato de Teatro (the place we had been introduced to during our food tour) It was a great end to a great trip in a great country.
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