Conclusion to our Italian Trip

Today marks the conclusion of our maiden trip to Italy and my first-ever trip to Europe. We dreaded the arrival of this day, as we had such great fun in Italy. We started our trip not knowing what to expect in Italy and how it will turn out. We were initially quite worried about our trip as we heard a lot about the pickpockets in major cities, the flooding in Venice and the scammers in Rome. As we travelled throughout the country, we came to release the country was very safe, and our worries were unfounded. We thought the Italians were cold initially, but they were very friendly and helpful once we chatted with them. The travels between cities were easy and efficient, thanks to the high-speed rail infrastructure. Looking back, I thought we could spend one more day in Milan, as we only had essentially half a day in Milan. There is more to see and do in Milan that cannot be covered in half a day. We could also cater more time for shopping. I only catered one day for shopping, thinking The Mall Firenze could satisfy our shopping needs, but it turned out The Mall was disappointing. As a result, we had to forego some sights in our plan. We had some fun experiences during the trip, climbing the Leaning Tower of Pisa, scaling up the dome of St Peter’s Basilica, getting lost in Venice, climbing up Mt Etna, etc. A summary of our 13-day journey through Italy:

• Day 1: Milan – Arrival at Milan, Duomo di Milano, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
• Day 2: Milan – Lake Como (Verona, Bellagio, Como), Naviglio Grande
• Day 3: Venice – Venice City on foot
• Day 4: Venice & Florence – San Marco Campanile, San Giorgio Maggiore, Burano; Florence City at night (Duomo, Piazza della Signoria, Ponte Vecchio)
• Day 5: Florence – Shopping at The Mall Firenze
• Day 6: Pisa – Leaning Tower of Pisa and Pisa Cathedral
• Day 7: Florence & Rome – David in Galleria dell’Accademia, Duomo, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon
• Day 8: Rome – Colosseum and Palatine Hills
• Day 9: Naples – Pompeii, Sorrento
• Day 10: Vatican City – St Peter’s Basilica, Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel
• Day 11: Catania – Roman Amphitheater, Duomo,
• Day 12: Agrigento – Valley of Temples
• Day 13: Catania – Mt Etna
• Day 14: Departure

Arrival at Istanbul

Our flight out of Catania to Istanbul was scheduled for 9.10 am. We left for the airport at 6 am, as we needed sufficient time to validate the tax-free purchases we had made for the past 13 days in Italy. We headed for the tax-free counter the first thing we arrived at Catania airport, located at the right corner of the airport terminal from the entrance in a very inconspicuous corner. After validating our tax forms, we proceeded to the airline counter to check in. Looking at the time, we still have some time left to enjoy a light bite at the airline lounge. Our flight finally took off at 10.20 am (some delays due to overbooking), and we landed in Istanbul at around 3 pm local time. Our plan today was to join the free tour that would bring us to some of the famous sights in Istanbul provided by Turkish Airlines. Turkish Airlines offered several tours in the city throughout the day (you can refer here for the Touristanbul schedules and itineraries) with different tour itineraries. However, I misread the timing, and we ended up taking only the shopping tour.

Shopping in Galataport, Istanbul

To register for the tour, we cleared immigration and looked for the Turkish Airline’s “Hotel Desk” counter. The way to the immigration was a tad far, and we had to ask the airport staff for directions to the immigration (it is not easy to find from the airside area) and then to the Hotel Desk counter to register for the complimentary tour provided by Turkish Airlines. Our tour begins with a Turkish dinner at a restaurant (paid for by Turkish Airlines). The food was delicious, and the meat served was tender. After dinner, we were driven to Galataport for the shopping trip. Galataport is a coastal, open-air shopping mall situated next to the Bosporus sea on the Europe side of the city. There weren’t many shops at the shopping mall selling goods. I estimated about 70% of the shops are restaurants. We spent the 1 hr allocated for shopping and walking along the coastline for the night Istanbul views of the Bosporus Sea. I’d say the shopping tour was a tad boring. I wouldn’t recommend the shopping tour as there was nothing at the mall to shop for. After the tour, we were driven back to the airport, where we took a shower and got ready for our flight home. Our flight departed Istanbul at 1.55 am, marking the end of our trip to Italy.

Hiking up Mt Etna

Driving towards Mt Etna

Today would be another highlight of our trip, we are hiking up Mt Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe. This is the very reason we included Catania in our Italian itinerary. We booked our guided tour with EtnAround, who was highly knowledgeable on the history, fauna and flora on Mt Etna (the same tour can be booked from here). We met up with one of our guides, Alessio, at the pick-up point at 8.30 am. Alessio drove us to one of the towns at the foot of Mt Etna to meet up with the tour leader, Marco, and the rest of the group and to get our sandwiches for lunch at Mt Etna. Along the way up to Mt Etna, Alessio continued introducing the flora at the base of Mt Etna. Before long, we reached a carpark of some sort. This was the starting point of our hike on Mt Etna. Marco explained that we were at 1,800m above sea level and would hike up to around 2,500m on the volcano before heading back down. As Macro and Alessio were preparing the gear for the group, we took the chance to take pictures of the surroundings. We could only see a vast piece of land and the road leading up to a small crater sitting far in the background.

And Our Hike Begins…

As we were starting our hike, we faced a tall slope that seemed to lead nowhere. We saw the peak of Mt Etna hiding behind the hill as though she was peeking at us. We were very excited with our first step on the volcano terrain was unlike what we thought. The soil on the volcano was soft and grainy. This feels more like the sands of a beach but looser as our feet begin to sink into the ground. The first part of the trek was easy, as the path gradient was gentle. Along the way, Marco explained the importance of the flora we saw spreading around the area we were stepping into. Alessio, who was at the back of the group to ensure that none of us was lost during the hike, constantly looked around the ground and sometimes picked up rocks he found on the ground. Alessio explained to the pack of us at the back of the group that this was a volcanic rock that came out of the crater. Anything larger will be capable of causing hurt to humans and properties.

Lunch with a View

As we continued our hike up Mt Etna, we reached a grassland. Walking on this part of the volcano feels like walking on flat ground. At the trail’s end, we came across some boulders that we would have to scale. As we climbed up these boulders, the peak of the snow-covered Mt Etna with fumes of white smoke emitting was in our sight. We were amazed by this incredible view of the gentle lady that we were on. Looking out into the area, we saw a crater-like depression that seemed to stretch forever. As we were walking along the path, the path got narrower and narrower to the point that it was just as wide as two feet wide. One misstep would mean we would fall into the valley below, and there were no barricades would shield us from the potential danger of falling over. However, we had trust in Marco and Alessio that we were well watched over. Marco announced that we would stop for lunch at the trail’s end. We all found a huge boulder to sit on and started munching on the sandwich we had bought earlier. What we saw ahead was the peak of Mt Etna with her endless white fumes and, at times, low clouds passing over her. The view is a one in a million! This is a perfect spot to have lunch while looking at Mt Etna and enjoying the mountain breeze.

The Return Journey

After 15 mins, Macro announced for us to start our hike down to where we started. Instead of going through the same route, we took a different way. We hiked upslope and boulders, putting the view of Mt Etna behind us. As we walked, we came to a part where we needed to descend. Alessio assured us we could run down the slope without worrying that we would tip over the edge. I had a go at it, and it was fun (though I thought it would be more fun if we had some sledge down the slope). The volcanic ashes here are more coarse and looser. We soon come across a lava channel. Gone was the lava that once flowed through this channel. All that remained were rocks that the lava had once smashed through. Another downslope later, Marco brought us to a lava cave. He explained how this cave was formed and how the locals used this cave. We were taken inside to feel the temperature difference. We continued on the path, and suddenly the path felt familiar. This was where we were when we hiked up. I exclaimed to my friends. We are near the end of the hike. Soon after, we can see the vehicles we drove up on.

After returning to our vehicles, Alessio said we would stop by a cafe on Mt Etna for coffee. So we were driven to a cafe which was closed. At this point, we realise that the destination is not this cafe but the crater behind the cafe. The short walk around the crater allowed us to see what a crater looked like. Alessio explained this is just one of the hundreds of craters on Mt Etna, and every year the volcanologists would find one new crater on Mt Etna. After the crater visit, we had some coffee, and soon it was time for us to bid Mt Etna farewell.

Last Look at Catania

Alessio drove us back to Catania. The plan today was that if we got back to Catania at around 3 pm, we might still be able to squeeze in a visit to Ursino Castle, just 15 mins walk from our hotel. We arrived at Catania city at around 4.30 pm. There is little time for us to visit the castle before it closes. We walked to the city centre for our last dinner in Italy. We asked the friendly waitress about the fried rice ball we had heard so much about during dinner. She gave us some recommendations, and one of them is located about 5 mins walk from our hotel. We headed to get some rice balls and picked up gelatos before returning to the hotel to pack our luggage for our journey home tomorrow.

Towards Agrigento

The bus we were supposed to be on to Agrigento was initially scheduled for 7.20 am but was brought forward to 6.30 am. We had an early start and made our way by foot to the bus terminal, located about 20 minutes from our hotel. We cut it very fine when we arrived at the bus departure venue. The bus we booked did not depart from the bus station but along a nearby street. We were looking for the bus we were supposed to be on, and our bus had left the stop by the time we found it. We asked around to see if we could get the bus company to help us contact the bus driver, but alas, there was no booth set up by the bus company, and there was no way we could reach the bus driver. Walking around, we saw the SAIS company booth and purchased the tickets to Agrigento. The next bus will not leave until 1 hour later. Since we had some time to kill, we had breakfast at the cafe opposite the bus station. After this little episode, I realised there is no need to pre-purchase bus tickets to Agrigento as there are multiple departures from Catania. The bus ride to Agrigento took around 3 hrs. The moment we arrived, we verified that our bus to Catania later in the afternoon would leave at the same place where we were being dropped off. One cafe latte later, we bought our bus ticket to Valley of Temples from the SAIS office diagonally opposite the bus terminal.

2,500 of Greek History at Valley of the Temples

There are several buses to get to the Valley of Temples (refer to the bus schedules from Agrigento here). There are two main entrances to the Valley of Temples, we started our tour of the valley from the western Porta Quinta entrance, where bus #1 stops. Using the official app, we did a self-guided tour for this day trip to the Valley of Temples. I find the official app for the Valley of Temples very useful (you can download it here for free, scroll down to “Offical App” on the webpage) as it has a designated route that we can take from either of the entrances together with an audio clip that we can listen to when we arrived at the various landmarks. The Valley of Temples wasn’t crowded when we were there due to the low travel season. It took us about 2 hrs to follow the recommended route provided by the app.

The Entrance: Gate Five, Temple of Dioscuri, Temple of Olympian Zeus

Coming into the Valley of Temples through the Porta Quinta entrance, past the ticketing counters, we saw a vast piece of land with nothing but stone walls. There is a wooden path passing in the middle of these walls. Gate Five is essentially the outer wall of the Valley of Temples. Walking past Gate Five, the first set of ruins came into our sight. Only four pillars of the Temple of Dioscuri remained over the land it once stood. We can only roughly make out the size of the temple based on the ruins scattered around, which suggests this is one of the smaller temples in the Valley of Temples. We walked around the temple, hoping to get some pictures of the temple from different angles.

We continued our walk, following the route suggested by the app, and came to the Temple of Olympian Zeus, which is located up a slope. A picture shows how this temple looked during its hay day. What I like about the app is we were given the option of listening to the narration on the ruins that we saw (unlike the audio guide in Pompeii). From the narration, we sought out a statue fallen on the floor, which was supposed to symbolise the Carthaginians defeated by the Greeks long ago. It is a way the victors humiliate the Carthaginians. We thought the Temple of Olympian Zeus was rather large from the fallen statue. Although reduced to only stones here and there, parts of the temple walls still stand. We headed down the slope to a rectangular depression filled with uniformly carved stones. These stones were laid out orderly, and we learnt from the app that this is the main altar to the Temple of Olympian Zeus. From the size of this altar, I can imagine how grand and massive this temple would be in its prime.

The Mid-block: Golden Gate, Temple of Hercules

Walking away from the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the path led us up a slope and through a bridge. Unlike the Golden Gate in the States, the Golden Gate here does not refer to the bridge we were about to cross. Instead, it refers to the path beneath it. From the app, we came to know that this path was used as an entrance to the temple from the city’s port. Today it is replaced by a road used by cars. A short walk from the Golden Gate, we came to the first of the less destroyed temples – the Temple of Hercules. More columns and pillars are standing compared to the Temples of Dioscuri and Olympian Zeus that we saw nearer the Porta Quinta entrance. Not only did we see an almost complete set of pillars on one side of the Temple of Hercules, we saw some remnants of the inner pillars, the steps that lead into the temple, and the raised ground on which it was being built. The Temple of Hercules provided us with some great photo opportunities.

The Highlights: Temple of Concordia, Temple of Juno

Walking along the path, putting the Temple of Hercules behind us, we came to the highlight and the poster child of the Valley of Temples – the Temple of Concordia. We had a pleasant stroll towards the Temple of Concordia. The openness of the path allowed us to see the city of Agrigento from a distance. Before we knew it, we arrived at the Temple of Concordia. We spotted photos of this temple in airports and train stations promoting Sicily. The Temple of Concordia is the most well-preserved Greek architecture outside of Greece. The building resembles the Parthenon in Athens but on a smaller scale. It has a very distinctive Greek-styled structure. We were all awed by the sight of the Temple of Concordia the moment we saw it from a distance. The temple stood strong after 2,500 years, with its distinctive inner sandstone colour structure surrounded by numerous outer pillars supporting a partial roof resting on a four-step platform. This is history coming to life! As the Temple of Concordia is built near a cliff, the view over the vast land in this part of Sicily is equally stunting. We can see the agricultural fields and the sea over the horizon. Looking out into the massive land beneath the Temple of Concordia gave me a sense of zen. As we were walking towards our next landmark, we spotted the broken bronze statue of the fallen Icarus lying dramatically near the base of the Temple of Concordia. The presence of this statue gave the Temple of Concordia a robust Greek identity.

We continued our path as recommended by the app and came to a flight of stairs, where our last stop for the trip in the Valley of Temples would conclude. The Temple of Juno is perched on the top of the stairs at the highest point in the Valley of the Temples. Unlike the Temple of Concordia, the Temple of Juno has only its outer pillars left and some beams that these pillars hold. The size of the Temple of Juno is roughly the same as the Temple of Concordia. Although the Temple of Juno did not age, it radiated a certain charm of ancientness. As with the Temple of Concordia, the view of the plains below from the Temple of Juno is fantastic. Moreover, we could see the Temple of Concordia nesting from afar.

Returning to Catania

We were pretty mindful of the time. After finishing with the Temple of Juno, we were left with 1 hr before our bus back to Catania departed. We exited the Valley of Temples from the Temple of Juno exit. From here, we were not quite sure which bus runs through. We did a quick check with the staff at the ticketing office and were told that Bus #2 comes here, but it would take around 1 hr to get back to Agrigento city as the bus would make a loop at the beach nearby. Our only option is to grab a cab from Juno Exit to Agrigento if we were to make it for our bus back to Catania. The helpful ticketing staff helped us book a taxi to take us back to Agrigento, which brought us back to the city in good time for our ride back to Catania.

We embarked on the 3 hr bus ride back to Catania. When we arrived, it was time for dinner. We decided to have seafood for dinner tonight, as Catania is by the sea, so the seafood should be fresh. I did a quick Google search and found a highly-rated restaurant nearby the bus station. The food was excellent, and the seafood was indeed fresh. As the night was young, we returned to the hotel for a movie night, packing back with us gelatos and snacks. After that, we had to rest and get our bodies ready for the hike of our lifetime tomorrow, trekking up the tallest active volcano in Europe – Mt Etna.

Onward to the Southern Italian Island of Sicily

We left the hotel in Rome at 8.30 am to catch our 10 am flight from Rome to Catania. The night before, we requested the reception at our hotel to help us book a cab, which cost us €‎70. We would have paid roughly the same amount if we were to take the train to the airport. We thought booking the cab was a great idea, as this saved us the effort of lugging our luggage on the uneven Roman roads we experienced the first day we arrived in Rome. The ride from our hotel in Rome to Fiumicino Airport took around 40 mins. After checking in, we headed for the lounge for breakfast before heading to our flight to Catania.

Our flight to Catania landed on time for the 1 hr ride from Rome to Catania. After collecting our luggage, we proceeded to get bus tickets to Catania. From my research, there is a bus that would bring us directly to our hotel in the centre of Catania. We exited the Catania airport terminal on the right to get the tickets and found three ticket booths. We bought our bus tickets from the booth furthest from the entrance to the Airport terminal with the sign “SAIS: Messina -Palermo-Enna”. The ticketing staff gave us directions to the bus top in front of the terminal building with the symbol “ALiBus”, where we took the airport bus. A bus ticket to Catania ticket costs €‎4 one way. The bus ride to Catania City centre took around 30 mins, and we were helped by the friendly bus driver who ensured that we alighted at the correct stop. After settling into our hotel rooms, we headed to the hotel’s rooftop restaurant, where we could lunch with the stunning view of the snow-capped Mt Etna.

Exploring Catania’s City Centre

We kept our itinerary light today and explored the nearby Catania City Centre, which is highly walkable. The city’s town centre is located 10 mins walk down the street from our hotel. Along the way, we stopped by the Roman Amphitheater of Catania. The Roman Amphitheater sits on a large sinkhole in the middle of the streets, or it could be the whole city is built on top of the old city like Mexico City. It is a shame that we could only see the Roman Amphitheatre from street level as the entrance was closed when we visited. The Roman Amphitheater of Catania looks similar to the one we saw in Pompeii. We can still see the semi-circular seatings facing a stage. The entrances to the Amphitheater were still visible after standing here for more than 2,000 years. As we could not get into the Amphitheater, we continued our walk to the city centre.

As we walked to Piazza del Duomo, the city centre of Catania, we saw a Christmas market being set up at Piazza Università. Stores were selling locally produced food items like jams, chocolates and candies. There weren’t many stores at the Christmas market at the point of our visit, and maybe the Catanians were still setting up the market. Nevertheless, my friends got excited about the Christmas market and went on a shopping spree for the goods on sale. Despite the market’s small scale, the locally produced food was delicious and affordable.

I brought my friends to the symbol of Catania, a statue of an Elephant with an obelisk sitting in the centre of Piazza del Duomo just a stone’s throw away from Piazza Università. The elephant is made of lava and black basalt, and the Catanians believe this elephant symbolises good luck and would protect them from the Eruptions of Mt Etna. The major landmarks in Catania are located around Piazza del Duomo. Catania’s Duomo – Cattedrale di Sant’Agata is located across from the elephant statue. The Cattedrale di Sant’Agata is the largest cathedral in Catania, and its facade is adorned with sculptures. The cathedral’s interior is simple, and the paintings look as though they have not been restored. Other than a place for worshipping, we found some tombs inside the cathedral. One of the famous people buried here is Bellini, a famous opera composer born in Catania. There is also a glass casket of one of the Popes inside the cathedral.

We went for the dome climb at Chiesa della Badia di Sant’Agata which sits right across from Cattedrale di Sant’Agata on the recommendations from vloggers for a sunset view. The climb to the rooftop costs €5 and takes 170 steps. The stairs are generally easy to scale, except the last few steps on a spiral staircase might be a tad tight for some people. The top of Chiesa della Badia di Sant’Agata is a circular path surrounding the cathedral’s dome. We got a 360° view of Catania city, Mt Etna, and the ports. The view was breathtaking and worth every penny of the €5 we paid. It is a great spot to escape the hustle and bustle of Catania City, not as if the city was busy tonight. If not for today’s overcast sky, we would have seen the sunset from the dome of Chiesa della Badia di Sant’Agata. As the sun retires from a day’s work, the lighting replaced the light from the sun; we thought it was a sign for us to get going. We ended the day with a dinner nearby and returned to our hotel early for our early bus to Agrigento tomorrow.

Tour of the Vatican City

No trip to Italy would be complete without visiting Vatican City for first-timers. When researching what to see in Vatican City, climbing the dome of St Peter’s Basilica was unanimously recommended by all bloggers/Vloggers who came to this fantastic country. We wanted a guided tour of the Vatican City, as a guide would give us better context (not to mention the skip-the-line). Unfortunately, few companies offer tours incorporating St Peter’s Basilica Dome climb, Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. We found such a tour package provided by The Roman Guy at a reasonable price and booked a complete tour of the Vatican City with them (access the tour we booked here). Our tour was supposed to start at 8.30 am but was shifted to 7.30 am. We took the Metro from our hotel and alighted at Ottaviano Station. From Ottaviano Metro Station, it is an 8 min walk to the meeting point.

Climbing up to the top of St. Peter’s Basilica Dome

After meeting with our tour guide, Raffa, we were brought to the queue waiting to enter St Peter’s Basilica. As we were walking to join the queue to enter St Peter’s Basilica, Raffa introduced the group’s surroundings, such as where the Pope’s bedroom is and the history of St Peter’s Basilica. I wasn’t paying attention to Raffa’s narrations, my eyes were stuck in awe of the massiveness of the basilica and the numerous statues installed on the rooftop of the cathedral, wandering to myself how on earth did they manage to get those statues up on the rooftop during antiquity times. Raffa brought our attention to the obelisk standing in the middle of St Peter’s Square, which is 4,500 years old. The doors to the basilica were supposed to open at 8 am. As we were waiting in the queue to enter, I noticed the queue was getting longer, and the doors to the basilica weren’t even open yet. The doors finally opened at 8.15 am, and we were led through the side of the basilica to a courtyard and waited there again. Raffa told us that the elevator we were supposed to take to the terrace level of the dome was out of order. The basilica staff was sorting out how do we get to the terrace level. Soon after, we were led inside the basilica through one of the side doors. Raffa commented this was the first time she’s been through the side door, and we indeed got a unique experience. As we walked to the “backup” elevator, Raffa told us there wasn’t a single painting in St Peter’s Basilica. Instead, all the so-called images that we saw were mosaics. A single piece of small Vatican mosaic (roughly the size of a notebook) would cost around €‎4,000. We took the elevator to the terrace level. There are a total of 551 steps to the top of the dome. Taking the elevator, we skipped climbing up more than 200 steps.

Raffa then brought us up a small flight of stairs into the dome of St Peter’s Basilica. Inside we saw the mosaic artwork under the dome. If not for Raffa’s explanation, I would have thought those were paintings. These artworks are more impressive after we learnt they are mosaics, painstakingly put together ceramic by ceramic under the dome. It was a shame that we were only given 5 mins to walk through this dome level. We used whatever little time we had to admire the work of the builders of St Peter’s Basilica. We were given directions on where to get to the top of the dome (Raffa had hurt her leg, and she could not climb with us). The dome climb started with an easy slope, as we progressed higher into the dome, the stairs became narrower, and at one point (I think it must be near to the slope in part of the dome), the amount of headroom we had was very limited. Finally, after some 200-plus steps, we came to a small spiral staircase wedged into a single marble pillar. This marks the last few steps to the top of the dome.

We were all in wonderment when our sight shifted from the narrow, enclosed stairways to the open space in front of us. The sight in front of us was the endless view of Rome, we could see as far as the horizon stretched. But instead of focusing on the distant views, I narrowed my vision to St Peter’s Square. Numerous content creators have mentioned the view of the square from the top of St Peter’s Basilica dome was amazing. Indeed, true to their words, I could see the 13 statues on top of St Peter’s Basilica, the circular St Peter’s Square, and a little beyond that, a road leading to St Peter’s Basilica. The view of the quiet morning St Peter’s Square, sparsely dotted with visitors, is priceless. With the crowd level, we can almost feel the tranquillity of the otherwise busy and crowded square in the morning. As much as I didn’t want to peel my eyes off the peaceful St Peter’s Square, I noticed I was hogging the spot. I moved around the dome to admire Rome from what felt like the top of Rome. I could see the nearby Castel Sant’Angelo marked by its iconic cylindrical brown tower from the top of the dome. I was trying to see if I could spot the Colosseum from the dome. I started by looking for the Tiber River and looked for the Colosseum. However, I wasn’t able to spot the iconic landmark of Rome. Nonetheless, the views from the top of the dome were amazing. We had an unobstructed 360° view of Vatican City and Rome from the top of the dome. Soon my friend started to remind us of the time we had to head back down to meet Raffa for the next part of our tour – the St Peter’s Basilica.

St Peter’s Basilica

We met with Raffa, who took us through some of the more significant mosaics displayed in St Peter’s Basilica. After a couple of mosaics, Raffa brought us to the underground Vatican Necolpolis of St Peter’s Basilica, where we were shown the tomb of St Peter and the Popes of the basilica. The body of St Peter was buried underneath an elaborate marble-clad chamber, enclosed behind a glass panel. While we did not see the body of St Peter, we can feel the solemnness of the tomb. There are marble coffins of the other popes in the necropolis, but the tomb of St Peter is the most elaborate. As we were heading up to the ground level of the basilica, Raffa pointed to the base of a column and remarked that it was one of the pillars from the original St Peter’s Basilica. The first part of our tour of the Vatican City ended with a visit to the Vatican Necropolis. We returned to the meeting point for a 20 min break. As we hadn’t had our breakfast, we sat in the cafe munching on a croissant and cafe latte for breakfast.

Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel

After our short break, Raffa continues to bring us on a tour of the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. Vatican Museum houses mainly the art collections of the Popes throughout the years. We spotted a crowd at the entrance of the Vatican Museum, and it seemed like the local school was bringing their students on an excursion to the Vatican Museums. As we were part of the tour group and had skip-the-queue access, we whizzed past the crowd and quickly got into the museum. Before Raffa brought us into the museum, she ushered us to the lawn within the museum grounds. Here she explained the paintings that we will see in the Sistine Chapel, pointing out some of the details of the paintings that we would see on the chapel ceiling.

We were brought into the museum shortly after she narrated the paintings. The first few exhibits we saw at the Vatican Museum were sculptures collected by the Popes of St Peter’s Basilica. I thought the most interesting sculpture we saw was the big red marble bathtub of Emperor Nero, which was carved out of a rare purple marble from Egypt. Even though this area displays sculptures, the ceilings of this section are elaborately painted with murals. The section sections were corridors after corridors of paintings, some of which were painted by famous artists such as Raphael, Michangelo, etc. Raffa explained that Raphael even painted himself in some of these paintings as one of the commoners. Not all artworks are paintings. There is a section displaying Tapestry. I thought the most interesting art piece was the Tapestry of Christ, where a particular technique is used such that Jesus’s eyes and feet will follow you if one moves from left to right. There is even a section of tapestries detailing the map of the various parts of Italy, which Raffa explained is very accurate geographically. I like how Raffa showed us the more significant artworks without going through every single art piece. Towards the end of the tour, Raffa showed us the way into the Sistine Chapel, where we received blessings from a priest of the Vatican City. Raffa gave us time to look at the artwork on the ceiling and the wall in Sistine Chapel.

Shopping at Spanish Steps

After we bid farewell to Raffa, we came to the end of the tour. Our original plan was to visit Castel Sant’Angelo since it is very close to Vatican City. However, since this was our last day in Rome and there would not be any luxury brand shopping for the final leg of our trip in Catania, my friends opted to shop at the boutiques near Spanish Steps. Before we started shopping, we headed to the restaurant Raffa recommended for lunch. Raffa recommended an authentic Italian trattoria for lunch, and we enjoyed the food served there. After lunch, we made our way to Spanish Steps and took obligatory shots of the Spanish Steps for our friends who weren’t here the night before. We spent the rest of the afternoon shopping around the Spanish Steps and returned to the hotel to pack and rest early for the night. We had an early flight to catch the next day, bound for Catania, Sicily.

Getting to Pompeii

I have always wanted to visit Pompeii since 10 years ago when I planned a trip to Italy that never happened. As I was planning the trip to Pompeii, I learned that like many sights in Italy, Pompeii offers free entrance to visitors on the first Sunday of every month. Our trip to Pompeii coincides with the first Sunday of December, and we managed to get free tickets to Pompeii (get tickets to Pompeii on their official website here). To get to Pompeii, we need to align at Pompeii Scavi Station, opposite the entrance to the Pompeii Archaeological site. We took the 1hr high-speed train ride from Roma Termini Station to Napoli Centrale Station. From there, we took the Circumvesuviana train to Pompeii. The Circumvesuviana line is just a short walk from the central train station within the train station building. Well-marked signs led us to the ticketing booth and the platforms where the train would depart. The train ride from Napoli Centrale Station to Pompeii Scavi took about 40 mins.

Wandering Around Pompeii

True to my research, the Pompeii Scavi Station is located about 2 mins walk diagonally across the entrance to Pompeii. At the door of Pompeii, we chanced upon a booth renting audio guides and decided to rent it to give us some context to the ruins we saw. Unfortunately, none of the Pompeii guide apps I downloaded was useful before our Italian trip. Pompeii is a vast site, and these apps did not recommend any routes we could take to explore the areas more fruitfully. We thought the audio guide would do just that, but we soon learnt the audio guide wasn’t any more helpful.

The Public Baths – Entrance to the World of the Pompeiians

We were initially very enthusiastic and hardworking in following the directions and clicking on every audio file on the audio guide for each of the ruins we passed through. However, this enthusiasm did not last when we came to the Forum of Pompeii. The first few ruins were easy to navigate as only one path led through the sites from the entrance. Following the audio guide, we visited the first ruins, the Suburban Baths in Pompeii. We religiously followed the directions in the audio guide, going through the baths and looking at the murals mentioned in the audio guide. I must admit the audio guide did a great job narrating the building and what it was used for. After the Suburban Baths, we followed the numbering on the audio guide, listening to the introduction on the next thing we saw, the Marina gates and walls. Interestingly, the people of Pompeii used to be able to look out into the Bay of Naples from Pompeii as they walked from the city to the Suburban Baths, hence the name Marina gates. Today, the heavy build-up outside Pompeii obstructed this view.

Temples & Forum of Pompeii – Where the Pompeiians Gathered

A few ruins later, along the path from the entrance, we came to the ruins of the Temple of Apollo. This large temple was dedicated to the Greek God of the Sun and Light, Apollo. We saw a couple of bronze statues of Apollo near the main roads in the ruins. What remained of the temple were some columns and a platform that presumably houses the temple’s main altar. After the Temple of Apollo, we came to a vast open space. This is the Forum of Pompeii. A bronze centaur statue holding a spear called home at one end of the Forum, facing Mt Vesuvius, the volcano that swallowed the entire city. It is here at the Forum of Pompeii where the audio guide shows its weakness. There were no recommended routes that we could take to make the most of our trip to Pompeii. All we did was see which ruins were closest to the forum and found that to be the next point, we merely clicked on what we thought the ruin was on the audio guide and listened to its introduction. At times, the labelling of the ruins is different from the audio guide. At this point, we were still diligent in listening to all narration of the ruins we came across on the audio guide. We headed to the Basilica of Pompeii, located on the right side of the path we came from, which we thought was the most significant ruin next to the Forum of Pompeii. The Basilica was a two-storey building, and we can still make out the two-level reminds of the building. Most of the Basilica was reduced to rumbles, except for a few columns and stones here and there.

Amphitheatres – Where the Pompeiians Got Entertained

After exiting the grounds of the Basilica of Pompeii grounds, we walked along the streets nearby, passing some locked-up buildings that we thought were uninteresting. We arrived at the Triangular Forum and Doric Temple shortly. This was when our patience ran dry with the audio guide, we did not bother to listen to it but merely used it as a map to navigate around the archaeological site of Pompeii. At the Triangular Forum and Doric Temple, all we saw was a row of Roman columns, which I presume supported the Doric Temple and an open space planted with trees. As we continued on the road passing the temple, our path led us to the Large Amphitheatre. This was where the people of Pompeii came to get entertained. The amphitheatre is built on a depression on the ground, with steps acting as seats for the spectators. Unlike the Colosseum, which was used for execution and cruel games, the Large Amphitheatre was used for poetic and dramatic performances. The Large Amphitheatre was well preserved and is by far the most impressive structure we have seen in Pompeii today.

After sitting around at the Large Amphitheatre and enjoying the views of watching visitors plying up and down the site, our stomachs started to gruel. Looking at the time, I see it is already past lunch. We consulted our audio guides and spotted a building with a fork and spoon symbol. Thinking that might be a restaurant where we could settle our lunch, we made our way using the map function on the guide. The audio guide led us to the Small Amphitheatre next to the Large Amphitheatre. The Small Amphitheatre is much like the Large Amphitheatre but on a smaller scale and has no VIP sittings like the Large Amphitheatre. We also passed by Tempio di Vespasiano, a smallish building (looking at the walls surrounding the temple) with only one altar platform located very near the entrance of the building. After walking for another 10 mins, we came to the restaurant marked out on the audio guide. There were buildings, but the shops in these buildings seemed closed. We immediately consulted the map on our audio guide again and found a cafe marked out north of the Forum of Pompeii. This is where we had sandwiches for lunch and rested a little.

Garden of Fugitives – Where the Pompeiians Perished

By this time, we were pretty much getting bored with Pompeii. The audio guide was of no use in helping our visit to Pompeii in a more organised and meaningful way. It is merely a device that provides narratives and a map of Pompeii. During lunch, we decided to skip the rest of the ruins and head straight to the Garden of the Fugitives, where we could see the casts of Pompeiians. After lunch, we followed the map on the audio guide and arrived at the Garden of the Fugitives. It is believed that the casted victims of the explosion of Mt Vesuvius were found in the Garden of the Fugitives. The casted mummies of the victims were displayed in a glass casing. We could see most of the victims were covering themselves, with some shielding the young ones from the deadly explosion of Mt Vesuvius. After taking some pictures of the casts, we had enough of Pompeii and continued to our next destination for today.

Near the exit, we spotted a building – the Antiquarium running some exhibitions. We entered Antiquarium to check out the exhibits. Amongst the exhibits that showcase the lives and arts of Pompeii, more casts were being displayed at the Antiquarium. These casts were more explicit in their expressions and the victims’ posture before they died almost 2,000 years ago.

Bay of Naples from Sorrento

When we were resting for lunch, I asked my friends if they’d prefer to roam around Naples or wanted to see some gorgeous views of the Bay of Naples. Without hesitation, they all agreed to go for the idea. I did a quick Google search on how to get to Sorrento and where the best views were. After exiting Pompeii, we took the Circumvesuviana train to Sorrento. The train ride from Pompeii Scavi took around 30 mins. Leaving the train station, we made our way to Villa Comunale di Sorrento, a public park that offers views of the Bay of Naples. Villa Comunale di Sorrento was around 10 mins walk from Sorrento Station. Following the directions given by Google Maps, walking through the part of Sorrento town near the train station, we arrived at an open park. It was almost sunset when we reached Villa Comunale di Sorrento, where we were treated to the spectacular view of the bay. The view was incredibly charming during sunset, with the pink hue decorating the sky. We could see Mt Vesuvius sitting directly across the bay. As the sun set, the daylight was replaced with lights illuminated by buildings and streetlights. We did not stay at Villa Comunale di Sorrento for long as we would still need 1½ hrs to travel back to Napoli Centrale Station to catch our train back to Roma Termini. It was already dark when we reached Sorrento Station and managed to catch the train back to Napoli with 20 mins to spare before our train back to Rome. I told my friends we must at least try the Napoli pizza as the pizza was invented in the city we were in. We followed the signs to a pizzeria and got ourselves a pizza takeaway. The chef made our pizza right before our eyes in under 5 mins. We wanted to bring the pizza back to our hotel in Rome to eat. But on the train, we could not resist the temptation of the pizza and ate it on the train. We returned to our hotel to rest early for the night as we had to wake up very early for our Vatican City guided tour tomorrow.

Walking Back in Time to Ancient Rome

Today, we embarked on one of the highlights of our Italian Trip, visiting the Colosseum. Visits to Rome or Italy for first-timers will not be complete without visiting Colosseum, the ultimate icon of Italy and Rome and one of the world’s new seven wonders. I thought a guided tour of the Colosseum would give us more context and history during our visit to such an important monument left behind by the ancient Romans. Several companies organise tours to the Colosseum, and few offer Colosseum underground tours. The underground of the Colosseum has been open to the public in recent years. However, access to the underground is only possible with guided tours. On September 22, I received an email from the tour company we booked stating that the Italian government is starting to restrict the number of underground entries daily. Therefore, being able to see the Colosseum underground becomes more precious. After some research on the internet, I read rave reviews of the tour company – the Roman Guy (access the Colosseum tour that we booked here) that offers the Colosseum underground tour at a reasonable price. So we went ahead and booked our underground tours with them. Our tour of the Colosseum starts at 9.30 am. We left our hotel early for breakfast before our tour. Unfortunately, it began to rain at the time we left our hotel.

Colosseum – Arena Built for the Romans

After breakfast, we went to the meeting point to meet our guide, Serena, for the Colosseum Tour. The rain started to get heavier as we walked towards the Colosseum, and by the time we reached the Colosseum, it had started to pour very heavily. Serena, while walking us towards the entrance to the underground access, explained in detail what the Colosseum looked like and how it was built. We learnt from Serena that the Colosseum was decked with a marble facade, and marble statues were installed on each of the arches of the world’s largest amphitheatre. As we approached the underground entrance, Serena went to check out the situation for underground access as she explained there were rumours that the underground might be closed due to the flood caused by the rain. She went to ask other tour guides and started asking the staff. Finally, one of the staff announced the underground was closed due to the flood level. Serena explained the underground of the Colosseum has been prone to flooding since ancient times due to the poor waterproofing design, the flood would have been dangerous for visitors due to the possibility of electrocution from the electric cables installed in modern days for lighting.

Inside the Colosseum

After receiving the bad news, Serena changed the plan on the fly. She started the tour with the second level of the Colosseum, followed by the arena floor. The stairs to the Colosseum’s second floor were higher than your usual stairs. Serena reminded us to hold on to the handrails when making our way up. Despite the staircase being higher, compared to the ones in Ang Kor Wat that I visited years ago, the stairs in the Colosseum are wider, making climbing easier. On the second floor, before she brought our attention to the artefacts on display, Serena brought us away from the crowd to an opening that looked out into a building across the road. This was where the training school for the gladiators used to be. A tunnel brought the teenage gladiators from the school to the Colosseum for battles.

Serena started introducing the artefacts on display, from the carvings to the columns that supported the Colosseum to how the enslaved people worked manually to lift the platform from underground to the arena floor. Serena was very detailed and only focused our attention on the important artefacts. As we walked through the artefacts, Serena pointed to carvings on some stones. Next, she explained the graffiti left behind by the spectators, and from these graffiti, we can make out the scenes on the arena floor during gladiatorial battles. There is even one graffiti showing the street food that spectators would buy during the show. Serena then brought our attention to models of the Colosseum in its full glory and even one showing the plan for converting the Colosseum into a church.

Seating Area and the Arena Floor of the Colosseum

We were led outside to the seating area of the Colosseum. Serena was very detailed in explaining who would sit where in the world’s largest amphitheatre. As we were walking one round on the spectator level of the Colosseum, Serena started to explain the exposed underground system in the Colosseum. The entire Colosseum is oval, and we can see the entirety of the amphitheatre at certain spots. Today, we can hardly make out the seating. Also gone were the awnings used to shade the spectators of the elements, but the Colosseum still emits a sense of masculinity and power. It is very different standing in the 2,500-year-old monument and seeing it in pictures and videos. Time has not been kind to the Colosseum, the amphitheatre has gone through flood, earthquakes, lootings and vandalism, but yet after 2½ millennia, the monument still stands firmly in the heart of Rome.

After giving us time to take pictures on the second level of the Colosseum, Serena brought us to the Arena Floor of the Colosseum. Here, Serena explained the underground system in greater detail and even pointed out where we would be if we were underground. She also pointed out the floods that can be visible on the Arena Floor. Although the Colosseum was past its prime glory, standing on the arena level of the monument, we can imagine it must be daunting for the gladiators to put up a performance, literally fighting for their lives in front of 50,000 spectators. I can spend more hours here on the Colosseum, and the views will not get old. It is a shame we have only mere hours here, and soon we were led outside the Colosseum, marking the end of our 2-hour tour of the Colosseum.

Palatine Hill – The Birth Place of Rome

The Roman Forum and Palatine Hill were the next part of the tour. As we were walking to the entrance, it started to rain again. Our first stop is Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. Here, the legend of Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, was found and raised by a she-wolf. This hill is also where the Roman Kingdom was found. Serena wanted to bring us to the terrace on Palatine Hil, which she claimed to be the best view of the entire Roman Forum. She introduced us to the Teatro Del Fontanone, where she started from the base, a sheltered and fenced-off area. Next, Serena brought our attention to the painting on the roof. From here, I couldn’t make out the fountain, and the painting on its ceiling was barely visible. As we climbed the stairs to the top of Palatine Hill, Serena introduced the Basilica di Massenzio. Though most of the basilica is gone, we can still make out the massive size of the basilica based on how tall the remaining structure is. As we were moving up the stairs, the top part of Teatro Del Fontanone was visible. I thought there was nothing spectacular about the fountain; it was merely a pool with water flowing from the top of the building. We continued to the terrace, where the view wowed us in front of us. Being the highest point in Roman Forum, Palatine Hill offered us a view of the entire Roman Forum and as far as Capitoline Hill right across from where we were. Although the whole Roman Forum today is reduced to a vast archaeological dig site and tourist site, we can still make out the streets and the remaining buildings. Serena pointed to us the central street in the Forum that cuts across the Forum. From there, she briefly told us what each building was. We did not stay on the terrace for long (and I think we saw what we were meant to see, so there was no need to stay here for too long), Serena brought us to the Roman Forum next.

Roman Forum – The Heart of Ancient Rome

There are tons of ruins on the Roman Forum, most of which are insignificant residential buildings. I thought one of the advantages of having a guided tour is that the guide would point out the more significant buildings and explain what that was. Serena did just that. It started raining as we were being led to the first building. Despite the rain, Serena remained dedicated to continuing narrating stories of the next building we saw. The first building we saw was Tempio di Romolo, with the distinctive feature of a round foyer and its huge bronze doors. The next building we saw was the Tempio di Antonino e Faustina. Serena drew our attention to the Roman columns in front of the temple and the level it was built on. Serena explained the Roman Forum used to be on a higher elevation, but due to the earthquake, part of the elevation collapsed to where it is currently. We did not enter the temple as it was closed for restoration work.

As we were being led to the exit of the Roman Forum, walking through the district’s main street, Serena pointed out an inconspicuous single-storey structure. This is where Julius Caesar’s body was burnt after he died. As a group was there, plus the rain, we did not go nearer to see. Our tour ended at around 1.30 pm. By this time, we were drenched, and the rain had stopped. After bidding farewell to Serena, we walked around the roman ruins to take more pictures and to dry ourselves. At this point, we appreciated the presence of a guide as they could point to us what the essential ruins were. If not for Serena, we would be looking at a bunch of rumbles and thought all of these ruins were crucial landmarks.

Capitoline Hill – The Epicentre of the Roman Empire

At this point, we were getting a little bored with the ruins and were hungry. We exited the Roman Forum and ruins and wanted to look for food. Coming out from the exit, we were immediately targeted by some black guys trying to sell us overpriced souvenirs. I told my friends to ignore them and keep walking. These sellers only paddled their wares at the exits of the sites and did not follow us. We walked around looking for Osteria or Trattoria for an authentic Italian lunch. Near the Colosseum area, all we saw were Ristorante, which we recalled the reception at our hotel reminded us to avoid. As we were walking further from the Colosseum, one of my friends suggested we head down a flight of stairs to see if we could find something to eat there. Luckily we heeded his suggestion, we found an Osteria that served authentic Italian food. The restaurant was simple in its decor, but the food was terrific. We hardly saw any tourists and were the third table of foreigners.

After lunch, two of my friends returned to the hotel to rest as they were not feeling well. The reminding four of us headed back to explore Capitoline Hill, located next to the Roman Forum. We made our way to Campidoglio on Capitoline Hill. I read that we will be able to see a beautiful sunset from here. Unfortunately, we were soon disappointed as all we saw was a Bronze statue surrounded by buildings. These buildings are museums that we did not bother to check out. But we thought the Campidoglio looked beautiful, with the night lights illuminating during dusk. As we were walking downs a flight of stairs, we spotted another flight of stairs that seemed to lead to a white marble building supported by tall roman columns. As we headed up the stairs, we saw people walking around behind the fenced-off area under the columns. Thinking there might be an entrance at the top of the stairs, we headed up the stairs. On top of the stairs, we came across the Basilica di Santa Maria in Ara coeli. We went into the basilica, thinking we could enter the fenced-off area inside. The interior of Basilica di Santa Maria in Ara coeli was grand, and the church has intricate carvings on its ceilings and vibrant paintings on the walls and ceilings where the main altar is. As we were more interested in looking for the entrance to the fenced-off area, we paid little attention to the artwork in the basilica. After walking around, we were disappointed that we did not find any entrance to the fenced-off area. We left the basilica soon after.

It was already getting dark, and we wanted to revisit the Pantheon and see if we could get inside. We saw a structure that looked much like the Colosseum, the Temple of Apollo Sosianus. My friend remarked that it is the building that Serena had told us about earlier, which the Colosseum is modelled after. Indeed we could see the “complete” oval shape that the Colosseum looked when it was in its prime and the many of the iconic arches that gave the Colosseum its character. However, there seems to be a building built on top of the temple, which might have been built many years after the building was in ruins. We did not venture further and took some pictures instead, as we wanted to get to the Pantheon before it closed. Not long after, we reached the Pantheon and were delighted to find no queue to enter the building. At first, we thought we were lucky, but after asking a staff guarding the entrance, we were told there was a mass inside the Pantheon, and the attraction will be closed for the next 45 mins. What a shame. For the second time, we missed the opportunity to enter the Pantheon to marvel at the unreinforced dome. We could stand there and wait for 45 mins, but we thought this was a waste of time and headed to the Spanish Steps.

Spanish Steps – Heart of Rome

This time, we again put our trust in Google Maps to lead us to Spanish Steps. Google Maps did not disappoint us this time, and we were led past a busy shopping area with luxury boutiques. We did a little shopping while making mental notes on where to shop in Rome if we needed to come back in the next few days while we were in Rome. Soon after, we found ourselves in front of the Spanish Steps, a flight of stairs leading to the church of Trinita di Monti. One cannot miss the white church that shines even brighter under the night lights. We headed up the stairs and went into the church. Inside the church, there were motives for Christ’s life after his crucifixion and ascension to heaven. The main altar is fenced off, which could be opened if there is mass. We did not stay here for too long as our main goal is taking pictures of the Spanish Steps. Heading outside the church, the view of Rome from the top of the Spanish Steps was amazing, especially the night streets lit up with Christmas lights. A few more pictures later, we decided to return to the hotel and once again put our trust in Google Maps. We followed the directions given by Google Maps, which led us to the banks of the Tiber River, the river that flows through Rome. After walking along the banks for 20 mins, following the directions given by Google Maps, we found ourselves back where we started. Google Maps brought us one big round!! Well, I thought this might be a blessing in disguise. If not for Google Maps, we wouldn’t have come to the Tiber River. We got our bearings using the landmarks we had passed by previously and headed back to the hotel, only using Google Maps to confirm we were on the right track.