Christmas in Rome!

Our first week of winter break was spent in Rome, where we played tour guides for our parents as we took them to the tourist hotspots while showing them some of our favorite restaurants (and gelateria!) and hangouts. Our apartment for the week was right down the street from Campo dei Fiori, the neighborhood we know best. We spent two full days exploring the Ancient Area, where the many imperial forums and the Colosseum are located. We also took some time to visit places we had not yet seen, such as the wonderful Borghese Gallery and the impressive temporary exhibit in honor of the 2,000th anniversary of Emperor Augustus's death.

The Roman Forum

The Mouth of Truth

Carolers in our piazza!

Our parents' first gelato!

At Villa Borghese

For Christmas we spent the day relaxing, enjoying time with each other, and being extremely grateful to be able to celebrate this holiday together in Rome! While it wasn't the same as being back in California, it was wonderful being in a city full of so many beautiful places and generous people, and in a city we have come to love. In true Italian style, after dinner we celebrated Christmas with Christmas gelato! And it wouldn't have been Christmas without the Kearney-Woods Peanut-Butter Balls, thanks Mom! We hope all of you also had a lovely Christmas with your loved ones!

The piazza our apartment overlooked. 

Getting into the Christmas spirit! 

Christmas Lights!

Of course, we also visited St. Peter's and the Vatican museums, which are always impressive. While waiting in line to get into St. Peter's on the 26th, we noticed a crowd beginning to form and sensed something was about to begin. Everyone was looking above our heads at the apartments, but we had no idea what was going on. Once we passed security, we rushed to a big screen as Pope Francis came to the window to speak! We traveled as far as we could without leaving the area to try to get a full view of him as we spoke, but only could get so far as seeing his hands move as he talked. We still saw him on the big screen and heard him speak, so for not expecting to see Pope Francis it was a wonderful surprise and a great highlight to our spectacular week in Rome!

The nativity scene at St. Peter's. 

Pope Francis!