ROMA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello! Greetings from Roma!!
We have made it safely, although the flight delay and the flight itself took a very long time.

We are staying at the Hotel Lancelot a lovely 60 room boutique hotel with views of the colloseum from our adorable balcony! We are in a great residential neighborhood a few brief blocks from the colloseum and we are on the fifth floor so we overlook the rooftop gardens and other patios and balconies, with colors of the buildings lovely shades of yellow, creme and orange. It is beautiful and quaint. Although at times I feel like I am in the midst of the Bourne Identity movie, with the vespas racing by and the policia speeding by with their very unique sirens, and sitting next to people at dinner from so many different countries. It is wonderful!
The colloseum was magnificent!! Imagine being in the same spot as the Gladiators.... this whole city is history iteself. We were wandering through the colloseum for about 3.5 hours, and although there was a little bit of rain, a drizzle really... the site was so spectacular and awesome it took my breath away.
After our time at the colloseum, we wandered our neighborhood and found a great trattoria mnetioned to us by our driver. Luzzi was a fun neighborhood spot where the whole dinner cost aobut 26 euro! Tim was dying for spaghetti and meatballs but they offered him this incredible pasta with bolognese sause that was amazing. We had a delicious antipasto dish of fresh vegetables and a litre of maltipulciano that was yummy! After dinner outside on the sidewalk with people walking by and sharing tables with other wonderful people, we explored the neighborhood and did some window shopping and just enjoying! We found several gelatorias in our neighborhood and stopped at one for a small coni of chocolate and crema. We walked for awhile as the grey sky cleared a bit and we listened to the wonderful sites of a city slowing down and heading to sleep. Luckily we were able to stay awake until around 9:30 Roma time and were able to sleep through the night. We are 6 hours ahead from home, and 9 hours ahead (Andrew time!). Tim will figure out how to add some photos. Today we are off for a private tour of the Vatican. I am so excited! Roma is a beautiful and enchanting city with centuries of history staring at you every step of the way...Between the sites, sounds and wonderful smells of restaurants, gelatorias, bakeries and espresso bars, I am in heaven!!!!
Gail