So here is the wrap up of our European trip.

 Pictured here are shots from the colliseum. I thought this place was absolutely amazing. Allison was not as excited since she said it reminded her of the Orioles stadium back in Baltimore. I tried to emphasize that it should feel familiar, but that of all the stadiums she will ever be in, that this was the first. Seats were made out of marble for the upper class and wooden seats for the lower class. Everyone was invited to the Roman forum from rich to poor. The hidden caverns were covered with a wooden floor(you can see a part of how it looked). This way the staff could set up the arena from underneath and not be seen. They often popped up animals or sets from hidden trap doors on the unsuspecting gladiators. Only gladiators fought in the arena. No christians were actually killed in the colliseum. The emperor would sit in the spot where a cross was erected. The roof was covered with cloth to keep out the sun and rain. Exotic animals were housed in caves surrounding the colliseum and used in fight scenes like elephants, lions, giraffes and hippos. The steps were killer to climb to the upper floors, but they could fill and empty the place in just a few minutes because of it's amazing design. It was originally covered in marble with a statue in every archway and brass bolts holding onto the marble slabs. As Rome declined, pieces of the colliseum were used to build the vatican. Watch Russell Crowe's movie The Gladiator. I had Allison watch it to get a taste of life in the colliseum. Across from the colliseum was the Roman Forum(downtown). This is where everything happened-from the market to temples to meeting places for the Roman Senate. Now it is mostly toppled marble columns, but a few buildings remain standing. And we saw the place where Julius Caesar was cremated. The arch outside the colliseum was built by Emperor Constantine at the time of the fall of Rome and the rise of Christianity. The second arch in the Roman Forum marks the overthrow of the jews. Our girls were posing in front of that archway where you enter and exit the forum. They even have the original stone road still intact(very hard to walk on).  We spent a lot of time walking in Rome. We visited the Trevi Fountain. Allison is posing with her coins. 1 coin means you want to return to Italy, 2 coins is looking for love and 3 Coins in the Fountain means you hope for marriage and romance. I had Allison watch the old movie 3 Coins in a Fountain. She liked it. We stopped by the Pantheon. It was a temple for the Gods, but now is a church. Raphael is buried there. The dome is the same design as the capitol in DC. However, the Romans could not figure out how to close off the dome as it would collapse, so they left it open. Instead, the floor is sloped and made of marble to let the rainwater flow out of the building. We also spent time shopping for paintings in the square before dinner in a local cafe. They made each of us our own pizza's in the oven. We ate inside as it costs more to eat outside on the street. We also did not notice very many cell phones or laptops in Italy. And no Starbucks. On the way home, I managed to buy a Starbucks mug in Paris, and 4 mugs in Belgium from 4 different cities! But no Italian Starbucks! I still need to go back to Belgium and visit the cities where I got my mugs. And get more chocolate-that was a big hit. Thank goodness for Duty Free stores in the airport. And so ends our European trip. It was a long flight home, and a long drive, but an incredible trip.

Next blog I will fill you in on our GS trip to Michigan!

So lastly we visited Rome. Our first stop was the Vatican. People line up at 5am to enter at 10. We had tickets and walked right in. Here is a part of the line. Vatican City is surrounded by a large brick wall and sits up on a hill. You enter through the wall into a visitors center and travel through several court yards into several museums before visiting The Sistine Chapel or St Peters. The Octagonal Courtyard is full of Greek statues like Apollo and Laocoon who tried to warn the Trojans to "Beware of Greeks bearing gifts" when they brought the Trojan horse into the gates of Troy. The Gods attempted to silence his warning by sending snakes to kill him and his sons. First you pass through the Cortile della Pigna(grass) with the Roman Pine Cone (and the Death Star which is a recent gift). Once you enter the museums, you pass through the Hall of Animals, then into The Round Room which includes Roman statues such as Hercules made from bronze. The tile floor(amazing) came from a Roman bath, and the solid marble vase found in Nero's palace was made from a single block of purple stone from Egypt. Next comes The Long March through the hall of sculptures, papal palaces. Pictured is The Hall of Tapestries(designed in Florence) and The Map Gallery. The ceiling in the tapestry room is painted in 3D. Next is the Sistine Chapel, but no photos. Michelangelo painted the ceiling much against his will. He was actually quite rude to the pope at the time and he was actually fired. But no one else would touch the project, so the pope had to beg him to come back and finish. The whole ceiling is full of panels that tells the story of the old Testament as well as lots of paintings of prophets and saints(of course the famous painting of The Creation of Adam. The back of the chapel has The Last Judgement where the good souls go to heaven and the bad souls go down below(more bad than good!). This is the private chapel for the pope and where they choose the new pope. Afterwards you walk outdoors and enter St Peter's Basilica. Also has 5 bronze doors and 1 door is only opened every 25 years by the pope with a special silver hammer that the pope uses to knock on the door(2024 next door opening). The church is huge-two football fields long to the altar. The lettering in the dome is 7 feet high. "Tu es Petrus" or You are Peter. The bronze canopy over the altar is 7 stories high. Pope John XXIII is mummified  and has his own altar. He initiated Vatican II and switched us from the Latin to English spoken mass. The paintings in the Basilica are actually made of tiles in order to take photos so they don't fade. Michelangelo's Pieta Statue AKA "Pity"(Holy Mother and Son) sits behind a bullet proof glass wall in the back of the church. In 1972, some crazy guy attacked the statue with a hammer so now it is protected.  Michelangelo was only 24 yrs old when he sculpted this piece.  Outside you will see the Swedish Guard(real military soldiers) in crazy outfits as you enter St Peter's Square. No we did not climb this dome either. The obelisk is 2000 yrs old from Egypt. They placed a cross on top to make it christian. You can just make out the chimney on the Sistine Chapel where they announce a new pope with white smoke. There was more to see, but we had other tours on our schedule. Our hotel in Rome was up in the mountains near a volcanic lake. The white building is the pope's summer house where Pope Benedict now resides. We had a great time with our group each night, enjoying dinner together which included brushcetta, pasta(lasagna as an appetizer) and pork and french fries along with the hotels own line of wine. Afterwards, we enjoyed Salsa lessons outside on the patio. More to come!

This past week found Tom in Chicago. The kids stayed busy with jobs. Allison got herself a babysitting job on top of the Rollerblade position. Friends of our neighbors needed a replacement for their nanny who did not work out. It is a young couple who recently moved to Baltimore with their mother. They all speak Romanian, French and Spanish. They have a 3 yr old boy and a 3 month old infant. Grandma primarily takes care of the baby and Allison has the young boy to watch. It is quite challenging for Allison to communicate, but they seem to be getting along well. Except the boy is quite jealous of the baby. And no tv or cable as a distractor. They want Allison to return though after our vacation-they really like her. She has been acclamating them to life in Maryland. She also finished her assigned reading and an online drug and alcohol webinar for college. She finally heard from her new roommate who plans on studying Marketing. Scott also had a job this week house sitting and cat sitting. We borrowed the neighbor's swimming pool last weekend while they were out of town since it was so very hot.  Scott and I also spent all day Friday doing yardwork. Scott cut the grass and I hacked down overgrown bushes and edged the curb around the house.

Today was packing and shopping day. Allison and I went out and picked up a rug for her dorm room. She and her roommate decided to rent a small fridge and microwave from the school. We also reserved our hotel room when we drop her off at the end of August and paid for her 1st semester of school. Boy how time flies!

Speaking of time flying, we want to wish Nicholas Bozyk a big Happy 18th Birthday!

So we are heading out to Michigan tomorrow and we'll talk to all of you when we get back! First stop is CAstaway Bay and Cedar Point. We are taking the Girl SCout troop as a last fling. I also thought it would be nice to visit the Charlevoix house as Mom and Dad Bozyk will be putting it up for sale soon. We will be visiting Mackinac island while we are there, and try to get in a sailing trip as well. Talk to you soon!
Kathleen