Rome was a whirlwind. Saturday we saw the Colosseum, the Vatican, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter’s Basilica all in five hours. I enjoyed the Sistine Chapel the best, but that is mostly because I had to go into stealth-mode and take pictures of the beautiful Michelangelos without being caught. Mission success.  (And I didn’t feel bad stealing pictures of this gorgeous monument—it turns out you can’t take photos because the copyrights belong to the Japanese. Weird, huh?).

When it came time to check into our hotel in the heart of Rome, we were side-tracked by a Euro Pride parade passing down the streets. Turns out, the day I go to Rome is Europe’s Gay Pride day. And what do you know? I got to see Lady Gaga at the Euro Pride concert Saturday night. It was a bit tight amongst all 20,000 people in the crowd—but so worth going to see all the pink haired, glitter-covered, flamboyant folks and penis balloons in the crowd.

Sunday we toured the rest of Rome’s beautiful monuments—the Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Four Rivers fountain, Trevi Fountain and Victory Square. Trevi Fountain was by far my favorite. I threw my coin into the clear blue fountain—the legend says it will bring me back to Rome. I can only hope.