New School Year = New School and Public Transportation

     On August 19th, Alex and Ben went back to school.  After spending a year in a Swedish local school, where we were glad they got to learn the language and make friends, we decided to change schools to a school that focuses the learning in English.  It is still based on the Swedish curriculum and some of the classes are still taught in Swedish, but there is an emphasis on English and the teaching styles are more in line with what we experienced in the states so we though this would be a good opportunity.  It is considered a "for-profit" school but is available for free, (I would compare it to a magnet school in the states where you have the choice to go, but it doesn't cost extra).  A major downside is the school is a half an hour away and in Sweden there are no yellow school buses, children and adults share the mass transportation and Alex and Ben have now experienced a new independence that I could have never imagined letting my kids do in the states...

Alex and Ben on the first day of school. 

A week before their new adventures began, a friend of mine generously loaned her son for the afternoon to teach me and the boys the ins and outs of commuting to their new schools. (Alex is at what they call the "senior" school, while Ben is at the "junior" school so they are in different location).

           (Aidan pointing out the bus)

Teaching the boys to read a bus schedule...
The easiest commute for Alex is a 15 minute train ride into the town and then a 5-10 minute walk to his school, no problem...only the train is less frequent then the buses so there is more waiting around which I can only imagine will be really cold in the winter...

Ben, however, has 2 choices...1) a 15 minute train ride, then about a 10 minute walk into the center of this city, (I think it was about 5 city blocks away) then 1 final bus to take him to the entrance of his school... or 2) about a 35 minute bus ride into the center of the city, then a short walk across the street to pick up the next bus to the school.

(Aidan and Ben on the train together)

Thomas and/or I have been bringing them to the train/bus station in the AM and picking them up after school.  They seem to really like it and both have expressed that it is a great time to relax. (I am crossing my fingers that Ben doesn't fall asleep and miss getting off sometime)  Ben has 2 friends luckily that are in his class and came from his school last year that are commuting each day with him, so there is comfort knowing they can help each other if needed.

It is just so bizarre for me to wrap my head around the freedom/independence that I have just given to my 9 and 12 year old...They both have their phones handy and text me to let me know they've made it and they have figured out what to do if trains are running late or buses change, etc. without getting frazzled.  It really is an experience for them to be able to gain this independence in a safe environment such as Sweden.

Rome, Italy during Påsklov (Easter Vacation) Day 1

The kids had the week off before Easter and so dreaming of sun and warmth early in the winter, we booked a trip to Rome for 5 nights during their vacation.  We had no idea what to expect since none of us have ever been to Italy, nor had we taken the kids on a "City Break" as I have heard it called here, but it was amazing.

We flew out early Sunday morning and landed just before 11 AM, luckily the hotel had a pick-up service which was great since it was free and it saved navigating public transportation on our first day, or taking an expensive taxi which was starting at 40 Euro ($55) into town.  They took us right to the hotel we checked in.  Our hotel was located in a pretty quiet area near to The Vatican (5 minutes away) but on a main path to the center of town (about 10-15 minute walk away).

Right away we were starving and couldn't wait to try real Italian food, so we ventured out as soon as possible and found our first restaurant and it did not disappoint!

Here is my first pizza in Italy...

We weren't shy about trying the delicious desserts either so here is Alex have a Lemon Gelato which I can only describe as Vanilla gelato with sweet lemon syrup swirled throughout, it was so good...

And Ben and I shared a Tira Misu...

And Thomas tried an espresso...

After filling up and relaxing, we immediately ventured out to get our bearings and find out just how close to things that we were.

To our delightful surprise, we came across so many things just on our first day and all of them were fantastic.  First we found a path across the Tiber River (the main river in Rome) and from there we had a clear view of Saint Peter's Basilica in all it's massive beauty!

Crossing over the bridge there were many more people and we entered a square (called Piazza Navona) where there were tons of outdoor restaurants, artwork for sale, street performers, and this gorgeous fountain made by Bernini in 1651 called the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Four Rivers Fountain).

Next we walked close by to the Piazza Campo dei Fiori a market close by selling everything from fresh made pasta, herbs and spices, fresh fruits and flowers among other things...

Along the way, we couldn't help but notice the tiny cars (very few larger than a prius) and the way they would park so closely they had to rub bumpers to get out.  I also noticed that "gas stations" were really just pumps on the sidewalks where there were no attendants, you just pulled up and filled up.  

There were tons of motorcycles because they were easier to navigate through traffic as they were allowed to drive between cars and lanes, and the ride in the van on the way into Rome raised all of our blood pressure just a little a couple of times...

During our walk that day, we stumbled on ruins a few times.  It was amazing to see in the middle of the city pieces of broken columns from ages ago laying in piles, it was just a taste of what was to come in the days ahead...

After the markets, we continued on our walk and of course Thomas started taking the lead at this point because he had a great handle on the map and where we were headed, and before I knew it we were on the back side of the Pantheon...

Again, to just be out on a casual walk and have plans to see all these things, but to run into them so easily on our first day was just mind blowing and spectacular!

We were definitely ready for dinner and a break when we finally strolled back after our first day and found yet again another delicious meal.  I ordered Gnocci with tomato sauce and then I tried sausage and chickory...It was amazing, I never ate chickory before, but it was like a spinach or green that they tossed in red pepper flakes and olive oil...yummy, plus the sausage might have been the best I have ever had...

I can upload more pictures to this page if/when I get them off of Thomas' phone, but unfortunately there weren't many pictures taken of the sites this day because I didn't have my phone and I didn't expect to see so many things so I didn't have the camera...boy was I wrong!!!

Of course I captured the food though...:) I haven't been out to eat too much in Sweden, so I was loving this food!

Rome, Italy during Påsklov (Easter Vacation) Day 2

We had planned the Colosseum on Day 3 and the Vatican on Day 4, but we left Day 2 a little more open to do some of the walking sights such as the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain, and also to find out how easy it was to use some of the public transportation since the Colosseum was a bit longer away to easily walk there.

So with a backpack packed with things we would need to be out the whole day, we ventured out again.  This time, Thomas used maps he down loaded on his phone and he found the underground station closest to us and we bought day passes which was great because that meant that we could see even more that day than it first appeared we would be able to just walking.  With camera in hand, we started out at our first stop, the Spanish Steps.  As we walked out of the subway, we started heading in one direction, and noticed people sitting on steps to a building, but as we continued further passed it, on Thomas' map, we noticed that we had just passed the famous Spanish Steps...haha, typical:) I think it just looked like a place to rest at first with lots of people, but when we went back, we could see that indeed the steps took you up to a view overlooking the city, and it was a beautiful view...

That's us heading up the steps...

The view from the top...

 From there we easily walked to the famous Trevi Fountain where legend has it if you toss a coin over your left shoulder then you would return to Rome again.  It was quite crowded there as well, but it was nice to see and the boys enjoyed throwing their coins.

Next on our adventure was the Piazza del Popolo where I had read there was a church Santa Maria Del Popolo whose chapel was created by Raphael in 1516. It was hard to find the entrance to the church, and as we wondered, we again found ourselves climbing stairs and at the top was an unexpected treasure!  We had the most beautiful view over Rome! Even prettier than the Spanish Steps and a bit less crowded as well.

In the distance you can even see Saint Peter's Basilica

Down below in the Piazza del Popolo we had walked up from...

We started wondering around and even found the Villa Borghese which is a large park where many locals picnic and relax and we strolled around there for a while.  Finding our way back to the Piazza, we found the entrance to the church, but it was going to be an hour until it was open, so we found yet another delicious place to eat outdoors on a side street.  

A Caprese salad...

Pasta

A Cheese plate for dessert...yummy

We headed back to the church and saw the beautiful interior and the famous works of art.

Outside, we sat for a minute and the boys saw a street artist using spray paint and tools to create artwork of the colosseum from the beginning.

They were so entertained by this guy who even used fire to set the paint so when he put a 10 Euro price on the picture, Alex really wanted it so he bought it and the guy carefully closed it up and used a little tape to keep it closed without touching since it was still a bit wet...(I offered to carry it at this point to keep it from ruining).

Trying to fit one more thing in to our schedule and confident about our new navigating abilities on the subway, we decided to venture to the farthest other side of Rome and see if we could find the Bocca della Veritá.  When we went to the subway, it was really crowded onboard already so of course I was really nervous that the boys wouldn't get on, or we would lose them in the crowd, (oh yeah, I was still wearing the loaded backpack, and carrying the painting delicately above peoples heads).  As we crammed on, I was near the exit and the boys were closer to Thomas, but it was only about 2 minutes until the next stop where people cleared out and I had more room to walk further into the subway and turn around.  It was then that I heard a voice say to me, "You know your backpack is unzipped", I didn't react so much I guess because then he said, "I'm just telling you that you've probably been pickpocketed"...it was then that I looked into my slightly unzipped backpack and noticed that yes indeed, both Alex and Ben's iPhones were gone, my wallet carrying credit cards, bank cards, driver's license, and money, and my large zoom camera lens were all gone!

Needless to say, that put a damper on that evening.  I got off at the main terminal and luckily there was a Police Station there where I filled out a report and cancelled all my cards.  None of my accounts were used before they were stopped thank goodness!  Also, in Sweden we have theft insurance on our housing policy even when traveling fortunately so the next morning I was able to call and tell them about the theft and they had reimbursed me minus a deductible before I even got home from the trip...

Rome, Italy during Påsklov (Easter Vacation) Day 3

We had a later tour of the Colosseum booked for this day.  I knew it was on the other side of town, and I knew we weren't early risers, so we had the morning to explore.  Since we hadn't made it to the Bocca della Veritá the previous evening, and it was close to the Colosseum, after breakfast we headed there by subway, this time I had nothing left for someone to take, but I still was much more careful and undistracted while we rode...

It is thought to be part of a first century ancient Rome fountain and they say if you tell a lie while your hand is in the mouth of the sculpture, it would be bitten off!  It was fun to take the kids there and let them put their hand in the mouth.  The sculpture was at the opening of a church and is quite popular so you had to wait in line about half an hour to take a picture, but we had time and it was fun to see...

 
 

From there we walked up toward the Colosseum and before we could see that we could see the Palatine Hill and the Circus Maximus area.  The Palatine Hill housed emperors in its castle and was a place they say even Michelangelo would go for inspiration for his masterpieces.  Augustus lived there in year 27 BC.

The Circus Maximus looked like a huge retention area turned into a park just below the Palatine Hill to me, but Ben said it looked like a race track...sure enough he was right!  Even at one end, it was sectioned off because they are excavating and trying to restore it for visitors to see some of its original beauty.  It was a magnificent race track originally built circa 500BC.

Again, we paused for an outdoor lunch on a quaint side street, but this time, we had a view of the Colosseum in the background...

We had a special tour booked for the Colosseum.  It was a three hour guided tour in a small group of the Forum, Palatine Hill, and the Colosseum.  The special part was that we were going to go in parts of the Colosseum closed off to the public and general tours:  the Dungeon; the ground floor in the arena; and the third tier level.  Right after lunch it was time to head to the tour we had booked and they skies of course clouded up as we were walking and by the time we got to the tour operators office, the skies opened up and it downpoured!!!  I was worried because we had been warned if weather was bad, then we wouldn't be allowed in the Dungeon area, but they assured us that was only for long heavy rains, and this was a quick passing downpour.  They actually waited about 15 minutes to start the tour thankfully and it was barely a drizzle for only 10 minutes or so into the tour then the skies cleared again so we were fortunate!

The tour guide was difficult to understand, and I got some out of his tour, but his heavy Italian accent coupled with his story telling was a bit disappointing, but it was still a great experience overall!  He brought along pictures in the Forum area and would stand in a spot where all you would see was a few columns standing amongst rubble, and then he would show us the exact same viewpoint and how it would have looked so long ago and that was very helpful in imagining what was there long ago.  He informed us there were 1.5 million people living in Rome many years ago and he give the date 476BC as the year the Roman Empire fell. He explained that the buildings originally all were ornate and covered white with marble, but that after the fall, there were hard times and so there were years of pillaging and taking pieces of buildings that were valuable to sell bit by bit...

This is the Forum (a public square for meetings, trade, etc.)

Our tour guide showing us what behind him would have looked like back then in the picture...

We did get to go in the Colosseum and I learned that it could house about 50,000 spectators.  Built between 70 and 80 AD, there was a 100 day celebration when it opened where 11,000 animals were killed in games.  Some species actually became extinct after the games...Gladiators were not always killed as portrayed today, however, as it took 5 years to train a gladiator and the managers did not like to see their men die that easily...

We are on the main arena floor here

The Dungeon part house massive water ducts and rooms where gladiators were housed and animals were housed, they even had a elevator-type lift designed that hoisted the animals onto the main arena floor...The water ducts were used because sometimes they could flood the main arena floor and depict navy battles.  I learned the woman sat only on the upper levels because their out of shape men did not want them to have a great view of the fit gladiators...

After the Dungeon tour we went to the third tier.  It was a fantastic view up there not only of the Colosseum arena area, but of the Forum ruins as well.  It was a fantastic day!

From here you can see where we were standing on the partially reconstructed main arena floor. It is not open to the general public so it was quite special to walk over there.

Alex commented that is was not as big as the Swamp!:)

The ruins of the Forum near the Colosseum

Rome, Italy during Påsklov (Easter Vacation) Day 4

After doing some research ahead of time, we decided that when we toured the Vatican we would do it on our own with the Audio Guide Headphones you could rent there.  By booking our visit ahead of time, we saved a couple of hours waiting in a long line.  Also, many of the tour companies claimed VIP "Skip the Line" access, but I figured out that as long as your tickets were reserved, you got to skip the line too!

So we were set to visit the Vatican on Day 4 and it was really close to our hotel.  As we approached the walls that surround the Vatican, we weren't exactly sure where to go, but sort of headed in the direction the tour groups looked like they were going.  We got to what appeared to be St. Peter's Square and went through security just on the border of it and went right in where massive amounts of people were sitting and watching.  There were a couple of large screens set up with the Pope on it and he was talking, but he looked to be inside, except that when he said something and the audience cheered, you could hear it live on the screen as well as in the crowd so I told Thomas I thought he was up on the stage set up in the front of the St. Peter's Basilica...

Later I happened to zoom in on the same picture to where I imagined the Pope was sitting, and sure enough, it was him!

I had in fact gone the wrong way, but because of that we got to see the Pope speaking live!  That was pretty awesome!

Anyway, we headed back to the Vatican and walked right in.

The kid's Audio Guides were specific for children so it made it a little more interesting for them to relate to the things they were seeing, but the Vatican is filled with 4 miles I believe I read of sculptures, artworks and other collections of Popes from all throughout history.  Of course it was very crowded to walk to the Sistine Chapel which is most famous for its ceiling painted by Michelangelo in the early 1500s, and for where the Conclave meet to elect a new Pope.

There are many rooms they lead you through on the way, and Ben was into the different stories he learned about in some of the rooms, but I think he liked the Gallery of Maps the best...

We also saw paintings by Raphael in the Raphael Rooms...

I think we liked this painting in the Vatican the best because it was on a ceiling and in person, it looks like a broken statue falling to the ground in 3-D...

Of course you were not allowed to take any pictures in the Sistine Chapel, and it was completely crowded in there, but it was really neat to see in person and we are glad we did...I think I was expecting it to be bigger though.  It was a small room no bigger than a large auditorium with nothing in it, just the painted walls and ceilings with stories from the bible.


Here are more pictures from the Vatican courtyard...

Behind us, you can see the top of St. Peter's Basilica...

After the Vatican, we are lunch the we went back to St. Peter's square in hope of seeing the Basilica (entrance was free, but you had to wait in a long line for that). When we got to the square, the line was wrapped around the entire square so being a little tired, we decided to take a break from site seeing and we chilled a little back at the hotel. Later we found a place for more Gelato, yummy...

The boys enjoyed picking out favors...

It was such a great day!

Rome, Italy during Påsklov (Easter Vacation) Day 5

The final day I had reserved for shopping a little and doing anything that we found we wanted to do but hadn't had a chance yet...missing out on going into the massive St. Peter's Basilica the day before, we thought we would test the lines after breakfast that morning.  We got there and again the line was wrapped around the square, but hearing that it really doesn't take that long, we decided to wait and see...after seemingly going nowhere for a time, we checked on it and we were in line at 11AM and it didn't open until 1PM, so we decided to go shop first and then check it out later if we still had time...

We found a shopping area with GAP, H&M, and even a Nike Store...we checked them out and had fun!

Along the way we always found narrow streets that I love walking through...

And I thought the old doorways were great for pictures...

Ben even paused with a car that looks like Mr Bean's...

And here is a cool idea for a motorcycle or scooter...

We saw more street performers...

And really cool cathedral fascades...

At one point we decided that since St. Peter's Basilica was too far away in the other direction to try a third attempt to see.  We settled on a late afternoon lunch and found another delicious restaurant!

Of course I had a cannoli...

It was late in the afternoon when the kids were pretty exhausted at this point, but Thomas and I felt like we had to try one more time to see if we could get into the Basilica.  We got into a long wrapped line (but not as long as it had been), not sure if we would make it inside because at this point it was 5:30 and it was only open until 6:30.  It did move fast and we made it in by 6:15...

From right in front of the Basilica where you see the square...

We were so glad we did.  This church was massive and ornate and glorious!  They say in the highest part it could house the Statue of Liberty standing!  It was such a wonderful delight! It really completed our trip and made us feel like we accomplished so much that we wanted to see and do this week!