A Shift from Rome - The January Storm on the Corniche

We were all ready to go back to work on January 7th when a storm decided to come in. School was cancelled for 3 days. It was cold here by Lebanese standards but I can tell you, the thunder and lightning as well as the torrential rain can be impressive here. Since the drainage in Beirut is not like Seattle, when storms hit, the many tunnels in the city tend to really flood thus one of the reasons for school being cancelled.  While the storm was starting to hit, Tim and I decided to go see what was going on at the Corniche. We arrived to major traffic jams. People were just double parking to take a look. This included buses. Everyone was taking pictures and smiling and impressed. Here are some pictures from that early evening.

This was the first area we saw.  Can you imagine what the waves looked like inside the building?

The waves would completely roll over the dock.

As you can see, the water would just crash up the wall.

A little further down. The radio tower is on the AUB beach which was pretty much completely covered with water.

This little garbage can on a cement block base was not knocked over not by people but by the waves.

These are waves I would expect to see along the Washington State coastline, not along the Corniche in Beirut

As we walked further, the waves were more impressive. Airplanes were flying around in circles above us because it was difficult to land at the airport.

The water on the Corniche was from the waves. It was not raining at this point at all. 

If you walked through where it was wet you were taking a risk. Some of these people choose poorly.

This picture and the next one were Tim's favorites to take. Remarkably, the man did not get wet!

On the way home we took a picture of the minaret of our neighborhood Mosque right by the water.

The next day, I went for an early walk (since school was cancelled....Again!) and ended up with some nice pictures as well. Some of these I've posted on facebook already but for those who don't have facebook here they are again.

This is a small marina on the Corniche. All of the boats were taken out of the water.

I love this picture. The Lebanese flag is still flying strong. I saw it as a symbol of there determination to keep their country at peace with respect and dignity.

The guy sitting in front of me when I took this got soaked by the last wave.

Castel Sant'Angelo Rome, Part 2

The first day we were at Rome we arrived late afternoon and decided to just walk around the neighborhood we were in. As we walked down our street for a few blocks we started to see some trees in the distance and thought, "hmmm, green space??". We went around the corner and there it was, a castle! Immediately, Delaney wanted to go! It was quite crowded and so we decided that we would go on a day we could get there early when it opened. Two days later we arrived to find we were there 15 minutes before it opened.  This was quite the find! I would recommend looking around Castel Sant'Angelo to anyone going to Rome.

We got there so early we walked on the bridge across from it (Tiber River)

Along the bridge were these beautiful angels. There were probably 12 of them in total.

Obviously this was not only my favorite but the seagulls favorite as well.

Another view of the castle with an angel.

Just before we went in, Tim took this picture.

The inside of the castle was not what we expected. It was very open with a lot of walkways around it.

Here we are one level up from the ground. The views were beautiful no matter what level you were on.

A part of the inner wall.

Here is a view of the bridge we were on.

A view of the ground level from above. Notice the piles of cannonballs.

These were everywhere.

Love how the cannon is sticking out and there is the space to use your crossbow or gun.

This was pretty cool!

A view from higher up.

I found this sculpture to be interesting with the wings

The Capitol area in the distance and what the locals call "the Wedding Cake" building. Two giant metal sculptures of the Goddess Nike on top.

Not only was this a castle but it used to be the apartments for the Pope. In fact there is a long raised aqueduct looking walkway for the Pope to travel along if there is any reason for him to leave the Vatican. Here are some pictures inside the castle. There were the Pope's Apartments and a nice museum. It is also the Mausoleum of Emperor Hadrian.

When you first go in there is this inner walkway that swirls up and down the castle.

It also goes all the way around it.

As always, I find myself looking up. This is the ceiling in one of the Pope's rooms.

While the painting was not clear I found it pretty interesting that they painted this on a door.

This beautiful piece of art was on one of the walls.

I took a picture of this harpsichord (I'm pretty sure it's a harpsichord) for my Dad. It was in the Pope's bedroom.

Another narrow walkway up to another area of the museum

This was in the museum as well.

Being a book lover, I was fascinated with this collection. It is a list of all of the Italians who died during World War 1.

A military drum.

Some of the many weapons on display.

And more weapons.

There were quite a few pieces of armor.

At the very top was the Archangel Michael. It was quite stunning.

Another great view.

Overall, this was a great day even though it was cold. Delaney says it was her favorite place to see in Rome.

Off to Rome Part 1

One of the benefits of living overseas is all the new places that we get to explore.  For us Rome has always been on our short list of places that we would love to experience.  New Years provided us with the perfect opportunity to visit this one of a kind city.  We enjoyed seeing all of the regular amazing sights, but we also liked finding those hidden gems of travel.  One thing we all said about Rome.... IT WAS COLD!!!!  I guess our blood has thinned from living in Beirut and its moderate temperatures.  The first place we went was of course the Roman Coliseum!  Usually when we travel we do not go for the guided tour, it just seems to take away from the experience for us.   For some reason we stopped to talk to one of the people who were selling tours and stumbled onto a truly amazing experience.  Here are some of the many pictures that we took of this amazing building.

It was a very beautiful morning and this was one of our first views of the coliseum

As I mentioned we took an amazing tour of the building,  One of the areas that was included was down in the dungeons where the gladiators and animals were kept.   This area is only open to special tour groups under 20 people.  Our group was the only group in here during our allotted time

Family picture time.... we were freezing!

During its first two years of existence the Romans fought naval battles on the coliseum floor. This is one of the ways in which water was let in.  Water was flowing through it when we were there.

A view of the dungeons and the floor

A tour group on the floor

Our group on the floor of the Coliseum.  This again was part of the special tour that the general public did not get to do.  

Our little Roman in her colorful hat!

Not many people realize this but the Coliseum is a consecrated Christian place because one of the Popes saved it from destruction by declaring it a holy place. Christians were put to death in the arena thus the reason why it was consecrated.

A view from another restricted areas.  This is from the top where the slaves and women watched the games.   The tour was a great deal because we saw the restricted areas, the Roman Forum, and we did not have to wait in line.... best 50 Euros we spent on the whole trip!