After lunch, we visited the Capuchin Crypt, with chapels filled with bones. We weren’t allowed to take photos, so we picked up some postcards. It was truly creepy to be amongst all the bones shaped into art.

Then we headed to see the Pantheon in the daylight and so we could also see the inside.

The Pantheon just appears right in the middle of the city, and is surrounded by all kinds of tourist attractions: musicians, gelato, and this little Pinocchio wood shop that was in every major city we visited and still managed to be super charming.

Inside, we listened to another Rick Steve’s tour. It was crowded, but not overwhelming. Spent some time sitting at the pews just looking around at all the history around us. I was very excited that the oculus on top was not obstructed under renovation the way it was the last time I was in Rome.

Raphael’s tomb lies in the Pantheon behind glass.

We traveled then to Piazza Navona and popped in a couple churches on the way. We got a little lost finding it, which is funny to think on now since it’s a large piazza. The sun was beginning to set. The activity in the piazza was awesome to see along with the colors painted on the buildings surrounding it. I loved walking through the artists displays there. There were a lot of entertainers here.

It was still early for dinner, so we decided to walk through Campo de Fiori, which during the morning hours has a large market, and in the evening was a more simple square with some restaurants. We crossed over the Tiber and walked a couple streets through Trastevere (not much, since it was getting dark and we were looking forward to getting closer to the hotel before eating dinner).

We crossed back over to the Jewish Ghetto through Tiber Island, and saw a couple ruins, one of which was unidentified (at least from our vantage point). I still don’t know what exactly we were looking at here.

As we headed back closer to our hotel, we saw the Largo di Torre Argentina, which is closed to a site where Julius Caesar was killed. There was also a ton of cats, which it’s apparently well known for.

Finally, we saw the Vittorio Emmanuel monument, also known as the Altar of the Fatherland, lit by the setting sun.

We looked up some places to eat on our walk back, and decided on Trattoria Il Girasole Roma. Mom was very excited that they had a polenta special, but they unfortunately were out! They made up for it though with atmosphere. We really enjoyed the live piano music, the truly authentic, small restaurant atmosphere, and the food, of course.

My feet at the end of the day, covered in dust and dirt! I walked the entire trip, which mom’s pedometer says was 67 miles total, in Sketchers Go Walks, and they were amazing. I never had any pain in my feet, despite the endless walking. I felt like we crossed the entire city and back this day!

Coming up: Pompeii!