Giorno Due!

Day two of Roma.
My roommates and I woke up this morning at 7:00 (we were determined to be on time today!), and I have been walking around Rome for the past seven hours! Time to come back to the hotel room and relax a bit before heading out for a walking tour to the other side of the Tiber River.
This morning we woke up to the soft sounds of the Romans whizzing by on their mopeds and in their Citruens outside our open window. We got dressed and went downstairs for our first Roman breakfast. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day because it's where I get my coffee fix..."black gold," baby! We were the first students there. I ate an egg, a slice of prosciutto, fruit, half a cornetto (croissant), and, of course, strong, dark caffe italiano. After the coffee, we were a bit jittery...and really hyper. We left the hotel and walked the streets a bit more (the girls decided to get another espresso down the road) before meeting up with our group for a walking tour of the Colosseum, the ruins of the Roman Forums, the Pantheon, the Arch of Constantine, Piazza Venezia, and Altare della Patria (Dad, you're probably the only person reading this who knows what those are).
The Colosseum was so impressive. I wish I knew more about architecture, but from my limited point of view it was still insanely intricate and huge. Much of it has been torn down, whether by earthquake or by the Romans to build other buildings around the city.
It was fascinating to me to hear of all of the history of Christianity and the early churches around Rome. Christians were slaughtered in the Colosseum by lions and other exotic animals brought to Rome to persecute them. Today, a beautiful cross stands in the senatorial section to commemorate their lives. I have pictures, but can't figure out how to put them on my blog yet! Ugh. Also, the pantheon, which was once a temple for all gods, now is full of only Christian monuments and frescoes. Oh, and Raphael is buried there! Sick.
Also, I got to see the prison where Peter and Paul are speculated to have been held. Ridiculously awe-inspiring.
So yesterday I wrote about how affectionate Italians are. That generalization has been tried and proven in several instances today. In front of every piazza (square/meeting place), there is at least one fashionable couple making out. You look away to avoid watching this intimate moment, and on a ledge you see a man stretched out, head on his girlfriend's lap as she strokes his hair.
After our tour, I went to a cafe for lunch with two other girls, Megan and Sara. I ate a delicious caprese panini with arugula (just for you, Mom!). We were on our way to the Trevi Fountain, but uhhh, got lost...for probably thirty minutes. I asked a vendor in Italian where the fountain was, and he chuckled and responded to me in English. I guess I have work to do!
Finally, we found the Fontana di Trevi, and it was a horrifying pickpocket hotspot. The actual fountain was gorgeous white marble with a huge Neptune looking statue. I threw a 10-cent euro coin over my left shoulder, but I can't tell you what I wished for ;)
We ran into some friends headed back to the hotel, and decided we'd later follow that general direction. Not a good idea. AGAIN, we got lost. For about forty five minutes. We went to the Piazza Barberini, and realized we went in the opposite direction of the hotel. Oops! Finally we found the hotel...and now I'm here. My roomies just came in and can't get wifi on their computers so they are headed to the internet cafe down the street. I told them I'd join, so that's where I'm headed now. Another update soon!