Rebekah Lucy Loves Rome. (And her mum and dad.)

My hākui and hākoro have been and gone, a five-week visit to the Northern Hemisphere done and dusted in the blink of an eye. My heart! I didn't have as much time with them as I would have liked on account of my pesky 9-5 which consumes most of my Sitting Around and / or Doing Nothing hours, but I was able to have an amazing mini break to Italy with them.

From Rome to to Siena to Florence to Pisa to Faenza, I was blown away. And that was just the pizza. Will we share one? No we will not, MOTHER. Get your own. I've tried to write this a couple of times since, but I don't know how to put any of it in to words, really. I'll give it a crack because it's nice to (try to) remember.

I 100% fell in love with Rome. Stick a fork in me, I'm done.

We spent our first afternoon in the Vatican Museum, there's room after room of incredible... stuff... to behold in that joint but my highlight was the Galleria delle Carte Geografiche, or the Gallery of Maps. The clue, believe it or not, is in the name and the room contains a series of topographical maps of Italy based on drawings by a Friar called Ignazio Danti. It took him three years to complete all of the panels, which were commissioned by Pope Gregory alllll the way back in 1580. The ceiling, which was my absolute favourite bit, wasn't completed by Danti himself but a series of artists. If I lived in Italy I'd need a standing appointment with a chiropractor I'll tell you that much. All of the looking up would just never get tired. Of course there were other incredible ceilings throughout, and the Sistine Chapel, and a collection of Vatican postage stamps (nerd alert!), but I've not been able to unsee that ceiling in the Gallery of Maps.

Although we didn't go in on that first day, I did get my first glimpse of St Peter's Basilica. My nearest and dearest can attest to my love for domes - I've been having a relationship with St Paul's probably since the first day I got my first contract job in London (he just doesn't know it yet), but I've never seen anything like St Peter's (soz Paul). It is magnificent, domey perfection; the tallest dome in the world, rising over 136 metres from the floor of the basilica to the top of the cross. Outside the basilica, the vast St Peter's Piazza is home to The Witness, an Egyptian obelisk (er, I've got a major thing for them too by the way - it all started in Paris in 2011!) from the 13th century BC. Just a little something the Romans picked up on a recent international jaunt, you know. It turns out the Romans are as partial to obelisks as I am, there are eight ancient Egyptian, five ancient Roman, and collection of more modern obelisks dotted around the city. A quick Google while we were there told me there was an Ethiopian obelisk in Rome until 2005 too but apparently after it was struck by lightning (!) in 2002 it was dissasembled and returned to Ethiopia, which is... kind of nice I guess? I feel like if someone borrowed one of my obelisks I'd be pretty keen to get it back too. We had dinner at the Piazza Del Popollo on our first night (pizza and wine for me, fuck your judgement) and guess what? Another obelisk you guys! Flaminio, brought to Rome by Augustus in 10 BC.

The next morning we were super geared up to see the interior of St Peter's... but so were 17,000 other tourists (planning fail!) so we decided to check out some of the other sites instead, first visiting Castel Sant'Angelo, which as Dad helpfully explained is "where the baddie hides out in the Dan Brown book." It's also (more importantly, some may say) the Mausoleum of Hadrian, started in 135 AD. In the 14th century, the popes started using it as a bit of a fortress or a hide out which is pretty cool. It's also round, which I appreciate. Round is... kind of domey you know. Our second day also took us to the Piazza Navona. Not specifically for another obelisk but... This one's Roman, Agonalis it's called. I've read that the Earl of Arundel tried to ship it to London in the 1600s but thankfully his efforts were shut down. We moved on to the Pantheon next. Again, not specifically for another obelisk but Ramses II, another Egyptian beauty sits out front in the Piazza della Rotonda. The Pantheon is, of course, mind-blowing. I did a whopping two years of Classical Studies at high school so my inner geek was delighted to see (and touch) the Corinthian columns for real, to see the tomb of Raphael, to stand underneath the oculus. Also, who knew the Trevi Fountain was that big? Not this guy. It is tourist chaos at the fountain but a mere hundred metres down the road it was easy enough to grab a table in the shade for more pizza. Seriously, I'm lucky I didn't turn in to a carbohydrate on this trip. We got a bit lost for a while after lunch, but righted ourselves and found the Spanish Steps, which as Vic Mak had warned me were literally just stairs. And then I got that song about them stuck in my head for the rest of the day. "Rome is burning, you can taste the embers. I am walking hard on Spanish steps." You know the one? No? Just me and my ridiculous retention for lyrics then? Good. Guess what we found at the top? Obelisk! Ha. Even I'll admit it was starting to seem like a bit of a joke at this point but there it was, Sallustiano.

Two things I would like to interrupt myself to mention about Rome which are awesome: the city is plumbed so there are beautiful water fountains on every street - a God send in the late Summer heat; and the metro is air-conditioned, again with the Gifts from God in the heat!

Again, my Inner Classics Geek was pretty excited and emotional for the Colosseum, you guys I have got to stop crying inside churches and historic sites. Mum got a bit choked up too, I guess it's emotional because it's just so cool. Wow, eloquent! Maybe especially when you come from a wee far off land like Aotearoa, you know. And sure, thousands upon thousands of other people get to visit these sites every day too but standing inside a real, tangible piece of ancient history like that, one of the modern day Seven Wonders is pretty mind blowing. The scale of the place is incredible, how much of it still stands is pretty amazing too, and I was pretty touched by little things like ancient graffiti - stick figures for the win! An artist after my own unskilled heart...

We headed out to the old part of town that evening, Trastavere which is on the south bank of the Tiber. It's a beautiful wee spot, narrow cobbled streets lined by medieval houses. We chose a little restaurant with outdoor seating and I had a bowl of the best risotto I have ever tasted in my life - cheese and asparagus, a creamy dream. Washed down with more Italian wine. When in Rome... Oh, that... actually works here. When in Rome! Yes!

The next day, our last day, we had to make it to St Peter's so we got up early, covered our shoulders (several people had not done this, several people were sent away again to fetch scarves) and headed for the basilica. Best plan ever, the crowds of the previous days were completely non-existent and we walked straight in. The interior is like nothing I have ever seen on this Earth and it is ENORMOUS. Words and photos will never do it justice. My advice is to go there and see it for yourself and if possible... never, ever leave. I know one thing for sure: I have go to back one day. We were able to get up inside the dome too, inside a dome you guys! Then out on to the roof to admire the exterior of the dome and the incredible views of the city. If I could design my own personal Heaven, that'd probably be it. A dome with a view. A dome in the sunshine lined with cheesey snacks with a view.

Our last stop in Rome was the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill which was the centre of Roman public life for centuries. We did this without any guides or maps because... they didn't have any. I didn't really know what I was looking at except... columns, all of the columns! And the Temple of Romulus which is the best preserved Pagan temple in Rome.

It's an important spot to check out map or no map, according to Roman mythology the Palatine Hill was the location of the cave where Romulus and Remus were found by the she-wolf who suckled them and kept them alive. The story says the twins were later found and raised by a shepherd and his wife, never knowing their true origins (their father was Mars, so you know... a God). One day they do find out who they are and they decide to establish a new city of their own. Romulus prefers the Palatine Hill, Remus prefers the Aventine Hill. There is a vote, which they each claim to win, so they fight and Remus is killed. Romulus founds his new city, names it Rome, and the rest they say, is history.