Saluti da Roma!

Ciao a tutti!
Well, we've made it to Rome, the Eternal City. But first, an update ...
It feels like a very long time ago that we were fare-welling families at Adelaide Airport, brimming with excitement and perhaps some trepidation. Our flight up to Singapore was very smooth and given that we had a long stop, we managed to get on to the free tour of the city sights, including a stop at the Gardens by the Bay for the light show illuminating the spectacular man-made trees with a classical music soundtrack synchronisd to the lights, and a close up view of the amazing Marina Bay Sands hotel complex. A visit to the Merlion offered a different view of the skyline, and already lists of places to revisit on our way back have been made. The delightfully (?) tropical heat blasted all of us, but before too long we were on our way back to the airport ready for the second leg of our journey to Italy.
Again, the flight was very smooth, which allowed some of us to get as good a rest as is possible when you are savouring the delights of Economy. Those of us on the left side of the plane enjoyed fantastic views as we flew over the snow-cappped Appennine Mountains and crossed over Rome. It was quite breath-taking.

After a very long queue to have our passports stamped, we finally made it out into the spring sunshine and headed off to our hotel. Leaving the bags, we set off on our first Metro ride to Termini, the main station, where SIM cards needed sorting, window-shopping was completed, and snacks were consumed, along with a much-needed coffee for me and first doughnut of the trip for Michelle.
We then set off on my usual Day 1 stroll, which takes in the Trinità dei Monti and the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the monument to Vittorio Emmanuele II, the last king of Italy, the Forum, and the Colosseum. Giselle and Maria have invented a new game called 'Spot the Smart Car' and there have been many comments on Roman parking already - after all, if there's a space, go ahead and abandon your car wherever you like.
Having taken in some of the sights, we made it back to the hotel for long-awaited showers and a rest before an early dinner - ready for the language classes to begin tomorrow.