Today I’m back with part two of my Italy trip! Last time we covered Rome….if you want to check that out, go here.

When my travel buddy Karla told me she really wanted to see the Vatican, I was somewhat hesitant. I’m not Catholic so I wasn’t sure if I would get a lot from the experience, but I’m happy to report I was wrong! SO wrong! The Vatican was one of the places I felt most moved on this trip, despite not even being sure if I wanted to go. Plus, I got to knock another country off the list of places I’ve been! Did you know the Vatican is a different country even though it’s inside of Rome?

The one thing you should know if you go the Vatican is that you should most definitely buy your tickets in advance online. If you do, you get to skip the world’s longest line. Seriously. I thought the two hour line through security at JFK was awful til I saw all of the people waiting outside the Vatican museum. It was insane! Since we got our tickets online in advance we bypassed everyone and made our way inside a lot more quickly. We saw two parts of the Vatican, the museum and the Sistine Chapel.

All of the tapestries blew me away! They were incredibly tall and very detailed. The amount of work that must have gone into creating them is astonishing!

The Sistine Chapel has a strict no photography policy, but I had to take this photo to remember it by. I tried to be discreet as possible! I can see why it’s important to not spend all of your time taking photos there…it’s magnificent. And I wouldn’t just say that word for nothing! It really is incredible to see this with your own two eyes. I felt so moved by this huge, incredible work of art. I could have stayed there all day! I still can hardly believe I got to see this in person.

The next two photos are poor quality because they were taken from the window on the train, but I just wanted to show what a beautiful train ride it is from Rome to Florence! I had the honor of enjoying this view with a glass of champagne…what a way to spend an afternoon, right?

And this is Florence, or Firenze as they call it in Italy! We stayed at the adorable boutique hotel Antica di via Tornabuoni, which I can’t recommend enough. The following photos are from our hotel rooftop! THAT VIEW THOUGH. Am I right??

Florence was a little less hectic than Rome, but still very much a city. Florence is really one of the most charming places I have ever seen in real life. It looks like something out of a storybook!

I still can’t believe I had the opportunity to go on this trip even though it’s already over and the blog recaps are written…it was the trip of a lifetime for me, and I’m so glad I had the chance to go and see some of these sites for myself. I can’t wait to go back! One day…