Wow, it’s been a busy few days! We’ve done vast amounts of walking, pizza eating and photo taking. Rome is an incredible city and there is so much to do and see!

On Friday we visited the Vatican. We walked around the museum, which houses hundreds of rooms full of statues, paintings and tapestries. The Sistine Chapel was the last building we visited. It wasn’t what I expected but it was still a very impressive feat of painting. There were thousands of people so moving around was proving difficult with my crutch. We didn’t have time to visit St Peter’s square but we had plans to do this on Saturday. Check out the snaps below.

Brandi left us in the afternoon to fly back to Korea. Amazing effort and commitment Brands for making the long trip- I’ll see you soon! Mum, Lindsay, Jean and Roz left us as well. Again, thank you so much for flying to Rome to support me for the conclusion of the trip! I had a great time with you guys!

In the evening, I went out for dinner and drinks with my friends from Bedford. John, Stanley and Sam arrived from England to celebrate with me! Cheers lads for your effort and support!

Saturday was another busy day. Sam and I went into full tourist mode and made it to as many sights as possible. We saw St Peter’s square, castle Sant’Angelo, the Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Altare della Patria and the Coliseum. In the evening, all of us boys went to watch football at the Stadio Olimpico- AS Roma versus Napoli. The atmosphere was electric with the fans singing passionately for most of the match. Roma lost 1-0 but it was a great experience. Everyone was feeling very tired by the end of the night so we made our way back to the campsite.

On Sunday morning, I attended an event hosted by APMAR. Their mission is to raise awareness of rheumatic diseases and help those affected by a range of problems. The event consisted of three different stations: an art tent, a kitchen tent and a sports tent. There was equipment at each station that recreated the conditions of arthritis or another rheumatic disease. For example there were gloves that made it hard to grip a knife or basketball. It’s great idea to give people the chance to be in the shoes of someone with a rheumatic disease. I met the president  and enjoyed chatting about her experiences. It was great to meet you and see the wonderful things your organisation is doing. Check out the photos below!

In the afternoon we went into the Coliseum and did an audio tour. It’s a magnificent building with so much history. We also walked around the Arco di Tito near the Palatino, which is a short distance from the Coliseum. By this point, I was feeling very tired. I’ve been using my crutch to walk but it only helps to a point. In the evening we relaxed and rested for the long drive to Venice tomorrow.

Rome- you’ve been amazing. I urge you all to visit this historic place but please make sure you fly or drive here….by bike takes a lot of effort!