New Year’s in Italia

September 15th, 2008 by A World Vacationer

From our Win a Trip Contest
A travel story by - Kristy M.

It was Winter break of my first year in college. As my friends all went home to their families, Heather & I had a better idea for vacation. We were off on a plane to Germany to visit Heather’s sister, Dana, who was studying in Germany for the academic year and had a surprise waiting for us on the other side of the world.

After having been up for over 24 hours, Heather and I were ready for bed when we landed in the Black Forest. Before we dozed off, Dana surprised us with flights to Rome, Italy for New Year’s Eve/Day! We were ecstatic … neither of us had been to Germany, let alone Rome in the same vacation!

A few days into our vacation, we left Deutschland for beautiful Italy. It only took us a few train/bus/cab/airplane/etc. rides to get us there. We got checked into our youth hostel, as all young travelers do, and set off to view the history of Rome. By the end of the day, we had seen the Coliseum, the Pantheon, Fontana di Trevi, and all of the old buildings remaining in Rome.

We awoke early the next morning with high hopes for the day. After walking around for what seemed like hours and taking breaks to enjoy the delicious food of Italy, we ended up in Vatican City. Vatican City was beautiful, especially on New Year’s Eve. It was magnificent. There were small stands set up – almost like a craft show – displaying gorgeous jewelry, handbags, and many more neat accessories. As dusk started to approach, we had no idea what was in store. Within minutes, nuns started running around and people started to gather in the middle of Vatican City. At this point, Dana, Heather, and I had no idea what was going on.

To our incredible surprise, Pope John Paul II was making his annual speech on New Year’s Eve in the middle of Vatican City… and we were there for it! Of course, we had no idea what he was saying in his speech. But the sheer fact of being only feet away from Pope John Paul II, one of the most influential people in history, was something to remember forever. By then, we figured it could not get any better. But after the Pope made his speech, he was carried away in his “pope-mobile” that drove by within five feet of where we were standing. Here we were on New Year’s Eve in Vatican City standing five feet away from Pope John Paul II.

After taking in the magic of the moment, we realized it was time to celebrate the New Year. We hurried off to the Spagna, where we ran into crowds and crowds of people. It was the most chaotic scene I have ever witnessed. After being too close to drunken fights and fearing for our lives, we decided it best to go to the Coliseum for the midnight strike. We rushed over to the Coliseum and had 15 minutes to spare before the clock struck twelve. A show of fireworks ended our night, and year, with the beautiful Coliseum in the background.

Of course, this story is so special because the following year was unfortunately the last year of Pope John Paul II’s life. I had just been through so many incredible experiences in one day, and I was able to ring in the New Year with two of my best friends. I could not have asked for a better vacation experience and I doubt I will ever be witness to something so spectacular again.