All roads lead to Rome, even the ones from rural North Carolina

Yesterday, I met with my university’s Director of International Programs and our Study Abroad Coordinator to begin the process of reviving my student trips to Rome. We chatted for about an hour about the potential for the trip, and they are thrilled to assist me in providing an opportunity for students to go to Rome and to earn real college credit while using Rome as our classroom. Because of Covid-19, our plans for 2020 got derailed and 2021 never got off the ground. With any luck, I’ll be in Rome in May 2022 with a group of students, sharing my love and passion for Rome.

I love taking students to Rome. Their initial reactions upon seeing the Eternal City’s many treasures bring me back to my first time going to Rome as a teenager. That’s not to say I am sick of Rome, or that seeing the Colosseum doesn’t still leave me dumbfounded. But there’s nothing quite like that initial awe and wonder of discovering Rome. I remember when my wife came over with me for the first time. She could only describe that first week as “surreal.”

Our plan is a two-week trip across the city. From ancient ruins to modern museums, we’ll walk and eat our way through everything Rome has to offer. Well, not all of it. Anyone who knows Rome knows that two weeks is hardly enough time. I’ve been visiting and living there off and on for decades and I still feel like I learn something new or discover some hidden gem every time I go. 

Over the next few weeks, I’ll post here about our daily itinerary: what we’ll see, where it is in Rome, why it’s historically important, and why I love it. I built this itinerary because I think it’s the best way to see Rome and also because it covers some of my favorite things along the way. Some sites are well known: The Vatican, the Colosseum, we’ll even take a trip to Pompeii. But others are less known to the casual traveler: Small churches, tiny museums, parks, and galleries not on the typical tourist track but definitely worth checking out.  

Stay tuned for more Rome. Up first: millennia of history on a walking tour of Rome’s center.