The Diary of Evelyn Forrest’s Trip to Palestine
Wednesday, April 30, 1930
Rome, Italy
Ordered a taxi this morning, for there are three special things we must see. The Vatican Museum is the first on the list, 
hundreds of people were already pouring into it when we arrived. It is far beyond anything I have dreamed of both in extent and grandeur. It was impossible to see everything in our limited time. Next we drove out the Appian Way and thought of Paul’s arrival and welcome to Rome. We visited the catacombs—they cover acres of ground and go down six stories underground! We did not take the time to explore them for we had already seen the catacombs at Syracuse, Sicily.
The Coliseum where so many Christians were slain by the bloody Nero, and the ruins of his Golden Palace just opposite, were the next places we visited. Then we hurried to St. John’s and the Sacred on Holy Stairs.
Our train for Paris left Rome at 3:00 pm and we decided to ride second-class and sit up all night for we must change trains at 6:00 in the morning. Reached Florence at 8:30 pm and all the passengers in our compartment got off there except a very refined German young lady; we quickly pulled the curtains and turned out the lights so no one would come in to disturb us.