24 Jun 2019
We disembarked from our Disney Cruise early in the morning just in time for a heat wave in Rome. We didn't have access to our AirBNB until the afternoon so we walked around Rome with the kids, getting hotter and hotter and more exhausted. We were not looking forward to our afternoon Vatican Tour because we were all exhausted and hot. But we went for our scheduled 3pm tour and Simona turned everything around. Right away, she gave the kids (ages 5, 6 & 8) a clipboard and pens and made them treasure hunters. They had a scoring sheet and she gave them points every time they answered questions or found objects she asked them about. We toured with her for 3 hours through the Vatican and she kept the kids engaged the entire time. They were so excited to get points and ultimately win the game. The adults enjoyed her tour as well. It was the right amount of detail for adults and we enjoyed answering her questions and finding the objects she had us search for. We were in Rome for another 3 days and the kids spent the rest of the trip coming up with score sheets for each other to complete just like Simona had done for them on day 1. Thanks Simona for turning our first day in Rome around and setting the foundations for fun future days as well.