Becoming a Canadian

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Passport Canada e-mailed me and said that my passport was ready to pick up. So we caught the train from Florence into the train station in Rome (Termini). We decided to try a different hostel and were recommended the Yellow Hostel which was a lot cheaper than the Pop Inn we stayed in last time.

The night we got in we toured around the ancient part of Rome armed with our camera this time. The Coliseum was tricky to get good photos of at night. There were a few genious venders there selling tripods. But (partly due to our cheapness again) we avoided the vendors by using some 2000 year old ruins as a tripod. Hey, it worked!

On our way back to the hostel we saw a bit of a crowd gathering around some giant 007 posters. Following a hunch, we waited for about an hour and a half (with our hands in our pockets to outwit the pickpockets this time!) and were rewarded with a 'Ciao' from Daniel Craig himself. Alex was beside himself because 007 is his alltime favorite.

The first thing I did the next day was walk to the passport office to regain my Canadian status. Boy did that feel good. The unfortunate thing was that, because my birth certificate was also stolen, my new passport is only valid for one year. Most countries want a passport that is valid for at least six months, so we only have until May 2009 now to finish our "year long" trip.

Once I got back from the embassy Alex and I caught the Metro to the Vatican. We were accosted by people trying to convince us to pay for tours into the Vatican to avoid the lines. Wisely we said no thanks (mostly due to cheapness). The line looked long, but as it was just a security check it only took about 15 minutes to get to the front. Despite the fact that there were tourists taking photos of every square inch of the place, the Vatican still felt like a pilgrimmage even for non-believers like us. The Italian Renaissance art was overwhelming. There wasn't a square meter of wall that wasn't influenced by Michelangelo or Raphael. First we went to St. Peter's Basilica, then through the Vatican Museums where most of the Renaissance art is, including Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel. The Chapel was obviously beautiful, but the guards constantly 'Shhhhh-ing' took away from it a bit.

Tired from the day's sightseeing, we took it easy that night, ate a Kebab (my new favourite fast food) and watched some Survivor on our teenie computer before going to bed. The plan is Venice tomorrow!

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Photos

Vatican City
In front of St. Peter's.

Rome
Alex looks a little too happy about this news paper.

Rome
The Roman Forum.

Vatican City
Inside St. Peter's Basilica.

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The Coliseum.

Rome
007's Aston Martin at the Quantum of Solace Premier in Rome.

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Alex looking absolutly heavenly in St. Peter's.

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A Swiss Guard. Did you know that these guys are true linguists. They are required to speak Italian and at least one other language. Remember these guys are real soldiers.

Vatican City
Inside the Vatican Museum.

Vatican City
The gardens behind St. Peter's. Regular people aren't allowed back here so we had to get a shot out the window.