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Published: November 14th 2008
My LL Bean Backpack
How much can I stuff into this thing?We had to scramble this morning to make a train to the airport, so I woke up early, took my place in the bathroom, and wrote up an entire entry, only to have the server crash. I lost it all, so here I am, trying once again.
Just wanted to slip in a plug for my LL Bean backpack. The thing is amazing. I've stuffed so much stuff in there; water, jackets, cameras, snacks, even forks and knives. Where would I be without it?
Yesterday was our final full day in Rome, and we felt we couldn't leave without having seen the two big things, the Sistine Chapel and the Coliseum. What's a trip to Rome without seeing those? The problem is, they are on opposite sides of town, so it was going to take some serious trekking across town. Luckily we are now experts of the Rome Metro system, so it wasn't going to be too bad.
Before I get too far, I just wanted to reiterate how much this town reminds me of NYC. The crowds, the energy, the insanity, and the grungy subway. When you get down in the subway stations, it's just like the
The Metro
Just like New York. New York City Transit system, right down to the graffiti covering the trains. Crazy.
We set out on foot, knowing the forecast called for thunderstorms, though it was clear early on. Just wanted to mention to any future Rome visitors that the Coliseum and the Sistine Chapel are complete tourist scams, the Chapel to a lesser degree because they at least let kids in free. But the Coliseum, I couldn't believe how expensive it was for four of us. We paid more because we were non-European Union members, which I thought was discrimination, but what are you going to do?
We stood in line for the Coliseum in the morning, figuring we'd see that first, before the skies opened up. The scene outside the Coliseum was a nuthouse, and I can't tell you how many times we were hit up for English speaking tours, the guys are like vultures, and it got old, fast. We got to the front and had this brilliant notion that they wouldn't actually check to see if Audrey or Nicholas had tickets and we could sneak them in, but they were on us like flies on shit. They saw right through our ruse,
The Coliseum
Pretty impressive, but like everything, you've really got to see it in real time. and we ended up walking for about half an hour to find an ATM to get more Euros, and of course by then, it was pouring rain. Serves us right, I guess, for trying to be dishonest. Glad we didn't try this at the Vatican.
Well, we went inside and the Coliseum is pretty spectacular, but man was it pouring, putting a considerable damper on our enthusiasm and significantly diminishing our Roman experience. We tried to wait it out, but we had limited time, and our patience had run thin. So we left and set our sites once again on the Vatican.
The sad thing is, in cutting our visit to the Coliseum short, we also missed out on a whole slew of other Roman sites, but maybe we'll get there next time.
We took the Metro over the Vatican, but unfortunately, we still had to walk about a mile to get to the Sistine Chapel, and as I mentioned, it was pouring rain. To their credit, Audrey and Nicholas hung in there and didn't complain, even though they had every reason to.
The Vatican Museum was a madhouse, compounded by the rain, because people were
Inside the Coliseum
They did "what" there? trying to just stay dry. The admission was once again a little pricey, but they did let the kids in free, so it wasn't as painful. I will say this, the museum has a pretty nice collection of art, and it's not just stuff from the old days. I even saw a few Dalis.
We trudged our way through the Vatican in search of the Sistine Chapel, and it seemed as if it took us forever to get nowhere, and we spent amazing amounts of time looking for the place. Fortunately, we weren't alone, as hundreds of other lost tourists were in search of the same thing. Just don't ask me what it was.
The Vatican, as I've mentioned before, is pretty spectacular, and I won't get into any judgements about waste or opulence, but it is a sight to behold. The hallways are like works of art, and the ones leading up to the Sistine Chapel were nothing short of incredible. And then, of course, there is the Chape itself.
I have to confess, it was different than I'd thought it would be. I wouldn't say I was disappointed, it was beautiful to behold, I just
pictured it differently. The paintings and scenes were breathtaking, just different than I thought they would be. I'll leave it at that.
We then set off for the Raphael museum, which Ruth really wanted to see. We hung near the tour groups and got some free tidbits from the tour guides, not to mention the in-depth briefings from Ruth, our resident art historian.
Afterwards, it was time for "Escape From the Vatican." It seemed as if we spent half our day trying to get to the Vatican, and then the other half just trying to get out. The place is a labyrinth, and we were exhausted by the time we got out into the open air.
At that point, not only was it pouring rain, but we had to get back to our hotel, clear across town. We set out into the rain and through the subway system, finally getting back to our hotel too late to eat the lunchtime meal, which ends around 3:30-4:00, and too early to eat dinner, which begins around 9:00. So we got a snack of, what else, pizza, got some drinks and pastries, and watched some DVDs that the owner of
The Vatican Square
Lots of fun outside. the hotel let us borrow. It was a fitting end to our final day.
Today we are heading back to Madrid, where we'll spend the night and then fly out to the US in the morning. Until then, thanks for reading.
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