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Published: June 28th 2009
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Trevi Fountain
Surrounded by tourists day and night Rome is enormous, with enough sites to keep you busy for weeks. Thankfully, I'm to the point where I no longer feel obligated to see everything on the map and in the guide books. So I'm taking in a few things a day, and leaving time for day trips to escape the busy city.
I love my hostel because the staff is so friendly and helpful, you get a free bottle of wine, free internet, free breakfast, and the location is convenient. In the morning, I get my pastry and cappuccino, and go to the market right by my room to buy cherries, apricots, peaches, or nectarines for lunch. Then I can walk a couple blocks to the termini station where I can take a train or bus to anywhere, or I can just walk to sights from the hostel. I'm doing good with the food now that I have to buy it. Free breakfast, fruit for lunch, then some sort of protein and pasta for dinner. I had the best lentil soup of my life here.
There's no point in taking about each site, as it would take me an entire day. Just take my word that there
Giant Park
Called Villa B...something. It was gaint and full of couples making out. But that's everywhere in Italy. are unbelievably huge, old beautiful buildings and statues everywhere you look. If you want to see pictures, let me know, but don't ask me what they are. The few things I haven't seen yet are the biggest, the Colosseum and Vatican city, because I'm saving those for T.T.
My day trips have been much more interesting.
Tivoli
No, not the apartment complex in Gainesville. It's a hilltop town about an hour east of Rome. I took a bus there and got of a a random stop without a map, but was able to follow the few signs to Villa Gregoriana. The guild book had said nature lovers would enjoy it, and it was spot on. It was a true escape from people and cities. It was sort of a man-made park that came about when they created waterfalls to stop the flooding caused by the river. It had ruins, history, caves, and waterfalls, all easily explorable by many trails. I'm usually nt one for history or man-made things, but combine it with nature and I can love it. I've decided I want to live in a cave there if I can't find a job.
[h1
On the Spanish Steps
to give you an idea of the crowds left]Sperlonga
Oh, what a day. It was very...Italian, I'll say. I may have made some decisions that weren't the most safe, but don't freak out, I was fine.
I took a train about 70 minutes south of Rome to the beach. I was asking some guys ho to get form the train station to the beach, and was offered a ride instead of taking the bus. Hey, I saved a euro. Oh, and this guy didn't speak english, but we managed to have a bit of conversation about ho the day as beautiful and Sperlonga is beautiful and Italy is beautiful, and also what I was doing there. We arrived at one of those sections of the beach full of umbrellas and chairs you have to rent, and I didn't see a public section, so I went for it. A few minutes later, I found a public part, but they refused to give me a refund. Which worked out better, as you will see.
I lounged in the shade, napped, swam, walked, whatever I desired. I only wished I had a book with me. I did lots of people watching and saw lots of boobs and butcheeks.
Colloseum
View from the top of this giant monument dedicated to a lost soldier. Italians are serious about their tans. The beach was rather perfect, with soft sand, crystal clear cool water, no rocks or shells, and mountains in the background. A some point, Jack (or Jake?), the guy who gave me a ride came over and gave me water and food, and a slushie and offered to take me on a paddle boat. Now this was a luxury paddle boat, with a slide, and lounging sections. e were on that thing for hours, paddling to really beautiful sections of the beach, with coves and more mountains. It would have been my perfect fantasy, but he didn't fit the picture. Too old, too fat, and he smoked. About have way through the battle boat ride, he started signing my name, and saying I was beautiful, and asking for a kiss. I spent about an hour saying no. He didn't understand why- he wasn't married, I was mature, it as Italy. I couldn't really explain in Italian...He wanted me to stay there forever, but I got him to take me back to the train station around 5 (where he bought my ticket). While waiting for the train, another 30 something italian guy started doing the
Tivoli
I'm in love. same thing. You're beautiful, can I have a kiss, why not. I had to break out the rejection section of my phrase book. I'm pretty much fluent in pickup lines and rejections now...
I applied sunscreen twice, but while on the boat I could see my front getting red. My stomach is still on fire. It's bad. Which is why it was good that I paid for an umbrella. If I didn't have any shade, I would have had third degree burns.
On the train, I met 2 guys ho had been at the same beach, also terribly sunburned, at staying at my hostel, They were americans in the military in Germany, currently. We got dinner (free for me again) and I learned about military stuff, which was pretty much what I imagined. It's a waste of time, according to them. They say most guys are disrespectful to the locals in the country they are stationed in, don't want to learn the language, start fights, and will be stuck in the military forever. They were nice, cute guys, but not for me.
Grosseto and Marina
I'm currently in Marina, which is a beach town just
The Beach
Sperlonga in the morning. west of Grosseto, in Tuscany. My grandpa got me in contact with his friend, Marco, who has been a wonderful host. I got here yesterday afternoon and he took me on tours around the town. We walked up to a castle at the top the town and got an amazing view of the beach and the huge stretch of preserved pine forest that dominates it. He has the best dog named babooshca who goes with us everywhere. Marco is a chef, and has his own restaurant in Grosseto, but works at a hotel in Marina during the summer. He took me there for dinner and served me Pasta with octopus and yellow pepers, clams and swardfish with rosemary, and lemon gelatin with raspberry cream. All with sparkling white wine. Oh, I don't think I've mentioned the sparkling wine. It's in red and white, fairly common, and amazing. Bottled water is also big here, especially frizzante (fizzy). I always drink tap water, and I've been fine. After that, we went to the best gelato place in Grosseto, and possibly the world. It was called sweet kiss and it was the most crowed ice cream place I've ever seen. It was like
Sperlonga
A view of the town and beach on my back to the train station. there were giving out free money at the counter, how eager people were to get there. I was overwhelmed, so I had Marco pick for me, and he picked the best. 3 scoops- extra chocolate with orange (almost black, with strips f candies orange peels), nutella and marscaopne (I think my new favorite flavor, and lucky for me, it was the first that was scooped, so it was what filled the cone), and hazelnut (with whole hazelnuts inside). I am going to miss gelato so so much.
Today I'm just going to explore. Too bad I'm still terrified of the sun, because this beach is beautiful, and about 30 seconds from his house. I'll just keep my clothes and sunscreen on.
Again, I have many more pictures and stories to share later. I just don't want to spend all my time on the computer. 😊
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