On to Rome, Italy

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Wednesday, June 3, 2009 ~ Walking from the apartment to Ferrovia (train station) the next morning bright and early was quick since not many people were yet up and about plus the fact that we'd already done it quickly the day before. Our train left Venice about 9:00 or 9:30 a.m. We were traveling on the EuroStar which is a fast train that speeds up to 186 miles per hour. It only took about 4 hours to travel between Venice and Rome and we arrived at the Termini train station around 1:00 in the afternoon. I had booked a hotel room in the hotel next to another hotel I had previously stayed in and so I knew exactly where we needed to go. We only had to walk about 4-5 blocks to get to Hotel Romae on Via Palestro which shares a front door with Hotel Continentale where I had stayed before. After checking in we went to our room. It was quite small with only room for two twin beds that seemed smaller than usual and were crammed right next to each other. Everything in the room was white, white walls, white bedspreads, white lights, white bathroom walls and all white furnishings. Quite spare which understandably relates to the cost which was not so much considering it was Rome. I'd stay there again just due to it's location and ease for getting around Rome without spending an arm or a leg to enjoy much fancier settings.

We set off to discover Rome. First stop, Coliseum. We debated whether to purchase at least one audio guide and declined but wished later that we had gotten one. We had a lot of unanswered questions about what had gone on before as we walked around the bottom and top of the Coliseum. We did come upon an exhibit though that had large placards explaining a lot of history and so we spent a lot of time reading each of them. The exhibit was quite large and we'd already walked through a good hour of it when I needed to sit down for a rest. Jeff took this as boredom on my part and he suggested we leave. Despite my protestations that I wasn't bored we left. Outside we found a shady place on a grassy hill overlooking the Coliseum and we each laid down for a rest. Unfortunately, the sun soon shone back upon us and it was necessary to get up and get going again. No rest for the weary! We walked over to Circus Maximus to appease Jeff's curiosity on the area. Memories of Charlton Heston riding his chariot in a race spurred him on. Circus Maximus is an ancient hippodrome and mass entertainment venue located in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills. The site though is now a public park and retains little of it's former use much to Jeff's great disappointment. Continuing on, we walked up Palatine Hill which overlooks the Forum next to the Coliseum. I had never been here before and relished in seeing a new place in a city I had already visited two times before. I told Jeff that I loved his leading us as he was taking me to new places. Quite fun! At the top of the hill there were a lot of people and all of the activity made it appear that they were setting up a concert venue. Already there were a lot of people sitting behind the ropes to maintain their seats for the concert to come many hours later. I looked for signs but could not find any indication who was to perform. From here we came to one of the busiest roads in all of Rome and somehow we needed to cross over to the other side of it. It is at least five lanes across with at least four roads converging into it. There are no pedestrian walkways to be seen. A few nuns were beginning to walk across and so I quickly suggested we follow them as who would run over a nun in Rome??? We came upon Trajan's Column which is also something I've never seen in my prior visits. There was a continuous frieze winding up around the column from the base to the very top. Such intricate detail carved into the marble. It was quite amazing to see up close. Jeff consulted his map as we were going to walk to the Spanish Steps as well as the Trevi Fountain. Although I had already visited each of these iconic tourist traps I told Jeff that he should not come to Rome without seeing them. As we were headed to see the Spanish Steps first we came upon a full military troop marching in formation and playing instruments and singing. The first group was dressed in khaki uniforms and carrying blue pennants. Alongside them was another group dressed in a different uniform with wide, bright red stripes running down the length of their pants. They were the military band. Soon a group of men dressed in combat fatigues and carrying guns came marching from the right in a cadence while swinging their left arms up and down. All of the groups came together and they were singing and playing their instruments. Really cool. I do love Pomp and Circumstance. Must be from my marching band days in High School.

We walked down the hill and found the Spanish Steps. We found a step to sit on in the shade but only stayed for a few minutes. Funny how the Spanish Steps are a famous icon in Rome and all they are, are “steps”. How did that ever become a big deal I wonder? We then walked to Trevi Fountain which at least had a cooling mist about it due to the waters. Now we’re getting a little hungry and very thirsty. We decide to walk back towards our hotel and look for a spot to sit outside and at least enjoy a cold beer as, you know, it’s now beer-thirty. There are many outdoor restaurants lining the streets in Rome and you’d think it’d be easy enough to find one to just sit down for a cold beer, but no. Not really. We found one casual looking little place that did indeed sell beer but they had no bathroom and that was also a requirement, at least of mine. Finally we found a great place. It was in front of our hotel which does create ease in using a bathroom as we just used our own room. We have a table at The Yellow Bar. A couple of the large Amoretti’s and we can now call it good. Jeff is totally mesmerized as he realizes we are sitting next to the front door of a hostel which has a non-stop parade of young lads and lasses going in and out of the door. He is enjoying himself thoroughly. Next to the bar is a restaurant and we figure that's as good a place as any to eat dinner. We sit down next to a couple and Jeff immediately engages them in conversation. The woman is from Chicago and works on the radio there. She is with her boyfriend who apparently lives long distance from her and they've been enjoying a vacation together. They state that they've finished their aperitif and would we like to drink the remainder of their carafe of wine. Now we're talkin'! The conversation becomes more lively and we enjoy their company a lot. Soon though, they leave. Our dinners arrive along with our very own liter of rosso. A young lady in her very early twenties sits next to us and Jeff now is quite primed for conversation and he persistently engages her in conversation despite her attempts to keep to herself. She eventually opens up and talks to us about her travels on her own. By now, we've consumed leftover wine from the other couple and our liter is almost finished as well. Both Jeff and I are feeling quite drunk enough and so we offer the remainder of our liter to her. She sips her glass of wine slowly and it appears she will not finish it on her own and yet we just can't help her out. We pour ourselves into bed across the street and up the stairs.

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Photos

Jeff and I at the Colisseum
Rome, Italy