Travel Day Monterosso to Roma

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Our train left at 9am for Pisa where we had a change for Roma. One change on the way back made such a difference than the umpteen we had made heading to Monterosso. We seem to be old hats at lugging and dragging suitcases now and posting 5kgs each back to oz has certainly made a difference.

The train followed the coast from Pisa and then went across to Roma. Was a welcome change of scenery from the greenery. We both managed to grab a bit of sleep on board too so that was a bonus.

Rome’s train station looks like an airport in some ways and is just as busy. Our accommodation unfortunately is located in this area as Rome is packed to the gills at the moment. When we booked our flights in February we couldn’t fly into Rome at all as all seats were sold, hence the start of our trip in Madrid. The accommodation was pretty much the same in our budget range, we could have stayed about 10-15km’s outside of Rome or if we wanted right in the heart for AUD$4-500/night. It certainly doesn’t have an Italian feel, more like China Town and R has commented that it reminds her of Surry Hills in Sydney.

So our hotel is about 5 blocks from the station so we walked dragging our bags…so grateful they are on wheels. Our room is on the top floor, has a (very) small terrace and a tiny spiral staircase up to the rooftop…perfect place for a spa, but we are in Rome so none! Luckily this hotel has an elevator (bonus here for most 3 star places!) and then just 10 steps to our room. Now I have to fill you in on the 10 anything’s here. We have found whenever we have asked questions the answers usually come in 10’s. So if we ask how far away, it’s 10 minutes, how many stairs, 10 stairs (even though it is one flight), so everything is 10 this or 10 that. Now if we asked how long it takes for the elevator to reach our floor from the ground floor and were told 10 minutes I’d believe them as it’s sooooooooooo slow and also tiny just like the one 1 in Florence.

After we unpacked a little and a bit of a rest it was time to eat so we asked the receptionist for a local place. She recommended a Trattoria a few blocks away and wrote something on their business card so we would receive a discount. The food was great, we both had pork with roast potatoes as we needed a break from pasta (as lovely as it has been!). Back to our hotel for a much needed sleep.

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