A vacation all’aperta: Rome

 Our last few moments in Venice were truly indicative of how far we had progressed on our journey.  We showed up in the Venice train station at 11 AM, trying to catch a train to Rome.  Turns out that everyone was trying to catch a train to Rome that day:  We watched as a young couple in front of us booked the last seats on the earliest available train:  Leaving at 7PM!!  Luckily we were seasoned travelers, and pretty savvy.  So we devised a plan.  We would not try to go to Rome; rather, we would buy tickets to Bologna, which is about an hour away from Venice.  We knew from our travels (and Italian classes), that Bologna is, despite its small size, a major train hub.  So we bought tickets for Bologna, on a train that left immediately. 

Upon arrival in Bologna, we found that there was a train leaving for Rome within the half-hour.  We had a quick and forgettable lunch, and then boarded the fastest train that we have ever been on.  The train only made four stops:  It started in Milan, then Bologna (where we boarded), zipped down to Florence, and then Rome.  It made the trip in only two hours.  We ended up getting to Rome around 5:00 PM:  Two hours before the earliest train would have DEPARTED Venice.  Yay us!

Rome has a terrific metro transportation system, with a stop just outside of our bed and breakfast.  We got off of our train and went down an escalator to catch the metro.  A train comes every 3 or 4 minutes, so we did not have to wait long.  The doors to the train opened, and Amy stepped in.  Shaffer was caught as people streamed out of the train.  Eventually, Shaffer stepped in.  The doors closed, right on him.  After 2 or 3 panicked seconds, Amy hit the emergency door release and the doors opened again.  Now safely inside, Shaffer studied the instructions right next to the door, which very clearly warns against getting crushed by the doors.  Helpful warning. 

Despite the clearly marked sign, Shaffer got stuck in the doors.  Ouch!

Our Metro Station: Manzoni!

We stayed at a very nice bed and breakfast right on a busy street in Rome.  Right across the hall from us were two young Japanese girls.  They were friendly…and had insatiable sweet teeth.  Our host had a jar of candy in the foyer.  We would hear the patter of feet outside in the hallway.  When we next went out, the candy jar would always be empty, and our host would always be refilling the jar; a bemused smile on her face. 

Entrance to our Bed and Breakfast!

We ate that night at a little bar, and had two tall beers and a margherita pizza, that was a bit too oily for our taste.  Then it was off to bed.  After copious wine consumption, that is. 

Our first full day in Rome involved a trip just outside of the city:  To Ostia Antica.  Ostia is a ruined city just outside of Rome.  A thriving port city, Ostia was in ancient times a sort of “door” to Rome itself.  It spans a significant portion of Roman history, and its ruins include both Christian and pagan Imperial buildings and artifacts.  We walked through graveyards, brothels, granaries, temples, forts, and even an amphitheater, which still hosts concerts today!  It was truly spectacular, and had a sense of gravity about it:  Seeing how people lived so long ago grants one a greater appreciation of living in contemporary times.  Words can’t do it justice, so hopefully these pictures will.  

Queen of the dead...sort of....Amy freaked out when she thought about who else had been in this coffin....eww

Ostia Antica!

View over part of the city- It was HUGE!

In the amphitheater

Girl in a hole in a wall

King of the city!

Yep, we have a tripod.

The next day was for us to act like tourists.  We walked to the Colosseum (which is actually known by its proper name:  The Flavian Amphitheatre), as it was only 10 minutes away.  It truly is a remarkable building:  Massively big.  It is pockmarked all over, as in harder times the monument was looted for its iron braces.  A massive cross now stands on one end, a papal addition attempting to reappropriate the Imperial grandeur for the Vatican.  Nearby, the Roman Forum, Palatine hill, and Constantine’s arch.  We soaked in all of the antiquity.  We did not, however, go inside.  It would have cost 20 euro, and there was an approximately 4 hour wait just to buy tickets.  Also, the whole experience seemed a bit kitchy.  Outside the Colosseum, locals dressed as gladiators paced ravenously, offering an “authentic” picture.  Others prowled the streets with roses, forcing them into young women’s hands, and then charging exorbitant prices.  The experience just made us feel uncomfortable.  We are sure that we probably missed out by not going in, but just seeing it from the outside alone was magnificent. 

Colosseum

Constantine's Arch

 

That afternoon, we visited the Vatican.  The seat of all Catholicism, and one of the origins of all Christendom, the Vatican was beautiful.  Inside Vatican square, two magnificent fountains greet pilgrims, flanking beautiful St. Peter’s Basilica.  Again, we did not go in.  Our funds were strained at this point and we had seen many cathedrals already, but we felt a tremendous spiritual connection just standing in the square.  Certainly, we would have loved to go inside.  Next time.  

Piazza in front of the Vatican

Part of the Vatican

 We ate that night in a neighborhood near the Spanish steps, which also was crammed with tourists.  We lingered only briefly at the Trevi fountain, which is really a masterpiece of architecture, and a wonderful sight to behold.  We then had what must have been the worst meal of the trip:  Shaffer’s was a lemon-cream sauce over angel hair pasta.  There must be something about that combination, because it really was one of the worst things he has ever tasted.

Not much room on the Spanish Steps

Trevi fountain

This meal even looks nasty.....

 

Our third day we got a little bit crunchy, eschewing the tourist thing for a more local experience.  We hiked around the whole city.  Literally, no joke.  We started early in the morning by heading to Travestere, a gritty, local area of the town.  We paid entirely too much money for breakfast, and then we just explored.  A reliable map in hand, we allowed ourselves to wander.  We checked out shops, art galleries, and parks.  We walked all over the city, passing the Vatican, walking along the Tiber river, and finding every ancient nook and cranny.  It was wonderful.  For dinner that night, we ate at a wonderful place right around the corner from our hotel: They served champagne before we even ordered, and the rest of the meal was equally divine:  Seafood pastas were there specialty.  We loved it.  On the way home, we stopped and picked up another two litre of wine for 3 euros.  Perfetto!

Hiking around Rome

Crossing the Tiber in Rome

Cooling off in a fountain

Oops....guess we shouldn't have been in the pool....we blame the little girl

Entrance to the Pope's piazza

DELICIOUS dinner!!! 

Our last full day in Rome was of course a sad one.  We felt like we needed to make the most of it, and soak up some more history, but we were just too tired.  We even thought briefly about going to a water park for the day to relax (Can you guess who thought of that idea?).  Eventually we ventured again outside the walls, to the nearby city of Tivoli.  It was quite a long bus ride, and we were very hungry when it ended.  So we ate at a local bar right on the main drag, where the waiter very strongly convinced (forced) us to order the lobster linguini.  Yumm.  Twenty minutes and 40 euros later, we were satisfied and ready to see the main attraction:  Villa d’Este.

Very expensive, but amazing Lobster linguini

Villa d’Este was the personal residence of the illegitimate (obviously) grandson of a Pope.  He was a cardinal, who fell into disfavor with Rome and retreated to Villa d’Este, his own personal playground.  It is a gorgeous 17^th century villa, most notable for its 100-plus fountains, of every shape and size.  Some of the fountains are even inside the house.  All of the fountains are gravity powered.  We wandered for hours, completely mesmerized.  You know how Shaffer loves his fountains.  It was beautiful, the perfect way to end our trip. 
 

View from the top of Villa d'Este

Amy and fountain

Row of fountains

Monkey!

Even these were gravity-powered!  Amazing!

We awoke at two the next morning, and caught a cab to the airport.  The airline initially had misplaced Amy’s reservation, but all was corrected in due course.  At 7 that morning, we left Rome and headed back to our friends in the states. 

Arriverderci!!!

That’s it for our Italian adventure.  It was a great ride, and gave us memories to last a lifetime.  Thanks to all of our friends and family for reading this.  For the last time, we say to you arriverderci, which in Italian means “we will meet again.”  And we will.  Very soon. 

All of our love,

Shaffer and Amy