Day 17, May 11th: Benvenuto a Roma
Location
Roma, Italy
Summary
Boarded train to Roma; hit some sites there including Coliseum, Nero's House, Roman ruins; ate at great restaurant with great atmosphere; spotted Ariel in hostel
Highlight
First look at Coliseum in the afternoon, after dark
Lowlight
Morning rain, morning commute to Siena train station
Accommodations
Bunk bed in 6-bed room at Alessandro Downtown hostel; party of 4 in same room was unbelievably loud before bedtime and in early morning
Word du jour
dove ~ where?
Porter Ass**** Meter (PAM)
0.5
Roma, here we come.
This morning, it was raining hard, as hard as it had rained throughout the entire trip. We caught a bus to the train station along with other backpackers. At the train station we found out we'd have to wait until a little after noon before boarding a train to Roma. So we played gin instead. By the time the train arrived, the skies had cleared.
During the second leg of our trip, we sat in a "Harry Potter"-style compartment with 4 Americans: Jesse & James ( twins ) and Katie & Kim. Notice a pattern?
Since we had read and heard of enough horror stories ( i.e. Ariel ) about pickpockets at Roma's Termini station, we decided to leave the premises as soon as we arrived. So instead of waiting for hostel suitors, we went in search of a hostel ourselves. After three failed tries, we landed on Alessandro Downtown, a well-known hostel in Roma. We then dropped our stuff and headed out to explore Roma.
We got to see what I've always only seen on TV. We saw the Coliseum and many other Roman ruins. It was cool seeing these 2000 year-old structures surrounded by modern cars and modern life.
For dinner we followed my Let's Go guide for the first time and we hit the jackpot. We sat outside and I had bruschetta, ravioli soup, and a cutlet with tomato & red pepper. The tomatoes on the bruschetta were the freshest I have ever eaten.
A TV was also set up outside so people could watch a soccer game that was taking place between Milano and Roma. Everyone was into it, especially this middle-aged woman seated to Porter's right. During a commercial break, my European theme song started playing in the background. So naturally, I got the waiter's attention and asked him if he knew the name of the song. The mystery was finally going to be cracked! He wrestled with the name in his head and it looked like it was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't come up with it.
Memorable Moment: After dinner, we walked some more and then returned to the hostel. By this time, Porter had told me that Ariel, despite her lack of funds, went in search of us in Firenze. So, he didn't know when she was going to join us. He then went to bed and I went to the kitchen for water. The kitchen was filled with people, one of which resembled the Ariel I knew from the few pictures Porter had shown me. I glanced at her quickly, heard her speaking in Spanish, and then walked away. Since I knew Ariel was learning Spanish, I still believed it could be her. Then I spotted her again in the dining area where she was chatting with six other backpackers. I couldn't believe it was her because how could she be chatting it up with everyone at the hostel if she had just arrived that afternoon? I then woke up Porter and he confirmed my suspicions. We had found Ariel! Now we were going to be 3 exploring Roma.
Roma, here we come.
This morning, it was raining hard, as hard as it had rained throughout the entire trip. We caught a bus to the train station along with other backpackers. At the train station we found out we'd have to wait until a little after noon before boarding a train to Roma. So we played gin instead. By the time the train arrived, the skies had cleared.
During the second leg of our trip, we sat in a "Harry Potter"-style compartment with 4 Americans: Jesse & James ( twins ) and Katie & Kim. Notice a pattern?
Since we had read and heard of enough horror stories ( i.e. Ariel ) about pickpockets at Roma's Termini station, we decided to leave the premises as soon as we arrived. So instead of waiting for hostel suitors, we went in search of a hostel ourselves. After three failed tries, we landed on Alessandro Downtown, a well-known hostel in Roma. We then dropped our stuff and headed out to explore Roma.
We got to see what I've always only seen on TV. We saw the Coliseum and many other Roman ruins. It was cool seeing these 2000 year-old structures surrounded by modern cars and modern life.
For dinner we followed my Let's Go guide for the first time and we hit the jackpot. We sat outside and I had bruschetta, ravioli soup, and a cutlet with tomato & red pepper. The tomatoes on the bruschetta were the freshest I have ever eaten.
A TV was also set up outside so people could watch a soccer game that was taking place between Milano and Roma. Everyone was into it, especially this middle-aged woman seated to Porter's right. During a commercial break, my European theme song started playing in the background. So naturally, I got the waiter's attention and asked him if he knew the name of the song. The mystery was finally going to be cracked! He wrestled with the name in his head and it looked like it was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't come up with it.
Memorable Moment: After dinner, we walked some more and then returned to the hostel. By this time, Porter had told me that Ariel, despite her lack of funds, went in search of us in Firenze. So, he didn't know when she was going to join us. He then went to bed and I went to the kitchen for water. The kitchen was filled with people, one of which resembled the Ariel I knew from the few pictures Porter had shown me. I glanced at her quickly, heard her speaking in Spanish, and then walked away. Since I knew Ariel was learning Spanish, I still believed it could be her. Then I spotted her again in the dining area where she was chatting with six other backpackers. I couldn't believe it was her because how could she be chatting it up with everyone at the hostel if she had just arrived that afternoon? I then woke up Porter and he confirmed my suspicions. We had found Ariel! Now we were going to be 3 exploring Roma.