As for the last time I blogged, it should ease your very worried mind that all things worked out in the end. The hotel relocated us to a room around the other side of the building, away from the construction and the loud old lady across the hall. The room we have now is larger than the last and at the end of the hall, away from the rest of the rooms. So, hooray for complaining to the hotel staff!
We spent a few days lounging around, to tell the truth. Rome is a big city with a lot to see and we have a very long time here so we thought we'd skip the immediate rush into the city to see what it's all about. Yesterday we finally did some wandering. And what to our wandering eyes should appear? Oh, just the Colosseum sittin' there at the end of the road. Yeah. Kinda breathtaking.
We also took in one of those attractions where the seats move all around while you watch stuff on the screen. You know the kind. This one was called "The Time Elevator" which neither went up or down through time but did sort of jostled around while bad actors read bad lines and we attempted to learn stuff. Lupe and I try to take in these rides as much as possible, having been on the one in OMSI a ton of times. But this time, Lupe got a little motion sick and so it was a hard one to bear through. To tell the truth, it was kinda the suck. And not in that kitchy way where it's kinda cool by sucking. And if you can't find childhood joy at cheesy motion rides then they're doing it wrong. After it was over, we got some waters in front of the Victor Emmanuel Memorial and caught our breath. It was from there we saw old Rome and the Colosseum beckoning us.
There is so much history represented on the streets of Rome. But it is also a major modern metropolis. So what happens is a strange combination of the old and the new; of the ancient and the present. Next to ruins of columns and ancient brickwork sits a Starbucks. Scaffolding hides structures under renovation which have stood for 2000 years. Unlike the majority of Italy I've seen, Rome doesn't suffer from the graffiti that plagues most of the European world. But there are a lot of police everywhere you go. So, yeah.
Last night, after seeing downtown Rome, we ate dinner at a small restaurant called "La Lampada" and had a nice bottle of white wine to go with it. Gnocci in a gorgonzola cream sauce for me and an insalata mista and minestrone for the wife. Wonderful atmosphere and friendly staff. Apple pie and tiramisu for dessert.
We made our way back to the hotel and decided to get a drink at the bar downstairs where we met a lovely couple of people: two east Germans (well, just "Germans" sans direction now... but you get the idea), a Scot, and a Brit. The Scot, Aiden, is a flight crew member for British Airways on vacation with his friend Bea (the Brit) for a few days here in Rome for the hell of it. We've met a few Brits down in Rome for the weekend. It's a strange feeling to know that the European world is so much smaller than all the space we have in the States. We had a wonderful time comparing notes on politics, health care, Doctor Who, and the Brit's uncanny ability to queue like pros over one too many drinks. They were quite lovely. We agreed to meet up for breakfast and a visit to the Vatican for Sunday Mass to see the Pope the next morning but the last Cosmopolitan of the night completely did us in. So, when we finally crawled out of bed at 1 pm or so, we were in no shape to see anyone. Turns out Bea and Aiden did make it out to the Vatican that day and got a wave from the Pope from his Pope-mobile by pure happenstance of location. Jealous.
For our hangover, I did the most touristy thing I could think of and took us to the Hard Rock Cafe where we watched music videos and ate greasy American food to our hearts' content. I did not realize just how much I had missed nachos and burgers. Yum. I even got myself a t-shirt. Yes, I'm that kind of sucker. Worth it in every way.
Tomorrow we hit Vatican City and some chapel that some Italian painter painted once a long, long time ago. Should be neat. I've posted some new photos on facebook from Florence and Milan. I'm working on the pictures from today's Rome excursion but uploading is taking forever. I'll have them soon. Thanks for your patience.
Talk soon. Sleep now.
-d@n
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