Our room was very nice and so were our hosts. The room was probably the nicest we have stayed in and it was immaculately cleaned and decorated. We were ecstatic to have a kitchen again and made note of the nearest grocery store. The underground station wasn't very far away and it was a straight shot from the Termini station. They gave us a map and some information and then we left to meet up with Ben.
From the Termini, the three of us set off to find one of Sara's and my bucket list items, the Trevi Fountain. Along the way, we saw a beautiful michelangelo church and we stopped for some lunch as we were all starving. This is probably the only time we will/have sit/sat at a restaurant in Italy. There was a service fee for eating in, but we were too hungry to care and the prices weren't that bad. Having filled our stomachs, we found the Trevi fountain with only a small detour. It was as beautiful and grandiose as the shows portray it to be. The strangest thing about it was how on its own it was. The crowds were relatively thick, but we did manage to get some pictures and throw an obligatory coin into the fountain (legend has it that if you throw in a coin, you guarantee that you will return to Rome one day). It was here that we first encountered a number of hecklers and solicitors that we would quickly come to grow annoyed and bored of over the coming days.
Knowing that Ben had only the one day in Rome, we moved on to hit more of the famous sites, including many of the Roman ruins, a very iconic memorial to Roman government, and the Colosseum. We didn't end up going into the Colosseum because it turns out that tours end after 3:30pm and there was quite a hefty fee to get in. Once again, being a UK student didn't make a lick of difference to the cost. Getting quite tired and hungry again, due to a busy day of sight seeing and travelling, we turned into the flat to cook a nice dinner and relax. It was sad to see Boggs go. Sara and I really enjoyed having him along. He added a bit of flare and puns to everything. Additionally, travelling with so few people can be a bit lonesome. Ben helped lighten the mood.
The next day, Sara and I meant to set off for the Vatican, but not before encountering a little trouble. During the night, Sara's eyes had begun acting up. It had become a little pink and she was in terrible pain, feeling as though something were in her eye, when nothing was. It wasn't pink eye, and she chalked it up to damaging of her retina by her contact. I offered her my Ibuprofen, but there was little either of us could do. As a result, Sara didn't get much sleep that night. Thankful that this trip was coming to its end soon enough, we decided to head out to the Vatican anyway (Sara using sunglasses to protect her eyes).
On the way to the Vatican, we were constantly troubled by people trying to get us to buy them as tour guides. We managed to find our way to the Vatican museum which did have a fee but at least let us have the reduced price. It turns out that if you go on the last Sunday of the month, then it was free, but there was really no way we could do that. The Vatican museum basically consisted of all the treasures and relics that the Catholic Church had been gifted or collected over its lifespan. Additionally, the Sistine Chapel (no pictures allowed, I'm afraid) was located within the museum. With all the art and sculpture (mostly Roman in origin), it took quite a few hours and we hadn't even seen all of it. There was a post office in the Vatican and both Sara and I took the opportunity to send a postcard to our loved ones at home. I mean, what is cooler than sending a postcard from the Vatican?
We left the museum and then headed to St. Peter's Basilica, also in Vatican City, and maybe, try our luck at seeing the Pope. It was a short walk around the walls to get to St. Peter's and then quite a line to get through security. It was interesting to see all the guards in their fanciful attire. The inside of the Basilica was gorgeous and easily the largest church we had been to. Without seeing hide or hair of the pope, we decided to call it a day and turned in for a night of good food and rest.
The next morning, I awoke before Sara and began planning our day. We had hoped to go to Pompeii at some point during this trip. But with prices only getting higher and options dwindling, it was beginning to look like we weren't going to get that chance. So I looked for some alternative sights to see (10 to be exact) and also ways to complete a few errands that we needed to run before we could return to Oxford. We set out with a lot to see and do and by the end of the day we had been very productive. The first of our stops was to pick up a reservation for our train, as a reservation is required and costs money even though we have a Eurorail pass! This was completed with ease. We then went to the Piazza di Spagna which was a staircase that led to a beautiful church and a spectacular view. From there we wandered towards the Pantheon, which was also beautiful and very familiar from my experiences in Assassin's Creed. We then went to the Piazza Novona and Campo di Fiori, two plazas that had fountains and statues. We got some Gelato (very delicious and with generous portion sizes) and headed to Largo di Torre Argentina. Along the way, we finally found an internet cafe and I printed off the boarding passes for our flight to London from Milan. Relieved to have that checked off our to do list, we arrived at the Largo di Torre Argentina which is a grouping of ruins which has been converted into a cat sanctuary. It is also the site of Julius Ceasar's assassination. We continued onwards to our final destination which was Saint Pietro in Vincoli, the church which houses Michelangelo's Moses (which was particularly remarkable for me because I had studied Sigmund Freud's essay on this very statue not a month prior). So as you can see a very busy day. We turned in for the evening.
The next day was quite dreary and our plans did not consist of much direction. We didn't want to stay in for the day, but at least, I was having trouble willing myself to leave. There were some areas of the city that in my research had been suggested as good places to get strategically lost. So we started there, and got actually lost, before finding our way again and then realizing that Roman neighbourhoods, while beautiful, couldn't compare to the Florentine neighbourhoods we visited. Feeling a bit lack lustre in spirit, we got some gelato and headed home. One of the coolest sights we did see on this day, was the island in the middle of the river that cuts Rome in half. It still took us the better part of an hour to get to the nearest metro station and home.
Tomorrow we leave, rather early, for Milan, which is our final stop on this grand European adventure. Over this period of time, I have learned one rather crucial thing about myself. I am a people person. I hesitate to say extrovert, but I certainly like being surrounded by friends and loved ones. If it had not been for Sara, I think I would have given up on this trip much much sooner. Still, even Sara couldn't stop me from feeling quite lonely most of the trip. These feelings made me depressed for a lot of it, meaning that it was difficult for me to conjure up feelings of joy and admiration for the things I got to see and the gift of this travel. Instead, I longed for nearly daily archery practice and meetings of the Society Game Ragnarok. I missed hanging out in the JCR with fellow regent's students. I missed all the new friends I had made, but most of all I missed my family. Over the course of this trip, I realized that I did not look forward to the next 6 week break between terms, if it meant another stressful exercise in travel. So, I booked a rather reasonable flight home for about 2 and a half weeks to break up the travel. After I did this, my heart was elated for the next two days. It was like I had my life back. I have always seen myself as an independent person. I was happy to go to summer camp as a kid and spend a week away from home. I specifically made an effort to go to an out of state school for college (or University). I was looking forward to being abroad and travelling. But, the reality of it was not what I expected, or could have expected. I am frustrated that I couldn't enjoy the moments of this trip as much as I wanted to. To some extent, I blame this on the lack of funds. When you are spending all of your energy spending as little as possible, there are a lot of experiences that you have to pass up (Such as going inside of the Colloseum or visiting Pompeii). I think that I would love to come back to places like these, for shorter duration, with more people and more money.
Arrivederci Roma. Until next time.
Adventures Await!
KH
No comments:
Post a Comment