Recipe: Tuscany 2006 Journal Entry #6-Roma (with photos)

Tuscany 2006 Journal Entry #6

Roma

We head to the train station early in the morning, parking at in the sports arena parking lot in Buonconvento. DH remembers to stamp our tickets in the yellow machine before boarding. He is so great at remembering these little things, like stamping tickets and taking pictures! If it wasn't for him, there would be one, maybe two pictures of each of our trips. I sometimes think I must be standing around with my mouth open in awe most of the time. I see the pictures when we get home and think when did he take that? I remember being there, but don't remember him getting that great shot of whatever.

The seats in the train have nice high backs. This is the slow train to Grosetto, meaning it makes a lot of stops in little towns. Prevalent cement fences catch our eye, how long have they been there? They are covered with lichen and some are leaning this way and that like headstones. Some of the way is thru heavy woods sometimes with grape vineyards along the muddy rivers. Beautiful country. Other parts of the trip are along the sea. We get off the train in Grosetto and buy round trip tickets for Rome. This is a faster train, not so many stops. At the stops it does make more and more people are getting on at each as we near Rome. A young man starts playing the accordion for tips. So we're trundling thru Italy on a train to accordion music we look at each other are we in a movie? Going thru the tunnels makes our ears hurt on this train, like going up and down the mountains when driving. We keep trying to pop our ears. As we get into Rome we see that there is a huge running marathon going on.

Termini train station is very big. There are also trains to the airport and the metro here. We find a tabacchi shop in the station and by a map. (Perhaps not the BEST map, in retrospect.) We spend some time finding the street on the map where our hotel should be. The streets are very crowded and the parking lot at Termini is an absolute zoo. Can't count the busses and cars there. It's quite dirty in this area and there is lots of graffiti we begin to miss the Italian countryside .

After walking a bit we spot our hotel sign. We take a flight of marble steps to doors that say Hotel Augustea and Hotel Republica. The two hotels share the same building and floors. In the Augustea lobby we find a very nice, VERY funny gentleman running the reception desk. I told him I knew we were early, but could we leave our luggage there? He banged his fist on the desk and said, "NO!, I give you room NOW! I give you very good room!". It is, indeed a good room, two flights up and very nice. We arrange with him to take a bus tour of ancient Rome that afternoon. They will pick us up in the lobby.
Then we head off to find some lunch before the tour. Next door, down a flight of stairs to a noisy trattatoria for a corner table and Roman-style lasagna for DH, wine and lamb chops for me. The lamb arrives with some with lemon wedges and is very good along with a great plate of cold grilled vegetables. Red and yellow peppers, eggplant and zucchini. Very good bread. It appears to be a very popular, busy trattoria.

Back in the lobby we wait for our tour and read the Italian newspapers and magazines as best we can. The clerk keeps us very entertained, he is really a hoot. When I try to pay him for the tour he asks, "Why you want to pay BEFORE, what if no good? Wait until done, if good, THEN you pay!" I wonder if the tour company will go for that. A young woman comes up the stairs to get us and the clerk begins joking with her, she waves him off, "Ciao, Ciao", obviously not her first contact with him!

Out in the street, we climb aboard an immense tour bus and it takes us through the tiny, crowded streets of Rome. We finally give up watching traffic, it's just too nerve wracking! The bus takes us to the tour office where we pay (BEFORE the tour!) and we are sent to another bus. There are several guides speaking in different languages, then they realize there are only English and Spanish speaking customers, so it cuts down on the repetitions. Because of the marathon, they tell us, some of the roads are cordoned off so there will be more walking on the tour than usual. We walk down thru the Roman Forum onto the first 2-lane road in the world. It's hard to believe we are really seeing all this, it seems like a dream. I can't take in everything the guide is telling us or what my eyes are seeing. I have sensory overload big time. It's been excavated a long way down, I didn't realize that. A man who had read many of the histories began to think this would be a good place to dig. He was able to secure funding and permission and this is the result! There are SO MANY people, but the area is SO BIG! WE walk down to the Coliseum. It's just amazing. We don't go inside, there just isn't enough time today. There's lots and lots of trash around, we hope it's because of the marathon. Many disposable foil blankets have been discarded. We pass a woman begging for food to feed the feral cats of Rome. That must be an endless job! Our guide says the women bring out dishes of pasta for the cats, she says "Roman cats don't eat cat food!"

We get back on the bus and drive past the hippodrome on the way to St. Paul's Church. St. Paul's so beautiful. When the sun hits the gold front of the church it's blinding. There is a service going on inside one part. It's moving even though I can't understand much of what's being said by the officiate. We walk down thru the catacombs on the way out.

Back onto the bus to another bus that will take us to our hotels. There are three men, two guides and the driver arguing about how best to get to each one. No animosity, just lots of discussion. Can't believe there aren't scores of people hurt every day in the streets of Rome by traffic. Maybe there are. It's amazing the driver makes these turns and twists with this huge bus in this traffic and doesn't flatten every pedestrian, Vespa and Smart Car in his path! The bus drops us around the corner from our hotel.

We go to our room to rest and relax a bit and try to process everything we saw. Miami Vice is on the television dubbed into Italian. Quite amusing.

We decide to wander the streets a bit in search of dinner. Finally we decide on the first one we saw, a Chinese food restaurant. There are many in Rome. The food is excellent. The menu is arranged like an Italian menu. First, Antipasti. Under that heading are listed egg rolls and numerous Dim Sum. Under Risotto is Fried and White Rice and so on. The dishes are brought out in the Italian style, one course at a time, and small amounts on small plates. The rice noodles with vegetables is simply outstanding. We share Har Gao (shrimp dumplings) and DH has Sweet and Sour Pork and Fried Rice. They serve every table quartered blood oranges for dessert. Yum!

Halfway thru dinner DH gives me a look I recognize after 31 years of marriage. He sees someone he knows. He CAN'T! We are in ROME! In a CHINESE FOOD restaurant! This is NOT possible! The people he recognizes are at the next table. DH can't place them and they don't seem to recognize us. He keeps thinking while I keep telling him IT'S NOT POSSIBLE! Well, it is. It's a very small world. Again, what are the odds? We're in Rome .in a Chinese food restaurant. I mean, if it was the Trevi Fountain or something ..

We had gelato on the way home, a nice tart lemon for DH and Nutella for me.

The night clerk at the hotel is the exact opposite of the day guy. Perhaps the day clerk used up all the energy and left none for the night guy.