On to today! Today I spent four hours on a train to Roma! The train was one of the nicest I’ve been on so far and was gloriously air conditioned. The ride went by pretty quick and before I knew it I was getting on the metro. I took the metro to the Coliseum stop so I could meet up with Tommy G! Coming out of the metro, the Coliseum is right in front of you. It’s kind of ridiculous how many ruins there are as you’re walking through Rome.
I headed over to the Arch of Constantine which we had set as our meeting point. I was a little early so I took some pictures while I waited. I was so excited when I saw Tommy walking over. It’s been great being with a friend and reminiscing about RPI. We walked back to his apartment so I could drop off my stuff and then get some lunch. Rome is another maze-like city so it took us a while to get back. Tommy hasn’t quite figured out the lay of the land yet.
We found a little pizza place to grab some lunch and then headed out for some sightseeing. Tommy lives in Trastevere which is past the river and a little further south of the main sights. Our first stop was the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It’s a massive monument! It also caused a lot of controversy when it was built because it was built on top of some ruins.
We climbed as high as we were allowed to and the view of the surrounding area was really pretty.
We wandered up to the Capuchin Crypt, but I couldn’t go in because I was wearing shorts. For some reason it is disrespectful to view bones that have been arranged into different patterns with your knees showing. Oh well, I’ve got a lot of time in Rome so I’ll go back later dressed appropriately.
Then we hit up the Trevi Fountain and threw our pennies in, guaranteeing that we will come back to Rome again. It really is an impressive fountain.
From the Trevi Fountain we went to the Pantheon. I got to go inside this time! The last time I was in Rome, the Pantheon was closed and I was horribly disappointed. The inside is very nice and they hold mass there as well.
Our last stop for the day, on our way home, was Piazza Navona: three awesome fountains and tons of people.
As we continued on home, we found another fountain that reminded me a bath tub. I’ve decided that I have to take a picture of as many fountains as I can while I’m here, so here’s Tommy with the bath tub fountain!
Tommy has two roommates and one of them turned 24 today so we had to celebrate! I bought a bottle of wine for 1.35 euros and it wasn’t bad either. In general, items in grocery stores are more cheaply priced than at home. We also saw a jug of wine that comes in the apple juice containers. Note the price (3.99).
After the grocery store, we hung out around the apartment and then went out to a piazza where we saw a capoeira demonstration and random break dancing people. Italy really comes alive at night. I haven’t done much “going out” at night, so this was a lot of fun. After the fun in the piazza died down we headed back home to get some sleep.
My first day in Rome was lots of fun and I look forward to the next few. Since I have so much time I’m going to be relaxing and only taking in a few sites each day, while hanging out with Tommy and his friends. Christine is also coming down for the weekend to see one of her other friends so I’ll be seeing her tomorrow and Sunday as well. No set plans for tomorrow, but I’m sure they will involve something fun.
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