Follow along on the daily adventures of David and Falco in Rome

3/3/09 David - WE'RE IN ROME. We finally made it. It only took staying awake for over a day and that much flying to finally get here. Most of the flights were on time until the last flight. We got on board and then they said they were having techinical issues that needed fixed. But once the got fixed they then needed to get gas. But we're here. It is overcast and humid here. Big change from home. Kind like a mixture of California green, Midwest rolling hills and Colorado's sporadic housing.

We had our first hurdle that we are still trying to overcome. After getting to the B&B and getting a shower Falco and I tried to go to Rome and see a little. We walked to the train station and found out that they don't take American Express traveler's cheques. And "Visa is not everywhere you want to be". So we took a walk around town and ended back up at the train station. We then asked for the bank to try and change the checks. So after pointing in our handy dandy translation book we walked to the bank. Only to find they were closed for the midafternoon. So we decided to go back home.

As soon as we were at the B&B and we sat down both of us collapsed and fell asleep for a few hours. When we woke up, the nice owners tried to take us to the post office which said it would change the cheques online but refused. We found out most of Italy doesn't accept traveler's cheques. So much for globalization. So we are back now at the B&B waiting for the next day. We will go to the Spanish Steps tomorrow and try the American Express office to change them. And hopefully start our trip.

Actually the owner's are very nice. They have apparently taken pity on us and have given us some dinner. Sue is funny. She said "everything is s***ty the first day. Either something goes wrong or you get ripped off." So things can only go up from here.

I promise to have some photos tomorrow of what we see but here is the photo of the room.

Falco is a little shell shocked. He keeps taking pictures of himself and saying "We're in Rome, We're in Rome". Or just looking for cover.

Sorry A but there won't be any pictures with the pig. Apparently it died a while back. But they do have 4 peacocks, 2 ducks and several chickens. There is 3 dogs and a lot of cats. I think they have 2 but I have seen more than that. Still sleep deprived so I think I will finish my meal and finish my new book and try to get some sleep and adjust to the time zone here. David

Day 2 March 4, 2009 We finally got into Rome today. First we had a fabulous breakfast. After breakfast Sue took us to the train station here in Campeleone and showed us how to read the train schedule for our trip back. So first we got on the train and then went to the metro station to get to the Spanish Steps. The metro would be considered a subway in the States. Its underground and packed with people. After getting off the subway we went to the American Express office and exchanged the traveler's cheques for cash. Finally we can do something. Then Sue walked us up the Steps and around the block. They are called the Spanish Steps because the Spanish Embassy is at the top. It is also called for another reason that I can't remember. But when we got around the corner we stopped at an "ice cream parlor". Basically a Gelato shop. Great mango and passion fruit gelato. Their fruitina looked great but I stuck with the cup of gelato. Fruitina is the gelato in between 2 halves of a piece of fruit. Sue then showed around the small area as we went back to the Termini. The central location for the busses and the trains.

This is when we turned into tourists. Sue gave us further instructions and said she was now "kicking us out of the nest". She's a mom by the way. Falco and I then got on the double decker tour bus which is open on the top. This was way cool and cool temperature wise. It took about 2 hours to go around the city but it included an audio tour that described certain sites along the way. This worked in two ways. 1. We got our bearings, which didn't help a couple of times, and knew where everything was so that we could plan what we wanted to see. 2. The ticket is good for 24 hours and we can hop on and off at certain locations within that time period. So we still have time for tomorrow.

After the tour Falco got bored. So I had to kick his but and tell we have a lot more to see. Which just confused him more. So we walked around some more. So we decided to walk to the Colloseum. Everything looks far away on the map but in actuallity it was closer than we thought. That's how we got lost a couple of times because it was easy to walk past the street we needed to turn on. Once we got to the Colloseum we walked around it to the front entrance where people are dressed up like Roman soldiers to get your picture taken with them and where people notice right away that you are a tourist and offer you a private tour. Sue told us that something like that could happen and that it is a good deal because you didn't have to wait to get in but Falco decided to talk to me in Navajo which just confused me and ruined the whole joke. So we canned that and decide to walk some more. So instead we ended up at Palantine Hill. The foundation hill of Rome and the site where Augustus Ceasar built his home. The foundation part is true because the musuem showed us the original site information.

The musuem is where Falco had fun mimicing the statues. . But it was a neat location. The emperor had his own circus and garden and other things. . Nothing was labeled on the grounds so you could only guess or try and find it in a guide book that Sue lent us. We even got to go into Augustus' house. There were three rooms the let us in which were below ground but still had their plaster and paint on most of the walls. It was fantastic. I wish I could take a picture. But there was no windows so those rooms had to been dark and lit by a lot of lamps.   So we continued down the hill to the Roman forum area. There was a lot of things that were just colossal. Such as the Basillica di Massenzio which was built by Constantine. . I had to keep dragging Falco along even after the whining and the tantrum . So after the Palantin hill we continued on to the Pantheon. This was neat to see the mixture of Roman architecture and design for their temples and the conversion to a Christain church.

So after the Pantheon we decided to finally get something to eat. Our first Italian meal. I had gnocci and Falco had a pizza. The crust on a pizza reminded me of a Indian flat bread. Lighter than our pizza doughs. The one he picked had a lot of cheese on it, cherry tomatos, basil and olive oil. Not what I expected. We also had a caffe each. Basically a single shot espresso. Not a lot of crema but there was crema. So ha-ha Starbucks. You serve crap. It had a fabulous taste. No bitterness at all. Just like I remember serving. I think we may need to fine tune ours a little but it is very close. I wish I could bring it back to truely compare it.

So after dinner we decided to go to the Trivoli Fountain since it was getting dark before we went back to the B&B. This is where we got lost. Helps to hold the map in the right direction. After the fountain we hopped on our bus and headed home for the night. We plan on getting up early tomorrow and using our pass again and getting to the Vatican before the lines get to big and then hit a musuem or two. Also found out when we got back that Sue hooked me up with a pizza place in town where she knows the folks and their going to show me how to make their pizza. How cool is that. Just got to get the timing right. But that sounds like blast.

I did learn 2 things today. Both have to do with the camera. 1. Don't take a picture in a moving vehicle unless you have it set on sports mode. 2. Don't take a picture in a dark space or at night without it being on night mode. I will now have to fix my Pantheon and Trivoli fountain shots when I get back. I do have one of the fountain after I remembered to switch modes.

March 5, 2009 Today's trip was the Vatican. No Falco, I said the Vatican. First we started out to take the bus to the Vatican and use our time remaining but we just missed the bus. So We decided instead of waiting for the next one and then waiting for it to take us there we would walk. That was a big mistake. Not only did it rain but it took longer than we thought. Fortunately Falco got to try his hand at haggling and bought an umbrella. He did a good job. Got the guy to keep saying he would take no profit. Which is highly doubtful.   So after getting his umbrella, we continued to walk to the Vatican. Where we were immediately picked out as tourists and had some people come up to us and offer a tour of the Vatican. Which according to Sue is a good thing. We decided to walk around first, but after not figuring what else we wanted to see in the rain we decided to go for it. Which it turned out to be a good deal. Not only did we get to have a tour guide give us information but we didn't have to wait outside in the 1 hour line to get in.   It was amazing inside. The main problem is that all the artwork is so old you couldn't use the flash to take the pictures correctly so some of them turned out dark . But there is so much artwork that is more than just Christain related but pagan or Roman . So it begs the question what more does the Vatican have in its collection that isn't seen? I mean they even have the carcofigi of Constantine's mother and the bathing tub of Nero. I'm not complaining, someone has to preserve it but you just wonder . Especially since what is considered appropriate is at the whim of the Pope. Just like when Pope Innocent hacked off all the "inappropriate" parts of the bodies or had them covered .   It was just neat to see all the transformation of the artwork and some tricks of the artwork. Like in this image , it looks like the ceiling panel is a sculpture but in actuality it is a painting that is using the shadow and black highlight to make it look like a sculpture. They even did things in the tapestry like with Jesus' eyes would flow you . I did learn that all the statues in Roman times had inlays for the eyes and the statues were not white but were painted and very colorful. Here is just a neat stain glass piece.   So after the tour we decided to get something to eat. I tried the pizza this time. The crust is crispy like when you make a cheese crisp under the broiler but using dough. The crust is light, not like American pizza crust. Falco says he still likes mine better :) You also notice that the food laws are quite the same as in the States such as having pigeons as guests in the restaurant. . So after lunch we decided it was time to go. It was a short day in that we only saw one thing but it was long in how much time we were with that. Our legs are tired and sore also. So hopefully we can get with Sue's friend tomorrow otherwise we will try for Florence or Naples.

March 6, 2009 Today we decided to go to Napoli (Naples). But it was a slow start because someone was dilly-dalling and we missing the train by a couple of minutes, and the connecting train was late. But we did get to Napoli. We went up to the tourist desk and asked a little about the town and after she showed us more castles and churches we saw a sign for Pompei and we decided to do that instead. So we had to get on another train. This one is shorter. But I was glad not to go to into Napoli   .   Since it was late and we decided to get a bite to eat first. I had their basic Insalata Caprese but on a sandwich instead. It was a couple of basil leaves, mozerella, tomatos, and a little olive oil on a crusty hoagie type of bun. It was fantastic. Their espresso left a little to be desired for. Had a good look, but was weak on flavor. The olive oil is probably what made the sandwich. If I was coming straight home from here I would try to bring some back. Falco had a margarita pizza. It was like eating a pizza on flat bread. The cheese was melted but reminded me of not fully melted cheese. The crust was a little thicker than others we tried and which I liked better.   So after eating we walked across the street to the Pompei site. I wish I had brought a heavier rain coat. Because it was raining the whole time and the temperature had dropped. But I will stop complaining. My own damn fault.   Here is the first thing you see once you pass the entrance.   No behind you silly. The first thing you notice is that they built beautiful walls with designs using the bricks and then covered them up with plaster and paint. I mean some of these designs people in the states would pay good money for.     One of the first things you get to see is the entrance to the Temple of Apollo. I think even Falco was so impressed that he might switch religions.     Here is another view.     After the temple is a big open circus area.     It is just amazing what is still standing. And around one side of the circus is some storage of the things found like people     dogs     Don't feel sad Falco :(     I mean they had roads, road signs, fountains at intersections with designs.     The even had everything for a pizza shop. A mill     A service counter     A three tub sink (in this case it is a four tub sink)    and a toilet  Oh and yes of course the pizza oven.     All kidding aside these people had great houses, garden spaces and flooring.     Apparently I don't have the shot I want to show the house exactly. But I know what I would like for Ramah. A strawbale version of a historic Roman villa. Wouldn't that be cool. I mean we can even have our faces painted in the entry way like they did.     We didn't get to see much more because we were being shooed out. At first we thought it was because we were in a place we shouldn't. But as we got to the entrance we found out they closed at 5pm in March. Oh well. You could really spend a couple of days here.   prossima formata: Unknown. That means next stop unknown. We were thinking about doing the pizza thing tomorrow but Sue says it her friends busiest day so we should wait until Monday. Which is good. We will plan on not doing anything else on Monday.

March 7, 2009 Today we went back to Rome. Our first stop was Bocca della Verita, the Mouth of Truth. Legend has it that if you put your hand in this fountain and you are a liar it would hold onto it until it cut it off. So that is what Falco pretended.

Which got a few laughs from the people behind us. Then we went into the Santa Maria in Cosmedin. A beautiful church. Very small but when you have hundreds within the city most are.

Then we walked to the Circus Massimo

and to the Emperor's tower.

This is where he had a secret entrance to watch the races. But I first had to let Falco hug some trees. Desert boy.

After watching the touring Segway's go by we decided to go to a museum. We picked the Musei Capitolini. This used to be two palaces that were converted to museums housing private collections that wealthy Roman's had for safe keeping of their heritage. I loved the sculptures

and the ceilings

of most of the museum. I did not like the upper floor with the 1400-1600 period paintings. Most I did not understand because there was not description or to me it was too dark. There was also a couple of rooms that had huge paintings on the wall that were very gory and had no description of what was happening. But the sculptures had tremendous detail. There are some that had mustaches

on the men and dripping blood from the wound.

Here are some of the statues

There was one sculpture of a Hermaphodite. Which I didn't expect and I don't think most people caught.

After that we got some food that Falco liked but I didn't really care for. It was a real simple panini. Just spinach and mozzeralla on white bread with the crust taken off. And the espresso was bad. We did walk into the McDonalds just to check it out. Expensive over here. But they did have an espresso machine but nobody was manning it. We got some gelato at a nearby store and went to the train station to get the tickets for going to Florence tomorrow. That was fun in of itself. I told the lady who spoke English that we needed tickets to get home today and that we need a round trip ticket for tomorrow to Florence. So we got the tickets and left and I looked at them. What I noticed was that she sold us one way tickets to Florence. So we went back in and explained it and she said she didn't understand. Even though she kept saying yes. So it will be a long ride to Florence tomorrow. Apparently it is 3 hours away with this train. But will have to make the most of it.

March 8, 2009. What a long day that was. Today we went to Firenze (Florence)

and went via the regular train. Which apparently stops almost everywhere, just takes longer. Firenze in some sense is similar to Roma in that it is steeped in history. But where Roma is in the ancient past

with a mixture of recent past, the ancient dominates, Firenze is in the recent past.

Even though I don't like big cities, I like both of these towns and there is a feeling of familarity almost home like. But I know from my facial look I am of Gaul and not Roma. The walks to places is short as it is in Roma but being the weekend the lines to get in to everything was long. So we didn't see a couple of places because the line was about an 1 hour wait to get the ticket. I enjoyed walking around and seeing the city and the buildings.

It reminded me of a period movie set in Venice the way the buildings looked. The streets were setup with vendors as well as the shops themselves. Some open, some closed. More foreigners in Firenze then in Roma and more couples as well. Could be just the weekend and it was a beautiful day. More people with wrinkles also. We did get into one museum that was home of two popes that were from the Medici family of Firenze. It was even home to kings of Firenze if I understood things correctly. Fabulous church.

We also sat at a full restaurant. The second time in almost a week. I am hoping to do more on Tuesday. Both Falco and I had pizza. He seems unwilling to leave his comfort zone and had a cheese pizza. The only change he made was that he had a Corona with it. All the way to Italy and he can legally drink and all he has is a Corona. Silly boy. I tried the local wine. Not being a person who knows his wines, I liked it. The pizza I had was a vegetariana. It had a very thin crust. Almost paper thin and the cheese is melted but not browned in any way. It was very light on the sauce but had large cuts of vegetables - eggplant, olive (like our canned ones), artichoke, a big long slice of zucchini, and mushrooms. There also seemed to be a drizzle of olive oil but I don't know if it was on top or below the cheese. I also tried the house tiramisu. This one was two slices of cake each layered with a sweet cream and chocolate sprinkles on top. You could only taste the coffee if you ate the cake by itself. I did ask for an espresso and got a american espresso apparently. Very long and not much to it.   We then went back to the station to go back to Campoleone. But our train was delayed in going back and we missed our connection and had to stay a few hours in a hostel/hotel. Not much to say about that. Stark white, echos and can hear others snoring. So we slept for a few hours and then caught the early train back.   Oh and we found the next fast food upgrade.

March 9, 2009 Today was a lazy day. The only thing we did was go to da Bruna and learn about pizza making. We were a bit late for learning the dough making but they did give me the recipe and made clear on what flour to use. Now all I have to do is find it in the states. Georgia demonstated how to stretch the dough which was fascinating to watch. I think it is going to take me some time to practice it. She even told us about the sauce to use. The even let Falco and me taste afterwords. This was fantastic. The best we have since being in Roma. It is quite different then pizza in the states. It took only five minutes to cook. We have a lot of work to get ready to do something like this. Falco and I want to thank Bruna and Georgia for all their help and advise they gave us. As soon as we are up and cooking pizzas we will send a picture. The rest of the day was just working or in Falco's case sleeping. Here is Bruna and Georgia.

*************************

March 10, 2009 Our last official day in Roma. Falco wanted to visit second hand stores. But I think that was lost is translation. We did end up going to San Giovanni

through the aquaduct

and into the market outside Roma. There Falco attempted is haggling skill again. But he let the shopkeeper know that he liked the jacket and almost pissed him off trying to get the price Falco wanted. But eventually he got the coat.

I did see something familiar but with an Italian twist.

After Falco got his coat and stopped fuming about letting the shopkeeper know he wanted the coat, we continued walking. This seemed like a long day but I think that was because we didn't have any specific destination in mind and didn't spend time in a museum but just walked around. But in doing so we finally made it to Piazza Navronne.

Which was full of artists and a local band.

Then on to our way to a cafe

for some more espresso. We found the church of S. Andrea delle Valle. So here is your church A.

It is interesting that the EMS has problems here as well with people getting out of the way. And this city is packed.

But on the way back to the terminal we found this guy. We had to sit and watch people go by and see their reaction to him. He would shift his weight every once and a while but then he would reach out and swing his sword which really got the reactions. I tried to get a video but I wasn't quick enough.

There was a fun time on the train back. It was a mostly full train and these two ladies were sitting across from Falco and I. One lady apparently got a new phone that had a camera in it and was taking pictures. So when she asked her friend to take hers all sort of things happened. Like the train turned and sun was put directly behind her. Or every time her friend took a picture she would tell her it made her look fat or there was something wrong with the picture. So they would keep trying. But they were laughing about it. At one point, she calmed down to take a picture but said something and her friend snickered so I started laughing which caused them to laugh. The funny thing is that I didn't understand a word but from gestures, facial expressions and what was happening I could understand. It was great fun watching them. Unfortunately they got the picture before we got to our stop because I wanted to tell them in English good luck getting their picture. Because I think that would have been funnier to let them know I understood everything without knowing Italian. &nbps; So now it is get up early (3AM) to get to the airport for our total of 10 hours to Kenya.