Rome

We left Columbus and flew to Atlanta. After a 7-hour layover, we left for Rome. Our friends, Claire and Arlene, flew from Orlando to Atlanta and we took the same flight from Atlanta to Rome. We could have chosen a flight from Columbus that would have let us have only 1 1/2 hour layover but we wanted to make sure that we made our flight to Rome. Good thing we did, because 70 people missed the flight to Rome due to storms in Atlanta that afternoon. We boarded our plane an hour late because the back of the plane had 2 inches of water on the floor from the storms. What we didn't know until we arrived in Rome was that two of our suitcases had gotten soaked through. We were thankful that the clothes didn't stink. We simply hung our clothes around the hotel room and smiled thinking that we would laugh at this later. Because 70 people missed the flight, there was room for Arlene to lay down on three seats in the middle. She still wasn't able to sleep. I, however, slept like a log (with help, of course). Dramamine really knocks me out!
We arrived in Rome the next morning. Arlene had arranged a taxi to take us from the airport to our hotel. When we got to our hotel, their room was ready, but ours wasn't. They laid down to take a nap, and we tried to lay down on a third twin bed in the room, but we couldn't sleep--we were too excited to be there. We left and went to find the Spanish Steps. We got lost and ended up by the Trevi fountain by mistake! We actually had two coins and threw them into the fountain over our shoulders to guarantee that we will someday return to Rome. We walked back to the hotel. Our room was ready by that time. We wanted to stay up, but we were so exhausted that we were able to take a nap. We got up later, and with Arlene's help found the Spanish Steps and a place to eat.
The next morning we got up and went to the Colosseum. This was what Brian was most looking forward to on our whole trip. We got there early, before the crowd. After a thorough tour of the inside of the Colosseum, we walked through the Forum. It was hot and we were tired, so we weren't as interested as we perhaps should have been. Did you know that they took the marble off of the outside of the Colosseum to make the pillars outside St. Peters Cathedral at the Vatican. That's why there are holes in the side of the Colosseum. We took a taxi to the Piazza Navona, a lovely square with restaurants and fountains. We sat at a cafe where Brian had lasagna that he said was better than his mom's (don't tell her). That is a high compliment. Our first "argument" when we were dating was whose mom made better lasagna. After lunch, we walked to the Pantheon. To me, this was the most impressive thing I saw in Rome. It was built in 129. It is perfectly round inside and as wide as it is tall. It has a hole in the center of the roof. When it rains or snows, there are drains in the floor for the water to run into. The only reason it survived so long was that it was converted into a church. It is very ornate inside due to the conversion. Raphael, the artist, is buried inside. I guess that when we went inside it really hit me that we were in Rome.
That night we decided to go out for a cheap dinner. We wandered around and finally sat down at a restaurant that we had walked by three times and someone always came out and begged us to come in. We decided to eat there. Brian ordered lasagna (10 Euros) and I got a Greek Salad (8 Euros). Arlene wanted bread. The waiter said, "No problem. I bring garlic bread for all of you." Great, we thought. The "garlic bread" was toast with tomatoes piled high on top. Neither Brian nor I like tomatoes, but we shook them off and at them with the delicious balsamic vinegar. Later, I wanted some chocolate and went inside to look inside the case. There was some profiteroles (puffy things) with either white or regular chocolate stuff on top. I asked the waiter if they were good. "Yes", he said, "I bring white for you and brown for your husband." Brian also had a couple cokes and I had water (they bring bottled water, so the water isn't free). We almost fainted when we got the bill. He charged us each for an order of garlic bread. It was 12 Euros each. The dessert was 11 Euros each. The meal was 90 Euros!! That's $135!! It was the most expensive meal we've ever eaten!! It took Brian a while to get over it. We learned our lesson though: In Rome, never just nod when the waiter says he'll bring you something. Make sure it's included in your meal.
On Saturday we went to the Vatican. We got there early to stand in line. While we were standing in line a man approached us and asked if we wanted to take a tour in a group. We were hesitant because we were supposed to get tickets for three others who were joining us later. They told us that if we didn't go on a tour we might not get in. You couldn't get in after 1:30, and the line was blocks long. We finally decided to go. We're very glad that we did. It was so much more interesting to learn things from the tour guides that we wouldn't have known otherwise. Afterwards, we looked in a few shops and ate at a local pizzaria. My fervent prayers were answered as the other three got there just before closing and also got in on a tour. We were very glad to see them when they finished their tour. We did split up after that, though. We went back to the Spanish Steps, then Brian and I walked through a very nice park that had a nice overview of Rome. It reminded me of a smaller Central Park (NYC). After dark, we all met back in Piazza Navona for tartufolo (very dark frozen chocolate) at Tre Scalini. YUM!
The next morning, we slept in just a little. We were ready for our taxi to the cruise ship by 11. We'll save that for the next time, though.