We enjoyed our final morning at our Agriturismo. An excellent breakfast and a warm goodbye from our host.
Our ride to Rome is is filled with information from Sara about our plans for the next two days. There was no cat napping on this bus trip! Sauro gave us each a small Pinocchio ornament. He has one hanging from one of his mirrors so it was very appropriate.
There was one stop on the Autostrada for a bio break. We stopped to admire the 1 meter tall cans of Pringles and Ritter treats. Pringles are all over the place here.
Back on the bus after a group photo. More information from Sara. We shortly arrive in Rome. Apparently the workers at the Whirlpool factory decided to protest and were marching down one of the main streets in protest. Of course, this stopped traffic. Sauro must have the patience of a saint. I thought Milan was insane with drivers. Not even close. And, in the middle of being stopped, an ambulance was trying to get down this road we are one. There was a police officer waving drivers to the left and right so the ambulance could make it’s way. Like a parting of the Red Sea…only with cars and scooters.
Sauro dropped us off a couple blocks away from the hotel. Apparently Rome has rules about tour bus parking. He had to phone ahead to let them know we were on our way and he’s only allowed a 30 minute window to get us off the bus and unload our bags. We are a fast group…Norm was always ready to pull bags off and stack them up for the rest of us. We said our final goodbye to Sauro and starting dragging our bags toward the hotel.
Sara had told us to lower our expectations for this hotel. She wasn’t wrong. The room is tiny, the shower the tiniest we’ve seen so far, and the air conditioning is mediocre at best. But it’s still a place to lay our head at night and for that I am thankful. We unpacked a bit and got sorted out. There are hardly any outlets, the lighting is dim and we look out at a wall (which is over a courtyard).
We went off in search of something to eat but realized we had lolly- gagged too much. No such thing as quick service here. We even went into the nearby McDonalds, but it was so crowded we quickly exited. We eventually gave up and went back to the hotel to meet with the group.
Sara had us do our buddy check. Come to find out we were missing Alvin. The last time he was seen was about 15 minutes before the meeting heading right outside the hotel. We waited, but no Alvin. Off we marched to the Metro without Alvin. Sara called the hotel while we walked and Alvin had turned up. The hotel put him in a taxi and sent him off to meet us at the Vatican.
The Metro. What an amazing piece of people moving. And how well do you get to know the person you are standing next to while riding it! When we first boarded the train there was room to breathe; even a few open seats. Then with each stop it got a little more crowded. We were able to get off the train easily, only having to elbow a few people who were getting on the train that wouldn’t let us off. Ahhhh…when in Rome…
We climb a couple flights of stairs to escape the Metro. Then it’s a few blocks hike uphill to the entrance of the Vatican Museum. As we are waiting there, all of us are on the lookout for Alvin. We queued up with our local guide, MariaLaura, who started telling us about what we were going to see, and the history of the Vatican (brief historical anecdotes really) as we moved slowly through the lines. Still no Alvin.
As we get to the door where you officially enter, Steve from our groups shouts “I see him! I see Alvin!” Sara was waiting outside and we were all yelling and pointing for her to grab him. It was quite comical. Sara got Alvin to us and we entered together as one group. We’ve become pretty close as a group and the thought of one being lost was a little stressful.
We enter the Museum and are guided up more stairs to an open area where the dome of the Basilica can be viewed. There were also many displays where you could read about the Sistine Chapel and the frescos contained therein. MariaLaura spent about 20 minutes explaining what some of the frescos meant. She tried to find a shady spot but there were so many people there it was useless.
The tour moves inside the museum where there are open courtyards and marble carvings. It’s all blended together so I will just post photos of what we saw.
We keep moving through rooms and the crowds keep closing in. Our group keeps splintering apart as other people intermingle and slow down those of us at the back. Often we couldn’t hear our guide on the radio provided because we were too far away.
Now we start getting to rooms and halls where there are more frescos, less carvings. MariaLaura is still full of information on the frescos and we spent about 15 minutes just in one room while she explained two of them. By this time I’m starting to think: WHERE is the Sistine Chapel and why aren’t we there yet?
After what seemed like forever, we finally arrive at the Chapel. The crowds are so tight you can’t move and not brush up against someone. There was a woman who keep bumping her purse into my back. Finally I bumped back. “Scusi” I muttered over my shoulder. She stopped pushing me. Our local guide leaves us to enter the chapel on our own.
When we entered the chapel the smell of people was overwhelming. And the heat. There were guards moving people in fast; Mom and I got separated. Our group as a whole was splintered again. You had to stand and crane your neck to see the ceiling. The paintings were smaller than I had expected, and with the panic rising I just felt like I had to escape. There were some seats around the edge of the room, but getting to sit down took a miracle from St. Francis of Assisi it seemed. I just followed the wave of people toward the exit. This is where I found my mom right at the gate to leave the room. She had the same panicked look that I must have had.
We made our way to the other side of the “fence”. All of a sudden, I couldn’t breathe. Tears started rolling down my face and I was hyperventilating. Vivian in our group made sure I got a seat and she started breathing with me…trying to slow it down. Then MaryEllen starting breathing with me too. Someone handed me a tissue. It took about 10 minutes to get to where I could breathe normally again.
As I am calming down, the rest of our group continues to gather in one corner of the room. Once we are all together, Sara tells us it’s time to leave. Before we can make it 10 steps towards the exit, a guard starting yelling at Sara. Norm from the group starts interjecting as well on Sara’s behalf. The guard takes her radio and storms away. We are all looking at each other in disbelief. Within a minute, the guard comes back to Sara, pushing me out of the way to get to her. My reaction was to elbow him…which I did. Hard and in the ribs. Didn’t seem to phase him at all. He gives Sara her radio back and we quickly exit the room.
To get out of the Vatican Museum it was still a 10 minute walk through long halls and gift shops. The crowds had lessened and we were able to move quickly. As we exited and breathed in the outside air it was like a wave of relief crashed over me.
From here we walked back to the Metro with the destination of the Spanish Steps. The train was a little more crowded this time. We all shoved our way in and grabbed the neared pole. We had about three stops before ours. And people kept piling in. It was “rush hour” apparently. By the time we reached our stop there were about 8 of us hanging onto one pole. On the other side of the pole from me was a little Italian grandma who couldn’t have been more than 4 foot 8 inches tall. I don’t think she could have gotten out if she tried. We had her surrounded. And she didn’t seem to care at all. I wish I could have taken a photo of her.
We arrive at our stop and pile out of the train. Up the stairs we go! If someone had told me Italy was full of stairs…I might have taken that into serious consideration and worked harder at getting ready. Ah well…que sera sera. We hit the sidewalk at a quick pace and end up at the Spanish Steps. It was kind of a letdown. I’m not sure what I expected. But it was just a large set of stairs (which by this point I’m not really excited to see) with lots of people standing on them. Apparently in the past people could sit there and visit and eat their lunch or a gelato. But then they were cleaned and now it’s just not done. So the allure of that image was gone.
We split up to find something to eat. There were about 8 of us who followed Sara. Dinner was at a place called Otello. It was good, but not sure it was worth the price. I had Ricotta Ravioli with butter and sage. $13 euro. Mom had the same. There were 4 large ravioli on the plate. A little overpriced for sure. I made sure to clean out the bread basket. We also found out why the guard took Sara’s radio from her. Because she isn’t a licensed LOCAL guide, she wasn’t allowed to be talking to us on the radio anywhere in the museum. She had tried explaining to the guard that she was just trying to get her people together to get them outside. She’s still not sure why he brought the radio back to her.
After dinner we met back at the fountain at the base of the Spanish Steps. We started our walk to the Trevi Fountain. By now of course it’s dark, but there are tons of people out walking around. I think it was about 15 minutes walk to the fountain. And well worth it. Seeing the fountain was like getting a hot fudge sundae after having to eat your least favorite meal. We took a ton of photos and of course threw our coins in the fountain to ensure our return to Italy. I think it was amazing at night. The lighting was incredible.
Now starts the walk back to the hotel. In Sara time, she says it’s only 15 minutes. It was more like 20 minutes back. We did stop at a small piazza where we could see one of the domes lit up, as well as a sliver of the moon. And, of course, there were more stairs up. Made it back to the hotel and we literally fell into bed. Spent a few minutes on FaceTime with my dear husband and then Mom and I passed out. I tracked us walking over 15,000 steps today, 14 flights of stairs, and 6.6 miles. Pretty sure my blisters have blisters.
I’m a little behind on blogging because we have been so busy. I expect to get caught up on the flight home.
Buona Notte!
