Roma days 3-5

So we had daylight savings yesterday here in Ireland. It was very disorienting as no one was sure if their electronics had automatically updated themselves or not. As a result there was a period of time in the morning of trying to figure out the correct time. My electronics have creepily picked up on the fact that they are in Ireland and corrected themselves. I am seriously disturbed by this. Also, because of daylight savings it's now fairly light out until after 8 PM. Which is freaking amazing. 

Back to Rome!

Monday

Today was fairly low key. Liz and I did some more sightseeing, checking out the Renoir exhibit at the Capitolene Museum, very nice. The museum had a lot of information on modern Italian history, including an incredibly informative video on the education system of Italy in the early 20th century. Oh yes, we watched all of it...and it was long. 

The museum is part of the Vittorio Emanuelle monument, which is MASSIVE, so we explored that as well. Think Lincoln Memorial on steroids. 

We then set out to visit Foro Italico, which Liz's MTV Europe guide called "totally dope". Foro Italico is a facist era sports complex/Rome's main sports complex these days. Unfortunately we're bad at following directions and ended up....in the middle of no where. We took "train 2" instead of "tram 2", whoops. We saw a little market and walked towards it. As we walked along we noticed that they only sold flowers...odd...oh and gravestones...oh....we were at a cemetery. Might as well go inside! Glad we did, absolutely gorgeous cemetery. Umbrella pine tress gave cool shade to a sprawling park like setting overlooking Italian farmland with the mountains in the distance. Cool. The day was finished with a trip to the gellato shop and people watching at the Trevi Fountain. Good times.

Tuesday

VATICAN DAY! We made sure to get up extra early in order to get into the Vatican quickly. We got there at around 8:30 and still had a 45 minute wait just to get tickets to the museum. Once inside we began the trip to the Sistine Chapel. The museum is ironically the closest thing I can imagine to hell. Imagine being jam packed with every tourist in the world (it didn't help that it was Holy Week) walking down a never ending series of hallways. I'm serious, it took a good hour just to navigate the hallways to the Chapel, and we didn't stop to look at any of the exhibits. To pass the time Liz and I pretended we were on MTV Cribs: Pope Edition. We're going to hell. We did stop and have a blasphemous laugh when we realized that one of the tapestries in the tapestry room looked like a paparazzi shot of Jesus. He had a surprised look on his face....maybe you had to be there. 

The Sistine Chapel was impressive, I cannot deny that. One of those places where you just sort of stand there and marvel that someone took the time to do that. In our fast paced 21st century world, the idea that people would take the time to paint such a room is an impressive thought. 

We left the museum and went to the "Tomb of the Popes" sweeet. I was enjoying a leisurely stroll through the tombs of dead popes when all of a sudden I hit a wall of people and a man yelling "NO PICTURES" ah, helllllllo JPII! Scored some grandma points there, I think. He has a very nice area, decorated with flowers...I wonder if the other popes are jealous, they don't have flowers. 

We wandered around Vatican City for awhile after that. We even found a movie being filmed! I've always wanted to stumble onto a movie set. Towards mid-afternoon we were tired so we went back to our hostel for a siesta. We were awoken two hours later by hostel guy bringing in our two new roommates (Fernando had left earlier in the morning, much to our disappointment). I stared at them groggy eyed and they introduced themselves. I immediately forgot their names and instead named them Nick and Steve. Nick looked right off of an episode of the Real World...in fact I'm still pretty sure he was on the Real World at one point. Steve was his quiet little buddy. They were both grad students from Florida taking two months off the explore Europe. Cool, I could deal with that. Liz and I left to go pick up dinner but ended up returning to crash at the hostel shortly after. We are the epitome of lame. 

Wednesday-SOCCER DAY!

We were awoken at seven in the morning by Nick yelling "15 minutes dude, 15 minutes" at Steve. We would learn over the next few days that they enjoyed their schedules and had chosen today to visit the Vatican. Nick had no time for laziness. They would sadly find out later that the Vatican was closed for no apparent reason. Ha. 

Anyway, this blog is about me. Liz and I got up a few hours later and tried to go to Foro Italico again. This time we found it, but it was closed because there was a "match" of unknown sport that night. More on this later. So instead we took our picnic lunch that we had packed down to the banks of the Tiber. Excellent decision. It was sunny and about 70 degrees out, perfect. I even got a sunburn! We began to walk back to center city Rome along the Tiber....or so we though. The mountains in the distance began to get closer and we realized that we were walking away from the city. Nuts. So we walked back and caught the tram. 

We then met our friend Sarah because we would be going to a SOCCER GAME THAT NIGHT!

Now the soccer game really deserves it's own entry, but I'm too excited and couldn't wait any longer to talk about it. 

Together we left Sarah's apartment and went towards the stadium, to our surprise it was AT THE FORO ITALICO! That was the "match" that was going on and the reason we couldn't go inside. Oh well, we still got to go! The match was between Roma and Lazio, the two major teams of Rome. Think Yankees-Mets...on steroids, crack and any other illicit mind altering substance you can think of. We arrive at the stadium and the first thing i notice is that we are 3 of roughly 7 girls attending the game. hmmmmmm. We enter the stadium and are hit with a wall of sound. We're sitting on the Roma side, not in the crazy people section, but just to the right of them. Still pretty rowdy. Everyone's singing and having a good time, flags are waving, its pretty cool. An announcement is made over the intercom, I ask Sarah, who speaks Italian, what was said. She says she couldn't make it out but it was something about fireworks, we assume "Please don't set off fireworks". WRONG! about 15 minutes before kickoff the crowds really get going. Smoke machines, fireworks and other totally unsafe devices are set off in the stands, people are yelling and dancing. It's AWESOME. Perhaps the funniest thing was once the game started everyone sat down. Apparently its not cool to stand during a soccer match, total soccer faux pas. Roma scored the first goal and there is no way I could ever convey the amount of energy that went through the room at that point. It was absolutely amazing...and it was only one goal! The game was a great one to go to, the teams were tied 2-2 in the final seconds. Regulation time had ended and we were in penalty minutes when Lazio tipped a goal in. The entire stadium went silent. Both Roma and Lazio fans didn't know what to do. I'm not sure if you've ever been in a stadium with 60,000 or so silent people....but it is the most terrifying thing ever. You don't know whats going to happen. These people are so emotionally charged that they could crack at any minute. As the Lazio section burst into cheers after about 3 seconds, the Roma fans, every single one of them, stood up in silence and without saying a word walked out of the stadium. Silence. I kept looking straight ahead, eye on the tram, don't slow down, don't make eye contact. Most terrifying, yet exhilerating 5 minute walk of my life. 

The bus ride home that followed was awful, taking about an hour of being crammed against a window. When I got off I was literally carried off of the bus by the crowd, my feet didn't touch the ground. After checking to make sure my wallet, camera and kidneys were still there, we ascended Mount Sandy and settled in for the night. Someone had left American gossip magazines in the hallway so we set about reading those. Nick and Steve arrived shortly after, having also gone to the game. I learned that Steves real name was Drew...I continued to call him Steve. I feel asleep reliving the greatest sporting event I have ever witnessed live, chuckling to myself at the realization that I really do enjoy the idea of soccer.

Me atop the Vittorio Emmanuelle momument
I'm not sure if this picture conveys how massive this statue was...and it was only a small part of the monument
View from the monument
"Give me your best 'we meant to find a facist sports complex and ended up in at cemetery look'"
My look
Trevi Fountain
Throwing a coin in so that I'll come back
Line outside the Vatican
St Peters
Movie set

ROMA v LAZIO!
awesome
The game
The concessions guys did their job for about 2 minutes then sat down to watch the game

ROMA!

As I was about to board my train to Rome I noticed a shinier, more regal looking train next to mine. Turns out it was the Orient Express! It was classy, to say the least.

The trip to Rome was a bit boring at first. The first 3 hours were basically the same trip I took from Florence to Venice but in reverse. It took great strength not to hop out when we reached Florence and return to my precious city, but I restrained myself. The last hour of the trip surprised me with its beauty. I had assumed that the length between Florence and Rome would be fairly developed, but it was actually filled with pastoral landscapes and pretty impressive mountains. Heyyyyy, pretty cool!

I reached Rome and went to meet my friend Liz at our hostel. heh....ohhhhh our hostel. I was told to walk 7 blocks from the train station until I reach a black door. Sounded shady, but I trusted Liz. When I reached "Sandy's" as our hostel was called, I pressed the buzzer to be allowed in. I was greeted with a hearty "WHAT?!?!" oh this will be fun. I entered the building and realized it was just an everyday apartment building with families in it. They must have been THRILLED when the hostel moved in. I began my ascent of the 5.5 flights of stairs that I would get to know very well over the next few days. Huffing and puffing I finally reached the top, knocked on the door and was greeted with the hostel owner, a kid no older than my sister wearing a faded Sesame Street t-shirt with the words "We're All Friends!". Again he greeted me with "WHAT!?!?!?" I stood in the stairwell for a minute and considered my options before answering....do I really want to enter this place? Liz then appeared and I decided to risk it. The hostel was fairly small as hostels go, only about 6 or 7 rooms of 4 beds each. It offered free internet and, in a twist of irony, a beat up game of Yahtzee. After checking me in the hostel guy returned to his office muttering a string of American curse words....he lovvvved those American curse words. 

Before heading out Liz said, "Oh, by the way.....kilts". IT WAS A SIX NATIONS WEEKEND AND ITALY WAS PLAYING SCOTLAND! Which of course meant Scotland fans were all sporting kilts. I like to think that was God's little way of saying "hey, thanks for coming to Rome during Holy Week". 

Liz, who had been there for two days already, began to show me around the neighborhood. I was delighted to see that coffee was much cheaper here than it was in Venice, I would be able to support my new habit. After walking 2 blocks Liz said "alright, now look to your left" expecting to see a man in a kilt...which i did...but I also found myself starring straight at the Colosseum. Well what do you know!

We met up with our friends Sarah and Julia from Bryn Mawr, who are studying in Rome this semester. They took us to their favorite restaurant and gelato place. 

Lets take a moment and discuss this gelato place. IT WAS INCREDIBLE! You pay 2 euro and get a giant cone that you can get up to three flavors. I found that gelato cost me anywhere from 1 euro to 6 euro, so this was on the cheap end...plus they give you a TON! My favorite combination was banana, blackberry and biscotti flavored. Banana being hands down the best gelato flavor available. Liz and I would continue to go back to this gelateria EVERY day. My favorite time being "hey, are we near the gelato place" "no" "want to go anyway?" "ok!"

Back to day one. Sarah had to get back and write a paper after gelato, but we went out with Julia and her friend for drinks. Liz and I couldn't get over how cheap alcohol was compared to Dublin. Also we had to laugh that we got to the bar at 11 and it was considered "happy hour". Liz and I returned to our hostel and it was then that I met Fernando, our 18 year old Argentinean roommate. Awesome kid, more on him later. After figuring out how to get up onto my bunk bed we fell asleep to the sounds of hostel guy wandering the halls cursing. The ultimate lullaby. 

Day 2

Liz and I had great plans to explore the city today. We even mapped out a plan. Unfortunately the Rome marathon got in our way and ended up dictating what we saw. Liz and I attract sporting events wherever we go, it appears. I'm not going to lie, though, I really enjoyed the marathon. I would sometimes make Liz stop just so that we could watch and clap. Something enjoyable about standing still while watching other's exert themselves. The clapping really adds to it as well, such a trivial gesture that makes you feel like such a supportive person. Meanwhile the runners give you looks that are one level short of "oh come on, eff you!". Well, that gave me joy. We hit up all the main spots, Spanish Steps etc. and, of course, bought some gelato. 

We went back for our midafternoon nap, which would become a tradition. When we woke up we found Fernando in the room, and invited him out for some pizza. He became our puppy, following us everywhere. We tried to buy him a beer but ended up buying him non-alcoholic beer by accident. Whoops. He was less than pleased. So we walked around the city together and Fernando told us the story of his life. He was studying in Germany for the year, doing an extra year of high school even though he had already graduated back home. He had lived in the US for a year when he was 12 (and still had his middle school ID in his wallet to prove it). The things he misses the most about the US are Macaroni Grill and free refills at Burger King. I had forgotten about free refills and became oddly homesick at the mention of them. We had to get back to the hostel though, Fernando wanted to go to sleep so that he could get up early and go to the Vatican. As we walked back I had to laugh when I realized Liz was humming ABBA's "Fernando". 

Man in kilt at Roman ruins...ultimate in kilt pics
Well thats snazzy
Ruins
Our hostel
Looking down the staircase at our hostel
Man in kilt at Rome marathon throws his tam into the ring for best kilt pic
Liz at the marathon
Best. Gelato.Ever
Blurry, but our only picture of Fernando. 

VENICE!

Daily Update: In class today my professor told us "Many medieval royal families believed themselves to be descended from a woman and some regal animal...say a polar bear". I am seriously wondering if I have picked up a drug habit and just not noticed because every time I go to class crazy things happen. In my other class today, one of my professors said "Marianna, what can you tell us about Irish economic policy in the 1960's" and then chuckled when I starred back with my mouth agape. For the record, this was NOT a class on Irish economic policy.

Also, last night I went to hear Michael Palin, of Monty Python fame, speak. If you ever get the chance to hear him talk, definitely go. Insightful and witty, it was an excellent hour and a half. 

Lets travel back to the simpler days of last week. Come with me as we head to VENICE!

Venice: Day 1

I had left my friends the night before claiming that I had to get up early for my trip to Venice. I had thought my train was at 9....it wasn't until 11. Oh well, still early for me! When I got to the train station my friends were there as well as they were planning on heading to Pisa. One of them said "Didn't you say your train was leaving early. I chuckled and quickly changed the subject. 

The train ride to Venice was good, one can never get enough of the scenery of Italy. Coming out of the train station in Venice one is face to face with the grand canal. The sun was out in full force and after 5 days in rainy Florence I was definitely excited to see it. I couldn't remember my hotels address so I popped into an internet cafe to look it up. Here was my first warning of whats to come. In Florence the internet was free at my hotel, or if I needed it while I was out only a Euro for a half hour. In Venice it was 2 Euros for 15 minutes. Ohhhhh balls, Venice is going to be pricey. I check my e-mail and find out that the hotel I'm staying at is LITERALLY 3 doors down from the internet cafe. I step outside and shake my head. Ohhhh Marianna, wayyyy to go. The giant sign outside of the hotel did nothing to quell my feelings of stupidity. 

I check in at the hotel, no adorable Italian boys at this one. My room is fine but the lights don't turn on. Oh well, I think, this problem should solve itself by tonight (I seriously think this way...don't judge me). 

I head out to explore. I decide to walk down the main pathway until I reach St Marks Square, the main area of the city. Unfortunately I chose to follow the signs to the square rather than consult a map. Unfortunately the people of Venice are jokesters and have put up fake signs to the square hoping to attract customers to their restaurants instead. After turning down numerous alleys I finally realized that all of the official signs had the same look. I made it to St Marks and was immediately overcome with shock and awe....at the amount of people there. I was in Venice when I was 12...in November. I don't remember too many people being there. HA! It was a United Nations of tourists. One of the biggest attractions of St Marks are the pigeons which will land on you if your offer them food. When I was 12 I thought this was the coolest thing ever. When I was 12 I came home from Venice with a mysterious rash that covered my entire body and stayed for 2 months. I did not feed the pigeons.  The "cool" thing to do, however, seemed to be to run through the throngs of pigeons and frighten them. Alright, I see how this is entertaining, except when one runs through pigeons then scatter, totally not caring for whatever is in their way. Meaning I would occasionally be enjoying a nice walk through the square when dozens of terrified pigeons would come flying my way, leading to me screaming and ducking to the ground. Meanwhile honeymooners laugh hysterically because clearly there is nothing more enjoyable in life than making a pigeon fly. I glare at them and wish that every pigeon in the square decides to use them as a toilet. 

Wow, this just got very hostile, very quickly. 

Anyway after wandering the streets I decide to head back to my room. On the way I stop at the supermarket to pick up some water and dinner. The supermarket was supercrowded and with everyone pushing I became flustered and grabbed whatever popped into my head in an effort to get the hell out of there. When I left the market I realized that I had bought myself beer and Oreos. I stood there pondering the ridiculousness of the situation and all I could think was "well...this will be one of those stories you tell for the rest of your life". It got better when deciding I needed an actual dinner I stopped at the Panera Bread-esque place across from my hotel because they advertised a "salad bar'. Having been deprived of vegetables for so long I eagerly ran in. The Italians and I have differing opinions on what a salad bar is. So this night will forever go down in history as the night my dinner consisted of Oreos, beer....and a bowl of cabbage. I went back to my hotel room and discovered that my lights still didn't work. Thats odd...usually things fix themselves when I don't do anything about it. So I tell the lady at the desk about it. "Well did you use your key?" she asks. What? She comes upstairs with me, takes my key and sticks it into a slot in the wall....the lights come on. Oh.....why didn't I think of that. 

Venice Day 2

The desk lady at the hotel suggested I take a tour of the islands of Venice. I had originally scoffed at the idea, saying 'well I'm only here for a day and a half, I want to get all I can out of the city, I won't have time for boat tours". After spending the morning practically punching my way through the crowds of tourists I decided a boat tour would be fantastic. When I met my tour group that afternoon I had a silent chuckle to myself to see that I would be joining 7 middle aged couples and a man that looked uncannily like Ben Franklin. But he wasn't the real Ben Franklin, I'm 99% sure. heh heh. 

Anyway, this boat tour is hands down the best decision I've made on this trip. First we went to Murano, where the famous glass is made. We watched a demonstration and then explored the show rooms. Very nice. We then continued on to my favorite part of the trip, Burano, which is famous for its lace. Stepping off the boat onto this Island immedately took my breath away. All of the houses are painted in bright colors to make them stand out. Laundry waves in the breeze as children run around the town square playing soccer. It is right out of a movie. We are given forty-five minutes to explore the island and it's lace shops. I am quickly waved into one and have to undergo numerous sales pitches. The lady tries to get me to buy a lace tablecloth. Ha, I laugh, "I don't even own a table". I continue to chuckle, the lady looks offended. We drop down a degree to table runners. Sadly again I try the table joke, again it fails, surprise surprise. We finally reach the doilies, which she half heartily tries to sell me. I am about to wave her off when suddenly a vision pops into my head. A vision of the most beautiful Easter basket at the annual blessing of the Easter baskets. One covered in handmade Italian lace, purchased in Italy. HA! It' the ultimate trump card. For anyone who's confused, I wait all year for the Saturday before Easter when we bring our baskets to church to be blessed. For some it's a religious experience, for me it's the ultimate competition. Nothing makes me happier than having an old lady look at my basket, then look back at her basket with a dejected sigh. I need this lace.

(Also, I nearly typed basketball 5 times over the past paragraph)

I figure its also good to have so that years from now I can yell at my children "HEY! Be careful with that, it's handmade Italian lace!" Always good to prepare for the future.

After buying my lace I continued to explore the island. I didn't have a watch so I just made sure that Ben Franklin was in my sightline at all times. By the end of the time he began to notice and was creeped out. Hey, you decide to fashion yourself off of a historical figure you're going to have to deal with creepy situations. 

We then continued on to Torcello which was more rural than the other two islands. Much of the island is farmland, except for the oldest church in Venice. A very relaxing walk. 

We went back to the main part of the city as the sun as beginning to set over Venice. Very beautiful. I began my walk back to my hotel, stopping for another bowl of cabbage. Hey, I said it was ridiculous, but it was also delicious and cheap. Unlike everything else in Venice. 

My time in Venice was short, but worthwhile. Highly recommend it. Tomorrow my journey to Rome.

Venice
Obligatory canal with bridge shot
St Mark's
Feeding pigeons
I thought it was nice
Thats just AWESOME
Enjoy your rash, buddy!
This guy made a glass horse in less than 2 minutes
Ahhhhh, Burano
Children playing soccer in the town square...awesome

Sooooo pretty


Torcello
It's easy to love life while watching the sun set over Venice

Finishing Up Florence

Daily Update: I did try to go to class today. I really did. But when I got there it was just a couple of people taking pictures with the Easter Bunny. I don't remember dropping acid today, but that moment made me wonder if maybe I had....

Anyway, lets finish our adventure in Florence

I had planned on spending my third (or fourth? What day are we on again...) day in Florence visiting the museums. I knew I was going to have to wait in line to see David and the Uffitzi, so I decided to pick just one. After weighing my options I decided David could wait and that the Uffitzi gave me more bang for my buck. So I set off at 8:30 to stand in line. By 8:30 the line had already spread out the door and down the main concourse of the museum. Balls. I stood there patiently for awhile, admiring the graffiti written all over the walls of this otherwise regal building. Thats one thing about Italy, they LOVE graffiti. Everywhere, doesn't matter how important or old the building is, its scribbled with statements such as Massimo a Fabiola with a  heart around it, drawings of genitalia and the ever popular F*** AMERICA. Ahhh, I feel so welcome. Although studying the political statements left by bored Italian youth forced to wait in line with their high school tour groups is fascinating, I realized I had been standing there for 2 hours...and moved roughly five feet. Screw this, I'm not wasting time in my precious Florence watching high schoolers make out. Thats another thing, there are high schoolers EVERYWHERE in Italy, Italian, French, German, American, all of them and they are all constantly making out with each other. Not cool, my friends, not cool. 

So I leave the line and head out to get some coffee. I decided to suck it up and deal with my caffeine addiction by taking up coffee....and I now have a coffee addiction. Its not good. The rest of the day was spent visiting Florence's churches. The Duomo was a bit of a let down after Siena's cathedral, but still impressive. The two basillica's were by far the highlights of the Churches of Rome day, both tucked away in unimpressive buildings but containing gorgeous interiors. 

My "you're a bad person" moment of the day came when I was walking back from my favorite gelato place. A man in a Micro-sized vehicle took a turn too sharply and flipped his car on his side. Everyone rushed to help him and after it was determined that he was fine, helped to extract him. Meanwhile I stood there, eating my gelato like this was some type of street performance. I slowly began to edge backwards out of the situation before someone called me out on my douchebaggery. 

Today was also the day that I was followed by my first Italian male! Very creepy, but I feel like no female can travel alone in Italy without having a "one time this creepy Italian guy followed me" story. I managed to shake him by hanging out next to the Italian Police in front of the Duomo. Mother Nature then took care of the rest by opening up her skies to reveal a torrent of rain which scattered everyone in the area towards shelter. Mother Nature must have gone to Bryn Mawr, she has no time for creepsters. 

Day....4? 5? 18?

Today I was supposed to meet up with my friends Marissa and Eric from UCD, who were traveling around Europe for the two weeks. Unfortunately my phone was still being a spoiled brat and claiming it was stolen so I couldn't use it to call them. I managed to get Marissa's number from a friend on Facebook and set off to navigate the Italian pay-phone system. HA. An hour and a half later I finally get the phone to call Marissa however I discover that her phone is turned off and her voicemail not set up. Oh well, I'll wander, maybe I'll run into them, maybe I'll just have another day to myself. So again I set off down the streets of Florence. I run into a kid I know from high school, we both give each other the awkward "wait.....isn't that" look before we lose each other in the crowd. I keep walking, I see a girl I know from Bryn Mawr. Still no Eric or Marissa. At this point I'm waiting for the inevitable run in with the Syp's when I round a corner and literally run into Eric. Well, thats Florence for you. They're joined by Eric's sister Jen and together we go to find "the best gelato in Florence" according to their guidebook. Eh, I had had better gelato....but still, gelato is gelato! It was nice to hang out with some people after spending the past few days on my own. We tried tripe, which is apparently a Florence specialty. They were disgusted....truthfully I didn't find it that bad. After breaking for an afternoon nap we joined up again and met for dinner. I had to peel off after that as I was getting up early to head to Venice the next morning. As I walked back I savored my last night in Florence....I'll be back, thats for sure.

As if I needed another reason to love Florence...their police drive micros!
Jen, Eric and Marissa try tripe
Marissa, Eric and Jen in front of the Duomo

Me at the Duomo

I enjoy the idea of soccer (and I really do, look for an another entry in a few days

I love it here
Beautiful

My Bus Tour of Siena

First of all, Happy Belated Easter to all of my readers. I hope everyone had a nice, relaxing day. I enjoyed an Easter pizza party with some friends to celebrate. I also took advantage of the delightful Irish holiday that is Easter Monday by walking to the nearby mall and eating at Bennigans...by far the most surreal experience of the trip.

ON TO SIENA!

Earmel had informed me during my 2 minute crash course on Florence that all museums would be closed on Monday. I decided this would be a perfect day to take a day trip to neighboring Siena. On the train I watched the sky turn from almost blue to grey. Aw man! By the time we got to Siena the sky was back to blue again, hurrah! I skipped off the train and went to buy a bus ticket into town. Here’s where I had my first problem, in Florence EVERYONE speaks English. In Siena…..not so much. I asked the ticket guy for a bus ticket and he printed one off for me. I asked him where to meet the bus and he said right outside. Good, we’re doing well here. I asked him which bus I should take as 7 busses met outside….he told me to take the one right outside. Alright then. Well Siena’s a fairly small city, all busses must end up there eventually. So I hopped on the bus that everyone was getting on, assuming that most people wanted to go from the train station to the city center. NOPE! They were all going to the hospital. After they get off at the hospital a new batch of people get on. Alright, we must be heading back to the train station, I’ll try again. We proceed to climb higher and higher into the hills of Tuscany until we reach what appears to be the end of the line in a small residential area. Ohhhh balls. I get off the bus and ask the bus driver how to get to the train station, if theres another bus coming. He tells me that there is a toilet in the bar across the street. I thank him. Side note, I hate thanking people in Italian because my “Grazi” always comes out sounding more like “YAHTZEE!” and I fear the day I mess the two up.
Another bus pulls in behind my bus. It’s sign says that it will be going to the train station. Excellent. I hop on that one. I begin to worry, though, when we continue out climb into the hills of Tuscany rather than head back towards the bus station. More and more people get on, this bus is either going to city center or the hospital. We reach a point that could possibly be the city and I was going to take a risk and check in out when a surge of people get on trapping me in the back corner of the bus. I can’t see through the crowd of people blocking the windows, but I’m pretty sure that was the city. But alas, I must continue on. I keep hope that this bus will end up at the train station, but my hope is quickly fading as the suburbs turn to farmland. Finally we reach the end of the line, NOT the train station as promised. I see the driver staring at me through his mirror…he would like some peace and quiet for his break I assume. So I get off and start walking down the road….maybe the train station is jut down the road? After about a block I stop, take stock of the situation and decide to suck up my pride and go plead to be led back to the train station. I’m frustrated and going to call this day a wash and just head back to Florence. I walk back to the bus with my head down. Wordlessly and without looking me in the eye the bus driver opens the door as if to say “yea…that’s right…you have NO clue where you are, get on the damn bus”. I struggle to ask if he’s going to the train station. He smirks. Starts talking in Ittalian. I nod and say “so….si?” He sighs and says “Si.”. I retreat to the back on the bus. So we begin our second journey together. I’m disappointed I’m not going to get to see Siena, it sounded great. Suddenly I realize that we’re back at that stop that could be the city. I hop off the bus. The driver begins to says “ah, no….” but gives up and just looks at me and shakes his head.
It was in fact the stop for the city and I’m incredibly glad I got off. The city was absolutely beautiful, although the skies were starting to open up by the time I got there. I wandered up the (steep) hilly streets until I made my way to the main piazza. There I grabbed some gelato and people watched for awhile. Lots of American high school students. I made my way over to the cathedral. It was AMAZING. Most beautiful church I’ve ever seen. I must have spent an hour in there just wandering around taking it all in. I began to wander back to the piazza when I decided to pick myself up some Tuscan wine for later the evening. It was there that I realized I didn’t remember where the bus stop was. Oh come on, Marianna, you are seriously failing at life on this trip.
So I asked a police man who said “Ah! It is easy! You go straight until you reach the Bank of Italia, ok!??!” Ah, easy “Non, non, after that you take a left” oh, ok, can do “Then you follow that street and take a right, from there you will need to walk toward the supermarket, then left then straight then around the corner, ok?” …….ok. So I head out, assuming there will be more people along the way that I can ask directions from. There were, but no English speaking people along the way. As I’m walking the skies open and a flood of rain like I’ve never seen before begins to pour onto me. I am SOAKED. But I keep walking. Finally I find two American girls and ask them. I didn’t know they were American, so I go up and say “ummm, scuzi, uhhh, bus station?”. They laugh and say “haha, we’re American, lets look in our guidebook” to which I respond “Oo, I want one of those”. They look at each other, I realize in all of my soaked glory I look and sound ridiculous….and they can understand my ridiculousness. Oh well. They send me in the right direction where I finally find the glorious bus station and the sun comes out. At the train station I race to make the 4:17 train back to Florence, hopping on as the doors are closing. Since I was pressed for time I didn’t hold my ticket in the stamper long enough and my ticket wasn’t “validated”. When the ticket collector comes by he begins to yell at me for not validating it. I put on my saddest face and say that I was in a rush and it must not have stamped and that I was sorry and wet. The conductor sighs…oh well, he says, next time remember. He turns to the American guy across the aisle from me, his ticket isn’t stamped either, the kid tries my routine. The conductor won’t have it and demands that the kid pay him fifteen euros for a fine. I refuse to look that kid in the eye for the rest of the train ride. I enjoy being a girl.
For 3 long hours this was my view of Siena...
Until I found this


Streets of Siena
The most beautiful cathedral EVER
Well...thats one thing the dollar is good for...guilt donations
This is the ceiling...this picture cannot do it justice

Too perfect