Roma
So we (Martina, Sara, Pellegrino and I) decided to go to Rome for two days. The only problem with our plan: We're too poor to afford a hotel, or even a hostel, and are unable to find a couchsurfing host. Solution: Don't stay anywhere.
That's right. We decided to rough it, and stay up all night in the streets. It was both fantastic and miserable at once.
THE FIRST DAY
That's right. We decided to rough it, and stay up all night in the streets. It was both fantastic and miserable at once.
THE FIRST DAY
Roseta Communale
The first place we visited. We had bad luck with the Rose Garden-- it was closed for maintenance by chance, so we had walked all the way to the East side of Rome for nothing. "Che sfortuna!" was all we could say for the next twenty minutes or so. Still, it was interesting to see a more residential area, empty of tourists and filled with businessmen. We passed the American embassy on the way there, and I thought it would be funny if I stuck my hand through the gate. I kept saying "Sto in America! Ora sono in Italia! E ora America!" It sounds stupid, but I was getting a good laugh. That is, until we saw the armored car with American soldiers (HOLDING MACHINE GUNS!!!) across the street. They gave us a nod and said solemn "Ciao"s. We scurried away quickly, totally freaked out by the encounter.
THE NIGHT
Wandering the streets
We left the steps and began wandering about, chatting and looking in shop windows, occasionally running and screaming through the empty streets. There is a strange sense of freedom gained when you are the only people in a normally crowded area... It's both eery and exciting. We went to the Colosseum, which was lovely with its lights, and without the vendors hassling us. We also hung around Piazza del Popolo for quite some time... there was a very drunk bachelor party of British people in their thirties, and we had a laugh when they began dunking each other into the fountains. After a few hours, Sara's two Roman friends, who had met up with us on the steps, left for home in the suburbs. We decided to go to a 24 hour bar they had told us about, so headed off in that direction.
The bar/cafe
It was the only establishment in Rome open all night, so consequentially, it was overrun with police and prostitutes. We sat outside and ordered 60 cent coffees because that's all we could afford. There was some commotion inside, and two women exited, screaming in English about what disgusting bastards the workers were. They were making quite a scene, and it looked as though the Italian authorities might have stepped in if an Australian man in his forties had not talked them down. After they left, I turned to him and asked what it had been all about (he seemed to be very surprised I was speaking English, which made me happy); he told me the women were extremely drunk, but it is unlikely anyone took advantage, as the bar workers "are all good guys". The Australian man ended up coming over to our table to talk with me... I think this annoyed everyone else, as even Sara could not keep up with the conversation, and I translated only half of everything said. I was so happy to be speaking English, however, I did not care. We spoke for about an hour, and during that time the man bought us tea and cakes, which everyone else thought was creepy (he insisted on doing it, in thanks of a good English conversation... I think he was just being polite and friendly, but perhaps I am naive). He invited us up to his apartment (above the bar) to see the sunrise, but we declined (in italiano Pellegrino said that the man would likely rape us all, and Sara mentioned the possibility of being attacked with a chainsaw.
In limbo
We actually saw the sunrise while walking through the streets. Rome was still a ghost town, and the way the light hit the marble buildings was really beautiful. We weren't really able to appreciate this at the time, however, as we all really had to pee. Well, except for Pellegrino (oh, the advantages of being male). Anyway, we were kind of desperate for a bar to open up (we were not walking miles just to use the toilet at that shady 24 hour cafe), and Sara was exhausted. We ended up sitting on a window ledge and sleeping for a half hour or so, until Pellegrino, our scout, returned, having found a place. We ate a shoddy breakfast of coffee and nutella filled cornettos (crescentes), freshened up (what little we could do, anyway), and headed for piazza del popolo.
THE SECOND DAY
Piazza del Popolo
We returned to the piazza, where a cleaning truck was sweeping the vacant grounds. Fish trucks and other delivery vehicles were awake and running, although that was about it. We reluctantly climbed up steps to view the piazza from above, although in the morning light it turned out to be an incredible view.
The first place we visited. We had bad luck with the Rose Garden-- it was closed for maintenance by chance, so we had walked all the way to the East side of Rome for nothing. "Che sfortuna!" was all we could say for the next twenty minutes or so. Still, it was interesting to see a more residential area, empty of tourists and filled with businessmen. We passed the American embassy on the way there, and I thought it would be funny if I stuck my hand through the gate. I kept saying "Sto in America! Ora sono in Italia! E ora America!" It sounds stupid, but I was getting a good laugh. That is, until we saw the armored car with American soldiers (HOLDING MACHINE GUNS!!!) across the street. They gave us a nod and said solemn "Ciao"s. We scurried away quickly, totally freaked out by the encounter.
Quartiere Ebreo
I had really been looking forward to the Hebrew Quarter, but it was a bit of a disappointment. All of the museums charged too much, and the restaurants were troppo costoso. Eight euros for the cheapest starter! No one was willing to shell out that much money. While we were in the area, however, we saw a B grade film being shot in one of the side streets. It involved someone being shot repeatedly into a fountain, which was entertaining to watch.
Lunch
We ended up eating at a random, poor quality restaurant away from central Rome. It was the only place we could find that served larger lunches for 5 euros or less. I had gnocchi, which are potato-pasta dumplings, and a favorite of mine. It was "eh", but we couldn't really expect much given the price.
Villa Pamphili
This park was bellissimo! There was a large pond with koi fish and turtles, fields upon fields of wild flowers, and actual forests, all contained within the park. We brought blankets from home and took a long nap in the warm afternoon sun. It couldn't have been more perfect.
La Piazza dei Fiori
We were here in the evening, and there were all kinds of artist's wears for sell in this piazza. Painters were replicating the square, people were creating caricatures, and street bands were making music. The piazza was bustling, and a very cool and eclectic scene.
Dinner
We ate near la piazza spagnole, which sounds expensive, but we managed surprisingly well. Martina and Pellegrino ate at the insanely large McDonald's Martina loves, but Sara and I weren't interested, so we went searching for food elsewhere. We came across a pizzeria window nearby that was selling pizza by weight. The pizza was thin crust, and covered in veggies and cheese. The man behind the window would cut off a hunk, fold it for you, and hand it off in wax paper, as is the Italian way. There were a bunch of Swedes in front of us, and we waited patiently while they stumbled over English trying to order their pizza. When it was finally our turn, we made identical orders to the Swedes, but in italiano. Our use of the native language paid off, as the man behind the window charged us 2 euros less for each piece! We climbed over a roped-off area so that we could sit on a monument (in Italy, this really isn't all that disrespectful), and ate our delicious, discounted pizza in peace. We met up with Martina and Pellegrino in McDonald's, got some coffee at a bar (We knew we'd need the energy!), and headed toward the Spanish Steps.
Scale Spagnole
The Spanish Steps! We sat there for about 3 hours, from 10PM to 1AM. I swear, it was like the decline and fall of the entire Roman population (Including tourists!). At ten, the steps were overcrowded, we could barely find space to sit. At eleven, there was definitely room to spread our legs out, although it was still busy (Indian men trying to sell every tourist who walks by a flower). By twelve, only we and a large group of students from Spain remained. They had a guitar and were singing love songs and taking group photos. When we finally left toward one, only a few stragglers (I suspect other vagabonds) remained.
La Piazza Spagnole
Sitting on the marble railing... I wrote in my journal there for a half an hour.
THE NIGHT
Wandering the streets
We left the steps and began wandering about, chatting and looking in shop windows, occasionally running and screaming through the empty streets. There is a strange sense of freedom gained when you are the only people in a normally crowded area... It's both eery and exciting. We went to the Colosseum, which was lovely with its lights, and without the vendors hassling us. We also hung around Piazza del Popolo for quite some time... there was a very drunk bachelor party of British people in their thirties, and we had a laugh when they began dunking each other into the fountains. After a few hours, Sara's two Roman friends, who had met up with us on the steps, left for home in the suburbs. We decided to go to a 24 hour bar they had told us about, so headed off in that direction.
The bar/cafe
It was the only establishment in Rome open all night, so consequentially, it was overrun with police and prostitutes. We sat outside and ordered 60 cent coffees because that's all we could afford. There was some commotion inside, and two women exited, screaming in English about what disgusting bastards the workers were. They were making quite a scene, and it looked as though the Italian authorities might have stepped in if an Australian man in his forties had not talked them down. After they left, I turned to him and asked what it had been all about (he seemed to be very surprised I was speaking English, which made me happy); he told me the women were extremely drunk, but it is unlikely anyone took advantage, as the bar workers "are all good guys". The Australian man ended up coming over to our table to talk with me... I think this annoyed everyone else, as even Sara could not keep up with the conversation, and I translated only half of everything said. I was so happy to be speaking English, however, I did not care. We spoke for about an hour, and during that time the man bought us tea and cakes, which everyone else thought was creepy (he insisted on doing it, in thanks of a good English conversation... I think he was just being polite and friendly, but perhaps I am naive). He invited us up to his apartment (above the bar) to see the sunrise, but we declined (in italiano Pellegrino said that the man would likely rape us all, and Sara mentioned the possibility of being attacked with a chainsaw.
In limbo
We actually saw the sunrise while walking through the streets. Rome was still a ghost town, and the way the light hit the marble buildings was really beautiful. We weren't really able to appreciate this at the time, however, as we all really had to pee. Well, except for Pellegrino (oh, the advantages of being male). Anyway, we were kind of desperate for a bar to open up (we were not walking miles just to use the toilet at that shady 24 hour cafe), and Sara was exhausted. We ended up sitting on a window ledge and sleeping for a half hour or so, until Pellegrino, our scout, returned, having found a place. We ate a shoddy breakfast of coffee and nutella filled cornettos (crescentes), freshened up (what little we could do, anyway), and headed for piazza del popolo.
THE SECOND DAY
Piazza del Popolo
We returned to the piazza, where a cleaning truck was sweeping the vacant grounds. Fish trucks and other delivery vehicles were awake and running, although that was about it. We reluctantly climbed up steps to view the piazza from above, although in the morning light it turned out to be an incredible view.
Pellegrino insisted we take a photo, but we were pretty finished by this point. We had had about 5 and a half hours of sleep during the past 60 hours, which is a lifetime when traveling around. Hence the fact we didn't attempt to veil our misery in this picture.
Villa Borghese
We decided to sleep there for a few hours, although it was not nearly as lovely an experience as Villa Pamphili. There were mosquitos everywhere, and pedestrians constantly jogged past; we could hear the traffic from the road. Still, we were able to sleep. Martina woke me and Sara up, screaming that we had missed our bus home and would have to stay yet another day. I believed her for about ten seconds before catching her out in her prank; Sara nearly killed her. We had been planning on trekking over to the Vatican, but decided against it. Pellegrino was in shorts, and Martina's shirt was too "inappropriate" for admittance, and the lines to enter the basilica are often too long. Instead, we decided to hit up a bunch of areas we had yet to see.
The other sites:
Il Castel Sant'Angelo
Piazza Navona
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