When in Rome...

I know I’ve been slacking on my blogging- but since I’ve only had such a brief time in Rome, I’ve spent it running around (literally) and exploring the city, and then come back, crawl in to bed, and maybe skype with a friend or two for a minuteJ

Yesterday, we went to Napoli (Naples), to get a change of scenery and see the lovely little beach town. We took a 2 hour train ride and arrived, and the guy at the tourist information center was so nice and helpful, we were exceedingly optimistic. However, after leading my dad and grandmother down back alleyways and rundown neighborhoods, I began to feel bad that I was leading them through the “bad” part of town. However, after another hour of walking, it was apparent that the whole city was a bit rundown (I say “a bit” to be nice, but it was pretty bad). The museum was randomly closed (it was a Tuesday), and there was graffiti all over the sides of it- and EVERYWHERE else. Every church was shut down and abandoned, and the whole city was just a bit sad. We took the tram up to the top of a hill to see the view of the city and the Mediterranean, but after getting off at the top in a mostly abandoned town, trudging up a hill, and turning the corner to the “view,” we realized that giant fences and a building blocked almost the entire view, and the building blocking it was a museum, which charged enormous amounts to go inside and actually get to see the pretty sight. So annoying. So, after a harrowing effort to get back to the original metro station, because random metro stations were simply shut down, even though police officers and METRO WORKERS would direct us there, we ended up back at Napoli Central.

Now, by a sheer fluke, we ended up in Pompeii, which I’ve had a mild obsession with since I was 6 years old. When we first went to talk to the tourist information guy, my dad started asking about the “Pompeii Exhibit” (because I had told them that the National Archaeological Museum, which was one of the main reasons I wanted to see Naples, had a collection of artifacts from Pompeii- it was not an “exhibit” though, and the guy got confused.) However, he thought we were asking about GOING to Pompeii, which we had originally wanted to do when we were making plans for this Rome trip, but everywhere I looked said it was too far for a day trip, and too complicated to get there from Rome. We reluctantly gave up the idea of visiting Pompeii, and then settled on Naples. However, when the guy thought we wanted to go to Pompeii, he said it was simple, just get on the train to Pompeii and it takes about 30 minutes. So, we decided to ditch Naples and head to Pompeii. We hopped on a Metro (a really sad, broken down Metro), and 20 stops later, arrived at Pompeii! We got there at around 4:45 PM- and we had to be on the 7:30 train from Naples back to Rome, so we literally did a mad-dash tour of Pompeii.

Pompeii was SO COOL. It was way cooler in person than I thought it would be, and viewing the perfectly preserved ruins, some which were built in 500 BC, under the imposing Mt. Vesuvius which is always right in the corner of your eye, was awe-inspiring. Even though most of the bodies are on display in museums around the world (including, of course, the National Museum in Naples, which has a large collection- but they decided to close on September 21^st for no apparent reason), we were still able to see some of the plaster casts of the poor citizens of Pompeii. Their teeth and bones are also perfectly preserved, because the casing of hot volcanic ash created an oxygen-free time machine, that left the entire city buried- and forgotten about- until the 1700s. Literally an entire city, one of the most populous, rich, and booming of its time, wiped out in under 3 minutes, and left forgotten and untouched for almost 2,000 years. It sounds like such a sci-fi movie, but it’s REAL and I was THERE. Their statues and temples and mosaics are simply stunning, and the city had restaurants, bars, bakeries, spas, running water, and was basically run like any American city today.

After wandering the ruins and seeing their town, we ran back to the metro, ran through the train station, bought tickets, and hopped on the 7:30 train back to Rome, arriving at 9:30. Of course, Daddy and Beppe were exhausted (we’d been going-going-going since 8:00 AM), but when we got on the Metro to go back to our apartment, I realized we were going to pass the Trevi Fountain on our way- and I’d heard it was stunning at night. So, I convinced them to go see it with me. It was soooo worth it… the fountain is lit up and huge and imposing against the black sky, and the square is alive with people blowing bubbles and people playing guitar and couples eating dinner and it was just magical- something out of a movie.

Some other random bit of information that I may have left out of my narrative:

I’m currently sipping the world’s most delicious 1 euro cappuccino while typing this blog. I’ve had three guys walk by my table and stop to tell me how beautiful I am- which is not a bad way at all to start the day. J

There are tons of streets and squares and buildings called “Annunziata” in Naples- which was pretty excited. Even a Metro stop!

After breakfast, we have to go hunt for a post office to mail a giant package (thank you, Mommy… hahah).

Tomorrow, I leave for Munich! Ah! Such a different atmosphere that my current trip… I can’t wait though.

I start classes exactly a week from today… ahhhhhhhh! So not prepared. I have a read a bit though- but usually I read on trains or planes or metros or busses, and I fall asleep within a few minutes.

I have yet to buy anything for myself in Italy! I’ve only bought postcards- so today, we’ve decreed it to be a shopping day. Wish me luck!:)

Prego, prego. Prego. (I have no idea what this means, but people say it ALL the time here- when they say hello, when they want you to buy something, when they say bye, when they say thank you… all the time. Maybe it means something like “hey”? I have no idea.)