Location: Civitavecchia, Italy
We spent all day today in Rome. I’ll do you a favor and resist the temptation to fill this entry with ‘when in Rome” references, but just so you know, it’s going to be tough. Lonely Planet starts its description of Rome by simply stating, a lifetime is not enough.” So we had a pretty tall order for just one day. As such, it was very, very full. The only thing that trumped my satisfaction was my exhaustion. Let me give you the play-by-play. 0530 wake-up. Walking to the train station by 0630. Board train bound for Rome at 0700. 0800 Arrive. From there, a non-stop 10-hour walking tour of the Colosseum, Forum, Piazza Campidoglio, Vittoriano Monument, Vatican, Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Piazza de Spagna, and the Via Veneto. Sprinkle in a handful of stops for pasta dishes, multiple Gelatos, souvenir shopping, uncontrollable laughter, asking for directions, getting lost anyways, searching for shade, drinking from the awesome water fountains throughout the city, and going into stores pretending to shop only for the air conditioning. Then, top it off with an hour-long train ride back where both the outside and inside air temperatures were 31 degrees Celsius, a late 8 pm pizza dinner, and then an immediate departure for an overnight sail to Elba. You have our day. If there is someone out there in the world who did more with their day today, then you should be reading their blog.