This entry is not being posted until I have access to the internet. Unfortunately, my computer is not recognizing the Rome hotel’s wireless internet . . . so no internet for me. :( Sunday began with checking out of the hostel. Did I tell you that our room had bunk beds . . . and I slept on top? They were one of the most rickety beds I’ve been in for a while. Anyways, we were able to store our luggage and met up with our walking tour of Florence. Including the tour guide, there were 5 of us! One person was from Spain and the other from Florence (but I think original from Japan). The woman from Florence did not understand English, so our tour guide was explaining everything in English, Spanish, and Italian. To top it off, she seemed rather spacy.
Anyways, our tour consisted of the San Lorenzo market, which included the leather market, the city hall area where a replica of David is, the Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, Ponte Vecchio (main bridge with jewelry shops), and the Palace Pitti, which is in front of the Gardens of Boboli. It is amazing to hear about the history of the cities in Italy. While we were in the center plaza with city hall, there was a celebration for disable individuals. After the celebration, re-enactors of famous people from Florence walked through the square and those in attendance were encouraged to follow them. After the tour, we went to the market and spent about an hour and half looking at purses, belts, scarves, wallets, etc. Oh, and we ate gelato at Grom, which is known for being organic and slow food.
We had just enough time to sit down for lunch before returning to the hostel for our bags and then get to the train station. This time, we made it in plenty of time. In fact, when we arrived the train was not in the station yet and we did not know what track it would be on. So, needless to say we got on the train with no problems this time. :)
After a short ride, we arrived in Rome. The directions provided to the hotel were simple . . . just three streets. Once we arrived, the receptionist said, “Oh, your hotel is very nice. It is only a few blocks away. You have to go to the 5th floor for reception. I’ll watch your bags for you.” This made complete sense to me because the name was Des Artistes Annexe. The receptionist walked us to the location. We found out that she grew up in Helsinki, Finland! Such a small world.
After relaxing for a bit, we decided to hop on the Metro (subway) and make our way to the Coliseum. The Coliseum is literally right in front of you when you leave the Metro station. Breathtaking! We walked around the Coliseum and then made it to the train station and had dinner at a local pasta restaurant. We are definitely eating lots of pasta! It was a great first day in Rome.
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