Today's port was going to be another first for us--we were going to attempt to navigate the train system from the ship to the city of Rome. We'd had misgivings about doing this on our own, so I'd prepared myself, after much research, (and thanks to all my fellow Cruise Critic buddies) with maps and detailed step-by-step instructions. No need to worry, it all worked out fine---with only one exception--catching the shuttle from the ship to the train station. At first, we failed miserably....we were unable to find the ship's shuttle (it looked like a bus convention in the parking area) and just decided to walk to the station. During that 10-15 minute power walk, I'm quite sure I burned off every single calorie of every single piece of food I'd eaten the day before. I refer to that as a blessing in disguise...I always prefer to turn something negative into something positive.
As I mentioned in a previous post, our friend Chandru had decided to join us in Rome for the day. We had already booked a segway tour and needed to meet our group at the colloseum by 10am. Unfortunately, even with our mad dash to catch the early train, we arrived too late to catch our subway connection and did not arrive in time for our tour. Instead, we opted for the hop-on hop-off bus, which again, turned out to be a blessing in disguise because the views from our perch on top of that bus were amazing.
Our birds eye view of the city
A great day spent with our friend
We were also concerned about being in the thick crowds that seemed to be present everywhere that day. It was the only city where I wore my travel vest (Rog had already worn his in several ports) figuring that on the segway I would need free hands and not a tote bag. We had heard the pickpockets were out in full force in Rome...we were not taking any chances. As it turns out, Roger had the back pocket of his jeans palmed twice in a very short period of time. In one instance, he was bumped from the front by one person, then a second one grabbed him from behind. Later on, we were crossing a crowded street and he was pushed from the side repeatedly by a man, then felt a full palm grab his back pocket again. Fortunately for us, his pocket was empty and we avoided what could have been a bad situation.
When we finished our tour around the city, we decided to take a few more pictures while searching for a place to eat. After yesterday's 12 hour eating fest, I wanted something light and, of course, I had to save a little room for dessert...more gelato tasting for me.
We found a quiet spot far from the madding crowds
So light, so fresh, so yummy
We were lucky to find a clean, free restroom very close to the train station in a small cafe, that also happened to serve gelato. We backtracked to that exact spot and grabbed a quick snack before our return trip. Another major concern of ours (and I imagine everyone else on the ship), was getting onboard in plenty of time before sail away.
Our short day in the city had come to an end...we made another mad dash to find the correct subway on the correct track and arrived at the train station with a few minutes to spare. My only impression of the subway and train stations is simply put--they are both a maze of shops, tracks, trains and tunnels with large masses of moving bodies going in all directions, at a very quick pace. I am proud of us for accepting the challenge, attempting to follow our plan, and ultimately being successful in navigating the transportation system in this foreign county. It gave us high hopes for the following day in Florence, when we would once again strike out on our own. Rome-on-your-own is defiantly an option...if we can do it anyone can!
Very happy girl
Gelato cheers...no better way to toast our great day
Up next...a relaxing evening on board
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