Things are all quite different now. Nino has gone home, and I have ventured to Greece alone after 50 hours of travel and numerous confrontations with the Italian police. The journey was intense. It required a train, a boat, a taxi, a bus, a hitchhike, and a final taxi. I have always said my family is in isolation. It truly comes out in my character and social tendencies. I hope Nino gets well, and I hope he can return to finish the last leg of the trip.
Rome was quite a bust. The original reason to go there was to check out the ruins and to gather for the G8. The ruins were completely commodified, and the G8 lacked organization. Both were complete let downs. Rome was a complete let down.
So far, I would consider Rome to be the worst city of the trip. It is probably in my top 5 least favorite cities ever. The streets are filled with tourists. It is nearly impossible to run into an actual Roman. Everyone is wearing a backpack, and looking at buildings that they do not have a clue of the significance other than the fact that they saw them in a postcard or a movie. The city milks this out like crazy too. The people are completely unwelcoming, and are only after the tourist money. There is a lack of community and culture.
We arrived with no place to stay, but figured it would be worth giving it a shot. We got nothing. But we did find an awesome bridge that was directly under the walkway to the Raddison Hotel. We just made it "our RADdison hotel" for the evening. The street was a bit scary considering it was highly patrolled by cops in the evening. not to mention the fact that me and Charlie are both carrying radical material from the CIRA archive in Switzerland. Not the best things to have in hand when caught by Italian gustapo police. After a night there, we woke up to sneak to the top of the hotel where they had a hot tub, sauna, and shower. It was like living large. Nino even snuck into the breakfast.
We decided that one night in Rome was enough, and headed straight for Tuscany. We stayed in a smalle town called Arezzo. It is the town where they filmed the movie Life is Beautiful. We did not know that until after. But, it truly was a beuatiful place. The town was so much more engaging than the bland streets of Rome. The culture is still vibrant and alive. We had a few authentic Tuscan meals that were beyond belief.
While there, we stayed with an awesome couchsurfer named Giovanni. I think he saved the reputation of the entire Italian population as he was a great host, and went out of his way to show us a good time. He has some amazing life experiences as he has even traveled to Iran and Afghanistan. He is a vegan in Italy. It is quite the interesting situation. While staying with him, we ventured to see numerous villages in the area. They are all beautiful, and remind me slightly of the island here in Greece. We even stayed a night on a field in a small town called Giovvi. We woke up to the bell of a goat as it glared at us behind a fence.
Both Charlie and Nino are gone now. I am doing the final two months of this trip alone. It should be quite the adventure. I am going to make some ammendments, but I am still going to suck it up and leg it out. I was a bit discouraged, but now I am optimistic. Help us. Save us from ourselves.
Rome was quite a bust. The original reason to go there was to check out the ruins and to gather for the G8. The ruins were completely commodified, and the G8 lacked organization. Both were complete let downs. Rome was a complete let down.
So far, I would consider Rome to be the worst city of the trip. It is probably in my top 5 least favorite cities ever. The streets are filled with tourists. It is nearly impossible to run into an actual Roman. Everyone is wearing a backpack, and looking at buildings that they do not have a clue of the significance other than the fact that they saw them in a postcard or a movie. The city milks this out like crazy too. The people are completely unwelcoming, and are only after the tourist money. There is a lack of community and culture.
We arrived with no place to stay, but figured it would be worth giving it a shot. We got nothing. But we did find an awesome bridge that was directly under the walkway to the Raddison Hotel. We just made it "our RADdison hotel" for the evening. The street was a bit scary considering it was highly patrolled by cops in the evening. not to mention the fact that me and Charlie are both carrying radical material from the CIRA archive in Switzerland. Not the best things to have in hand when caught by Italian gustapo police. After a night there, we woke up to sneak to the top of the hotel where they had a hot tub, sauna, and shower. It was like living large. Nino even snuck into the breakfast.
We decided that one night in Rome was enough, and headed straight for Tuscany. We stayed in a smalle town called Arezzo. It is the town where they filmed the movie Life is Beautiful. We did not know that until after. But, it truly was a beuatiful place. The town was so much more engaging than the bland streets of Rome. The culture is still vibrant and alive. We had a few authentic Tuscan meals that were beyond belief.
While there, we stayed with an awesome couchsurfer named Giovanni. I think he saved the reputation of the entire Italian population as he was a great host, and went out of his way to show us a good time. He has some amazing life experiences as he has even traveled to Iran and Afghanistan. He is a vegan in Italy. It is quite the interesting situation. While staying with him, we ventured to see numerous villages in the area. They are all beautiful, and remind me slightly of the island here in Greece. We even stayed a night on a field in a small town called Giovvi. We woke up to the bell of a goat as it glared at us behind a fence.
Both Charlie and Nino are gone now. I am doing the final two months of this trip alone. It should be quite the adventure. I am going to make some ammendments, but I am still going to suck it up and leg it out. I was a bit discouraged, but now I am optimistic. Help us. Save us from ourselves.
Sir.
ReplyDeleteRome can be daunting, but you should give it another chance at some future date that is not nestled comfortably in the heart of high tourist season. Granted, there is much demystifying of the great lore of Rome upon any visit, but there are ways to get past the posh. 24 hour flower shops. Free running fountains everywhere you look. The Trevi Fountain with Beethoven running through the headphones. Not saying your experience was uncommon, just saying that my own was blessed with looking out the same window Keats did when he made magic.
All shapes, all sizes.
Travel safe.
al