Roma - Magnifico!

I arrived. It was a bit of an adventure and a good introduction to the Italian psyche so I will share ... My flight from Mykonos was a charter – 40 other vacationers returning home, the majority young guys, average age about 25. (My first chuckle was watching more than a few of them try and get their luggage below 15 kgs ... clothes flying everywhere ... and me smug with my 10.8 kg bag ...) The flight was fine, but then, we land, where are our bags ??? After 30 minutes, they sent us to from terminal A to B – have you ever left a terminal in search of your bags? It felt wrong, but I'd found 2 responsible looking young guys of the group who seemed to know what they were doing and followed them ... out through customs we went ... then a phone call and no, back to Terminal A ... back in through security a group of us trooped, me, grateful I still had my boarding pass ... even an announcement, bags from our flight on this carousel ... there we all were ... an hour later, still no bags ... turns out it really was meant to be Terminal B – so now there are all 40 of us, back out through customs, back in through security etc. etc. most fun, was watching these Italian guys shout at, curse and gesture any airport worker they saw on our way, the hands were going, everything – we were a sight to be seen … and then we got there, all our bags sitting beside an empty carousel ... welcome to Italy!

I arrived at my apartment by 4pm – after a quick tour/introduction from the rental agent and a quick unpack, I was out by 5pm – I felt like I needed to see something recognizable just to prove to myself that yes, I really was in Rome. So back to the metro and into Il Centro – it's funny, from a nervous travel perspective, I had absolutely no qualms figuring out the metro – I know big cities and they are familiar to me / I am comfortable in them. And in this city, it is me and a very large number of fellow tourists ... or as I call them, lemmings ... on the train, I tried to figure out what, besides the obvious (guide book, map, backpack) gives us away ... I decided one thing was definitely the brand new comfortable walking shoes – man or woman, that was the clue – and for the women, the new styled Birkenstocks are definitely the flavor of the day – combined with a fresh pedicure ... and I have to say, with my reefer flip flops and feet from 2 weeks on the beach, I'm in need of both!

Within 20 meters of exiting the metro, at the first spot I find, I have pizza!!! I LOVE pizza – always have and if I'm really honest, likely one of Italy's top attractions for me! I was starved too as the last meal had been breakfast. Then I find the Spanish Steps – wow – I join the crowds on the side in the shade, sit and I tell you, that was the best pizza I think I've ever had!

After a wonder along the streets – high end shopping mecca of Via Condotti, main shopping drag of Via del Corso (lots of really good sales at the minute), one of the main piazzas, Piazza del Popolo, a lovely little church, St. Maria del Popolo, then a wander back through the Trident area to see the Trevi Fountain – incredible and for the moment, relatively peaceful (I would be back later in the week when you couldn't reach it for all the lemmings ...). Then I figured, I would just keep walking – especially, once I saw the Colosseum in the distance ... I walked past the Forum, saw another wedding party (I keep seeing them in all the strangest places ...) and then was at the Colosseum - wow! Then back through regular neighborhoods to my little room ... a magical first evening ... and yes, I really was in Rome :-)