Our Cruise - Day 1

We left our hotel at 10 AM for the port in Civitavecchea. Terry got the honor of lugging the luggage from the rooms down the flights of staircase (shown in this posting) to the lobby. (A hotel clerk tried to help, and Terry thanked her, but declined. He wanted all the glory as Julie and Carol’s mule. For the first time on the trip, he broke out in a sweat.

Civitavecchia, about 90 minutes away, is a vast port, and once there it took us nearly half an hour to get to our ship, the Celebrity Equinox. We boarded and sought out Wande and Sheila, who arrived in Rome earlier in the morning. It turned out that Wande’s flight was delayed at Dulles Airport for two hours, so she was unable to meet up with Sheila at the Celebrity transport area at the Rome airport. Sheila waited for her, but finally realized she was not there. She heard someone from Celebrity ask if anyone was there for the “grand tour of Rome” before the transport to the ship.

Sheila’s antennae raised; TOUR? To say that Sheila loves tours is an understatement. Let’s just say that if she left medicine she would operate her own tour company (organizing AND giving them!). Sheila later told us all about it. She went to many places over the span of a few hours. She was able to go to St. Peter’s Square and get into St. Peter’s Basilica. She got to see, but not tour, the Forum, which she was ecstatic about: “It was amazing!”

Carol, Julie and Terry went right into cruise mode and ate lunch. After a while they united with Wande and Sheila. Terry’s harem was now complete (soon to be a new show on HBO, “Big Harem”.) Surrounded by four beautiful women fawning over him (he made that last part up), Terry was no doubt going to be the envy of the ship (well, by men, at least). In reality, people were probably looking at him and whispering, “rich.”

Carol and Sheila shared a cabin next to Julie and Terry’s. They had adjoining balconies and the cabin attendant pulled back the partition separating them. There we congregated, giddy with excitement. Soon we went to the main deck as the ship was pulling out of port. We grabbed some comfortable deck chairs. The warm sun smiled upon us, music played, the ocean air – scented with sweet sea salt – fanned us and drinks flowed. Mirth was the order of the afternoon. After a few hours of lounging, laughing and visiting, we went to our cabins and rested before dinner.

At dinner, a couple whom we'll call the "Tones," who are from the U.S., were our companions at our assigned table. We were seated right next to a window, so we enjoyed good food, conversation and views. Jet lag and all the excitement came crashing down upon Sheila and Wande, so we all went back to our cabins. A day at sea awaited us, as we were en route to the island of Santorini, Greece.

We all left our balcony doors open, and the gentle waves and whisper of the wind lulled us to sleep.

Day 4 in Rome

Today was our last full day in Rome. We went back to St. Peter’s Square to mail some postcards for the Vatican City postmark. The morning was bright, but some clouds were coming in. We had gotten this far in the trip without a drop of rain, so weren’t worried if it did. We walked along the Tiber River again and crossed it at Pont Sant’Angelo (Bridge of Angels); we wanted to see Bernini’s angels once more before we left.

The day started taking on a little different character. It was Sunday. Clergy were walking about in their finest attire. As we got closer to Vatican City there were more and more people. We arrived in the square, crowded with pilgrims, tourists and locals. As it got closer to noon the square got thick with people; something was afoot.

Throngs were facing the direction of the Pope’s apartment overlooking the square. Priests, nuns and religious orders – identified with flags and banners – stood out from the crowd. And then it happened: a banner was laid out a window from the Pope’s quarters. He was going to address the crowd.

Suddenly the crowd surged. We were within minutes of Pope O’Clock. Dong! He then appeared – a tiny figure in the distance – and spoke. It sounded like he was speaking in Latin. The crowd was rapt in attention; it was quiet with no roars of approval. Soon the Pope seemed to switch to Italian and then he blessed the crowd.

When it was over we made a quick exit to get ahead of the crowd. As we left Vatican City we saw people running towards it, some with looks of desperation. They wanted the blessing. Too late; next Sunday would have to do, if they were here at all.

Our next stop was that icon of Rome, Trevi Fountain. It was clouding up, but the sun was still breaking loose from the clouds occasionally. We rounded a corner and there it was: Trevi Fountain, grand and super-sized in its splendor! It was simply remarkable. We had to throw coins in the fountain, and luckily Terry had three 20-cent Euro coins (who wants to throw three Euro dollars away?). Terry dispensed two of them to Carol and Julie, and we all threw them at the same. Three coins in a fountain.

We found a nearby café in this charming area and sat outside, and then it started sprinkling. We moved inside and the sprinkling turned to rain. We failed to bring umbrellas or the ponchos Carol brought on the trip for just this occasion, so we headed back to the hotel before it got much worse.

It rained heavier as we walked, so we ducked into the Pantheon. The dome of the building has an Oculus, or circular window in the top, which is open, so it was raining inside, but just in the center of the building. The rainwater is carried away through drains. We were rained on in the Pantheon. It was fascinating to watch.

We moved on and Terry offered to buy umbrellas for the ladies, but they declined. He thought we were still some distance from the hotel, but we were actually quite close. We arrived at Piazza Novana, but Terry was really confused and thought we were back at Trevi Fountain! He now insisted on umbrellas Julie and Carol, for we were going in circles.

Yet we were a mere block from our hotel. Carol and Julie helped properly orient Terry in his thinking. It was still raining steadily, so we stopped at a sidewalk café with an awning to enjoy some warm cappuccinos. And then it really rained.

The heavens opened and the water came down, loud and hard, as if pent up for days. The piazza emptied. The temperature dropped and it got a little chilly. We remarked how lucky we had been with the weather.

Back at the hotel, we enjoyed hot showers and some relaxation. Well, Carol enjoyed a hot bath. She was switched to a different room her last day, which had a large soaking tub. Lucky Carol.

After a couple of hours, we regrouped on Julie and Terry’s balcony for one last time. The rain had passed and the sun broke through the clouds. It turned out to be a very nice evening. We walked to the ristorante, which was just around the corner. We sat outside in a lovely setting. It was twilight.

For the first time, we all chose the same dish: linguini with black truffle. When our linguini arrived, our waitress brought out a piece of truffle. She started grating it over Carol’s plate. We expected her to stop after a few slivers, which is our experience back home. But she kept grating it. Carol was puzzled and wondered if she was supposed to say “that’s fine.” The whole truffle was used, and then the waitress broke out two more pieces and repeated the process for Julie and Terry.

Here, we thought, would be the one exception to the subtlety of flavors we had experienced in Rome. At home, our experience with truffle is that the few slivers you get create a strong aroma and pungent taste. But this was different, with the taste more delicate. We concluded that restaurants back home must also use truffle oil as a less expensive enhancement to the dish (but they charge four times the price we paid).

After our wonderful dinner we walked back to our hotel feeling a little melancholy. Rome had really grown on us. We had fallen in love with it.

Our memories of Rome would be the smells, wafting with sweetness, coffee, espresso and ovens. It would be of cobblestone streets as narrow as alleys, and of dodging small cars and motorcycles racing down them. Of the sidewalk cafes, trattorias, osterias and ristorantes; churches, fountains, bridges and the winding Tiber. Romans, Caesars and popes, history and culture, the old and the new. And of the Italians, who speak with their hands, expressions and earnest voices – animation, never indifferent, full of ardor, passion and life.

This was Rome, glorious and beautiful Rome. We were leaving a part of us here, as do all who come.

Day 3 in Rome

Well rested, we were out the hotel door by 9:00 AM. We had big ambitions for the day, but weren’t quite sure if we could pull it all off.

We started at the Forum, the former center of political and social life in ancient Rome. Now in ruins, the Forum is situated between two hills: the Palatine and the Capitoline. The Palatine is one of the original Seven Hills of Rome and where, according to legend, Rome was founded by Romulus. (Actually, lists of the Seven Hills of Rome changed over time, just like the different versions of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.)

While in ruins, the Forum is still a remarkable place with recognizable structures; it is the oldest part of the city. The Forum itself was the open public space for processions, business, speeches, etc., and was surrounded by temples, arches and government buildings. Like the Seven Hills, the Forum also changed over time. Julius Caesar saw fit to build a new Forum since the old one was getting too crowed, and this is essentially the one we see today.

Our first stop was the Roman Senate building, where the Republican form of government began. Other highlights were the House of the Vestal Virgins, priestesses of the Goddess Vesta. There were only six Vestal Virgins and their responsibilities primarily included 1) maintaining the sacred (eternal) fire in the temple, and 2) remaining chaste. They had very good lives if they did that, and were free to marry once they turned 40. If they weren’t good at their jobs, they were buried alive and replaced with new virgins (apparently there was a small stockpile in the House). It’s a bit ironic that Rome began with women priests and today has none. A change in gods has the tendency to turn things upside down!

The Arch of Titus was remarkable. It was built in the first century CE to commemorate Emperor Titus, who reigned from 79-81 CE. Titus is best remembered today for his siege of Jerusalem in 70 CE, to put down a rebellion, and his destruction of the Temple. On the south panel of the arch is a relief depicting the spoils of war, showing Titus’s soldiers carrying their loot from the Temple, including the menorah.

We braved Palatine Hill, which was quite a climb, especially considering that we were always on old cobblestone streets and paths. The stones are worn smooth over the centuries and treacherous at times. Remarkably, none of us fell. When we reached the summit we were rewarded with a panoramic view of the Forum.

After three hours of wandering through the ruins, we can’t possibly describe everything. What we leave you from this, though, is a strong recommendation: If you ever come here, get a guide. We did not; instead we bought the audio tour, which meant we were always pressing numbers into a device and listening to a narrator.

The problem with the audio tour was that the narrator was very difficult to follow. He spoke fast and would tell us to look left, turn around, look behind, walk straight ahead (or was it “look ahead”?), etc., but this assumed we were correctly oriented. We often were not. If you had been watching us, you would have thought we were doing the Macarena (poorly, as most everyone does), not following a tour. We were constantly turning, looking and walking in different positions. Carol and Julie who seemed best at recalibrating their compasses, frequently reached out to poor Terry, who seemed to wander the farthest. He finally gave up on using the listening to the audio altogether and just admired the scenery.

When we finished, we decided to stop for lunch and refuel, and then take on the Coliseum. We ate our first pizza in Rome, and it was delicious and quite different from Papa John's. We conferred about our Coliseum strategy and agreed that we would seek out a personal guide. When we arrived there, we found one. A touring company said they had a young man available who spoke perfect English, considering that he was from Baltimore. Actually, he was originally from England, but had lived in Baltimore.

This was one of our smartest moves. Brent, our guide, spoke to us for a while outside the Coliseum, explaining its history and surrounding area. That was worth the price of admission (and tour) alone. Then he took us inside. It was a most dramatic moment. Also in ruins and far from what it looked like in its days of use (up until the fifth century, we were told), it was not hard imagining the gladiators fighting beasts and themselves. But it was also sobering. Carol commented that she didn’t quite know how to feel about it because of the gruesome and cruel executions that took place there.

The place was scary for other reasons. It’s in ruins partially because of earthquakes. It looked like it would only take a small tremor to bring the place down. As some of our readers may know, an earthquake had been predicted (by some guy who died years ago) to take place in Rome on May 11. Despite the inability of anyone but psychics to predict things with such precision, many people took this seriously. (We weren’t faced with that quandary because we weren’t due to arrive in Rome until May 12, or not at all.) Brent told us that the owner of the tour company didn’t take any chances and left Italy, but that all of the guides were to show up for work. Nice.

Our mission partially accomplished (we still had plans for the evening), it was time to head back to the hotel. There was a taxi stand nearby, but the cab driver told Terry it would cost 18 Euros for the ride (we only paid five Euros to get there!). Terry said, in perfect Italian, “No!” (which means “No!” in English). The cabbie wouldn’t bend (we must have looked like we really needed the ride), so we set off to find another one.

Terry concluded that this would be the situation anywhere on the main boulevard by the Forum and Coliseum, so got the bright idea to walk down some other streets to find a taxi stand. Carol and Julie made the mistake to agree.

We walked, but no taxi stands were to be found anywhere. We walked more, but still none. Soon the taunts began. “18 Euros is looking pretty good right now!” We headed up (or down; who could tell?) another street. “We could have been at the hotel right now, but someone was cheap.” More walking, and we couldn’t even locate our position on our map. “Now it’ll cost 25 Euros for a cab!” We asked someone for directions, which took us off into another direction. “”Eighteen Euros worth of shoes leather!” At last, Terry had a rejoinder: “Aha! We’re aren’t wearing leather shoes!” This feeble attempt at self-defense was met with sneers, so Terry knew he had to find a cab or the abuse would continue.

Finally, we found a taxi stand. We were farther from our hotel than our starting point at the Coliseum. Still, the ride only cost six Euros. While not exonerating him, it did give Terry (and only Terry) a sense of relief.

We later learned that at one point we were just a few blocks from our hotel, but took a turn in the wrong direction.

Carol and Julie took naps (Terry felt too guilty to take one) and then we headed out for the Tiber River to Pont Sant’Angelo (Bridge of Angels), completed in 134 CE. In the 17th century, Pope Clement IX commissioned Bernini to erect ten angels, each holding a different instrument of the Passion (one the Cross, one a nail, one a lance, etc.). They were amazing, and the walk along the Tiber was beautiful on a picture-perfect evening.

We decided to walk around the neighborhood and find a charming place for dinner. Well, “wander” was more like it. We became a little lost again (Terry was happy that he wasn’t navigating!), but we were close to home and enjoyed the narrow streets and happy people. We finally decided on an osteria and had another delicious meal.

On the way back we met some nice women from New Jersey and had a lively conversation. They told us about a wonderful nearby ristorante they just had dined at, so we walked to it and made reservations for the next evening, our final one in Rome.

We soon got our bearings and walked back to the hotel. We all turned in, happy with our full day (minus the unintended long walk after the Coliseum).

Day 2 in Rome

After tormenting Wande Johnson, our friend and neighbor, she finally succumbed and notified us that she would be joining us on the cruise!

Terry was up at the crack of dawn, while Julie and Carol leisurely slept in. Later we trekked down to the lobby (it’s four winding flights!) for a late breakfast.

Another beautiful day! Today our excursion took us out of Italy. We went to Vatican City (Stato della Città del Vaticano, or, State of the Vatican City), a sovereign city-state. It is the smallest country in the world! Pop quiz: What’s the second-smallest country in the world? (Sarah Palin, if you’re reading this, no, it’s not Alaska.) The answer is at the end of this post.

What we learned today is that when one tours “The Vatican,” that means different places: the Vatican Museums, the Vatican Palaces, St. Peter’s Basilica and St. Peter’s Square. There’s probably more, but you get the idea.

Our cab driver dropped us off at the wrong place, even though Carol showed him the piece of paper we got from the tour company with the correct meeting location. We think the cabbie did it deliberately, as he was rather gruff. He dropped us off at St. Peter’s Square, but we had to walk around (yes, “around,” not “through”) to the other side of Vatican City to the museums. Someone in our party muttered stronzo (well, actually the English equivalent), but it was not Terry, who vowed to watch his mouth in such a holy place. (Well, truth be told – again because of such a holy place – Terry did slip a couple of times, and of all places in St. Peter’s Basilica! But this was because of rude tourists committing that worst of crimes, cutting in line, so he was sure forgiveness was automatically granted.)

We made it to our meeting location on time, and while we were waiting for our entire tour group to show up, Carol took a picture of Flat Stanley. To her surprise, a couple approached her with their Flat Stanley (from Chicago)! We had the unique opportunity to snap their picture together. (It was heartbreaking having to separate them, though.)

Then it was on to the Vatican Museums. Pope Julius II founded the Museums in the early 16th century CE through the simple act of acquiring a few ancient sculptures. (For those who may be watching “The Borgias” on Showtime, Julius II, when he was a cardinal (known then as Giuliano della Rovere), had a rather nasty rivalry with Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia. Borgia beat Rovere out for the top job after the death of Pope Innocent VIII, and was elected Pope Alexander VI. Rovere was quite the sore loser. (Spoiler alert: Pope Alexander VI died 11 years later and Borgia maneuvered his way into the papacy and was elected Pope Julius II in 1503.)

We had hours ahead of us, so we’ll give you just a few highlights. One of the first treasures we saw was the sculpture Laocoön and His Sons, showing them being strangled by two serpents. The sculpture is from the first or second century BCE, but had gone missing. It was discovered in 1506 CE, and Julius II acquired it within a month and started the museum. The Pinacoteca (Picture Gallery) is a series of rooms full of treasures. We were particularly enthralled by the Raphael room and came to appreciate his genius even more. The Gallery of Maps, with its 40 maps of Italy frescoed on the walls and barrel vault ceiling, was “mapturous.”

After hours of working our way through an endless sea of humanity (we can only imagine what this must be like during high tourist season!), we finally arrived at the Sistine Chapel. Words cannot describe actually being there, beholding the masterpieces of Michelangelo. Julius II hired Michelangelo to paint the ceiling in 1508 CE, and four years later his frescoes adorned over 5,000 square feet of space.

Michelangelo was brought back in 1535 CE to paint The Last Judgment over the entire wall behind the altar. It took him six years and it was not without controversy, because of the naked figures. Biagio da Cesena, the pope’s Master of Ceremonies, called it “disgraceful” and more appropriate for the public baths and taverns. Michelangelo was unrepentant, however, and got the last word on the subject by painting Cesena’s face into that of Minos, the judge of the Underworld. He topped it off adding donkey ears and genitalia, with snakes coiled around the latter. LOL!

What surprised us was the intimacy of the Sistine Chapel. We had imagined that the ceiling was much higher and that it would be difficult to see the details of the frescoes, but it was not. We also learned that while Michelangelo’s art dominates the Sistine Chapel, other artists’ works adorn the walls as well, such as Perugino (“Moses Leaving to Egypt”), Botticelli (“Temptation of Christ”) and Rosselli (“The Last Supper”). Poor guys; brilliant artists, but forever trumped by Michelangelo inside these walls.

Our last stop on the tour was St. Peter’s Basilica, which is the soaring, magnifico church, and the holiest site of the Catholic Church. It is here that St. Peter’s tomb is believed to be beneath the altar of the basilica. There was a mass going on in a section of the church, with the beautiful voices of the choir lilting about this vast structure, echoing off walls, filling the dome and reaching as if into the heavens. It was enough to move any heathen.

We emptied out into St. Peter’s Square where we meandered for a while, then went in search of food outside Vatican City. It was early by Italian standards, 6:30 PM, but we had no trouble finding a trattoria that was open, since there are so many tourists attracted to the area.

Carol and Julie had red spaghetti and Terry, lasagna. Once again we found the food to be quite different than American Italian. After dinner we caught a cab back to the hotel and that was it for our day out. We were exhausted and had a big day coming up: The Roman Forum and the Coliseum.

(Answer to pop quiz: Monaco.)