Rome

There we are, it's 7 pm and 23 degrees C°. We are a bit lost, since my google map print out seems a little outdated, but after asking several people we finally found our way to the hostel. It doesn't look like a hostel, so we passed it and figured out that we went too far only after realizing that we reached the end of the street. Our room is in the third floor and even though (I proudly must say) we did fantastic packing with only a 10 and 15 kg backpack for two weeks, I was devastated when the young lady behind the check in told us that the elevator is "morto". Ah, welcome to Italy!

Colosseo

After my coffee and croissant we decided to walk towards the Colosseo the next day. Rome is a city with 2.7 million residents in 1,285.3 km², but I think all the romans are on holiday and the only people I see is tourists and Bangladeshi. You could call the Termini area "Chota Bangladesh", by the way. But after a 10 minute walk we are standing in awe in front of the huge ancient Colosseum. WOW! It's a bit cloudy so I draw out my camera. Like good tourist do.

The Arch of Constantine

I regretted that we didn't buy our Roma Passes at the airport, so we were lining up in a looong queue. But the effort was forgotten as soon as we entered - we got carried away dreaming ancient dreams of the roman empire, imagining the gladiators struggling for their lifes and the festively dressed audience watching the cruel spectacular

cheering and waiting for the emperor to put the thumb up or down. Crazy times.

Back in the 21st century and a little exhausted we sit down on the stairs next to the Arch of Constantine with a cold Peroni. We decide to explore the the Palatino to escape the hassle of the city. The Palatino is a beautifully atmospheric area of leafy gardens, majestic ruins and memorable views. According to legend, it was here that Romulus killed his twin Remus and founded Rome in 753 BC. Archaeological evidence has dated human habitation here to the 8th century BC. All our tiredness was forgotten when we glanced at the impressive ruins of the Foro Romano, that catapults us again back into BC times.

After spending there at least 2 hours (I lost track of time), we went back to the hostel. On the way we passed the Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, a pompous and large white monument that holds the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier with an eternal flame, built under the statue of Italy after World War I following an idea of General Giulio Douhet and guarded by two armed soldiers which makes it very impressive. 

Forum Romanum

After taking a nap at the hostel, Aren went down to buy something. Thats when he met Rafik. Rafik is a jolly little man from Bangladesh with a funny accent and very expressive gestures. We met at Santa Maria Maggiore in the evening, had a couple of beers and a great time. We also met Aurora, a girl from Romania working at a hostel in Rome. As we sat there on the stairs in front of the church, Rafik suddenly asks me if I like "Pusketts". I had no idea what a Puskett is so he explained to me: "You know, PUSKETT!!! You wear on your neck a KETT, and on your ankles PUSKETTS!". OOookay, I got it! Fusskettchen! Rafik has some german friends and knows some german, but his accent kills me.

Fontana di Trev

In the evening they take us to Trevi Fountain. WOW, at night there are hardly people, and the few ones there enjoy a quiet evening with a bottle of wine and snacks, throwing coins into the fountain and make wishes. I could slap myself for not taking the camera. The light which illuminates the fountain made this evening a magical experience.

Rafik cracks me up: When he walks, he has the habit of stretching out his hand as if he is pointing somewhere and then drops down the hand on his head stroking his hair. Aurora and him, this two are great people to hang out with. We are glad we met them!

The next day we decided to visit the Vatican city and the museum. It was very tireing for me and I didn't like the flair. We were watching the Swiss Guards in their traditional uniform and marvelled at the huge pillars of Piazza San Pietro.

We walked back via Piazza del Popolo and climbed up the hill to the gardens, from where we had a fantastic view over the city, romantic live music from a busker and a nice picknik with olives,bread and wine. In the evening we were invited by Rafik and some of his bangladeshi room mates and we ate helishmas and rice. A good end to a good day.

On our last day in Rome we visited the Pantheon, a building commissioned by Marcus Agrippa as a temple to all the gods of Ancient Rome, and rebuilt by Emperor Hadrian in about 126 AD. On the way to the Pantheon we passed again Trevi Fountains, this time crowded by tourists but still beautiful. Before we headed towards Villa Borghese gardens to chill the rest of the day before catching the night train down to Lecce, we ate some serious Pizza. Not like you imagine Pizza. Italian food blows me away.