Now if you’re still reading my blog, major props to you! I have been typing it in a Word document and am at over 100 pages of pure text! I guess it’s like a summer reading book. :)
Today was ROME day! I’ve been waiting so long to go to Rome! I know it’s not possible to do Rome in 2 days, but that’s all I had so I was ready to conquer! Katie, Kristin, and I took a late morning train from Civitavecchia to Rome and got there at about 1 pm. The ticket was only 4.50 euros! On the train, a woman came over to ask if we had a map her friends could look at. Then she asked if we were on Semester at Sea. As it turns out, she used to work on the ship! She got a better offer on a different cruise line and was there to get better experience, and hoped to return to the MV Explorer in a higher position. She started naming different crew members that we knew. We asked if she knew Crispen our cabin steward, and Darwin and Perry up in the dining hall. She said she knew them both! It was really cool to meet her!
Once we got there, we got to our hotel and checked in (THANKS MOM!!!!). It was great! So cute and so nice. We left our stuff there and set out to find the Vatican. We bought metro tickets, figured out the metros, and finally got there. It was SO hot, and in the Vatican you have to have your knees and shoulders covered so we brought cover-ups. It was so hot. It was so cool being in the Vatican! Did I mention the heat? The museum for the Vatican was too long and it was expensive, so we went into St. Peter’s Basilica. It was huge and so ornate inside! There was so much to see, and it was all so beautiful. In the center above the alter was the biggest dome, and there was a ray of light shining in through one of the windows. A line had formed to take a picture in the ray of light, and we thought it looked cool so we got in line too. Right in front of Katie was an Asian lady. She went up, had her picture taken…and didn’t move. Instead, she gazed into the distance, posing for 500 more pictures. Then she switched to another gazing pose, and her boyfriend moved around and was taking so many pictures of her. Not smiling. Same pose. About 100 pictures. You would have thought she was having a model photo shoot. Anyway, she finally moved and Katie went up so we could take her picture. Snap, snap. Then she moved on. Then it was my turn. I walked up and just as I’m smiling and about to have my picture taken, another Asian lady comes up and stands 1 or 2 feet in front of me and does a gazing pose for HER photo shoot. Right in front of me, as I’m smiling for my picture. The good news is that there’s a picture of my face at that moment! She took about 50 pictures, then I just said excuse me until she turned around and acknowledged me, and I politely asked her to move. Snap! I got one picture. Kristin turned the camera to take it the other way, and just as she was about to take it that first Asian lady came up and literally SHOVED me- physically pushed me- out of the way and said excuse me and resumed her gazing pose. I haven’t seen anyone be that ridiculous in a long time…it was so bad all I could do was shake my head. Like, seriously? They’re being serious. IN St. Peter’s Basilica. Really??? Wow. Okay, anyway, Kristin ran up really quick to get a picture and luckily avoided more drama with the Asian ladies. Then as we were walking away, they had found another beam of light and were doing the same thing there, so Kristin photo bombed a couple of their pictures. We have proof! :) Anyway, we were in the Basilica for awhile. It was so pretty!! I took plenty of pictures. On the way out, we saw the Swiss Guards. Their outfits are so funny!
After the Vatican, we were hungry so we looked for some food. Katie and Kristin found a place where they got sandwiches, but nothing there looked that good to me so I passed and was going to keep looking. Now, in Italy every man calls you beautiful, bella, bellisima, etc. So by this point, we’re used to it and usually ignore it. We were all exhausted and starving, so as I walked into restaurants and food places to see what they had, when they’d tell me how beautiful I was and oh, by the way, did I want to sit down and order?...I usually wasn’t in the mood to be really really overly friendly back. I usually just said “no thanks!” and walked out- they were just trying to get me to eat there. I stuck my head in the door of one place, and the guy behind the counter said something probably along the lines of “Bella, beautiful! How are you today?” and I probably smiled quickly, looked at the prices, and walked right out. This next part of the story proves how out-of-it I was. I walked around the corner and in the next door saw pizza- yum!! I step inside to ask how much the pizza is—and it’s that same guy I had just ignored and blown off…in the same store. A corner store. Genius here! So when I got in there, I was already embarrassed. But the pizza looked amazing and I couldn’t pass it up! The guy that worked there was young, about our age, and friendly and was trying to keep the conversation going. When I sneezed he blessed me in Italian, and asked how we say it in English. He was pretty funny, too. And you all know me…so you’ll be able to imagine this interaction. Okay, so I ask how much the pizza is. He says 10 Euros per kilogram. Uh…per kilogram? Okay…so I say “Uh….per kilogram? Can I have 5 Euros worth?” He goes, “5 Euros worth of pizza? I guess?” So he put the knife over about half of the huge square pizza and looks at me questioning if it was okay. I just said yeah, however much 5 euros will get me. He cuts in and weighs it- I was in awe of how much I was getting for 5 euros!!!! Kristin and Katie were back a few feet sitting down and we were all laughing at how much pizza I was getting. But I hadn’t eaten all day! I was hungry! And it looked delicious! Okay, so he weighs it and brings it back down to the cutting board, and asks if he wants me to cut it in three, and I say yes please. My thought process: it’s a HUGE piece of pizza so obviously I need it cut up to eat it. His thought process: all 3 of us are splitting it, because it’s so huge. So he cuts one piece, then folds it all up in this handy little eating/napkin-contraption, hands it to me and says, “one!” Then he does the second piece, holds it up, and looks toward Kristin and Kaite. So naturally I’m confused out loud- “Huh? Wait…what?” I started to tell him it was all for me, and Kristin chimed in for me to just go with it- but of course he heard, so he got confused and looked as if he wanted to know…so I told it him was all for me. His eyes got huge and his jaw dropped and he started laughing, but tried to control/hide it. But we were all laughing like crazy. I’m sure at that moment I turned bright red, as always. I just stood there, bright red and embarrassed, as he counted out the three pieces “all for you!” and handed them to me. He went back into the back room to get something- I think the key to the cash register.
So now it’s time to pay, right? Now remember, I have my cards and passport in my money pouch underneath my dress, and all of my cash in my bra. I thought ahead and got out my debit card while he was in the back room sneakily- kind of- so when he came out and said it was 5 euros, I handed him my card. He asked if I had 5 euros in cash, and I said no only a 20. He said “oh, fine!” and looked at me expectantly. Well….all my cash was in my bra. And I had to pay with cash. I kind of awkwardly turned my body and tried to hide where I was getting the money from—well, no hiding it. As he’s standing there waiting for the cash, I reached in and grabbed it really quick and handed it right to him, and Kristin and Katie were already laughing. I was too, but kind of in a shocked, I-can’t-believe-this-is-happening way. The second I reached for it, his eyes opened wider than I thought was possible and he reached down and held the counter, like for support. That just made the girls laugh even harder and me be even more traumatized. If you’re not already laughing hard enough, that isn’t even the best part. So I hand him the money, and he takes it….and immediately holds it to his nose, takes a huge sniff, and says “OHHH, it smells so beautiful!!” All of us were laughing so hard at this point, I’m pretty sure all of us were crying from laughter. I was so humiliated, and every inch of my skin was lobster red, but it was one of the funniest experiences I had ever had. He took the cash went into the back room to get my receipt. When he came back, he had tried to compose himself but we were just a lost cause with the laughing. One of the girls was almost on the floor she was laughing so hard. When he saw all of us again, he lost it and laid his head and hands on the counter, laughing hysterically. He looked hesitant when he gave me my change, still laughing hard, with a look on his face and asked if he had to look away while I put it away. I just shook my head and kept it in my hand, and at this point I’m sure I was crying from laughing so hard. My stomach HURT from the laughing. As we were about to leave, he asked if that’s where all Americans kept their money. I’m pretty sure I RAN out of there. Once outside, we lost it AGAIN. There’s not even…I just…yeah, no words.
So after we recovered from that incident, we headed back to the metro as I enjoyed my delicious pizza. It took awhile to eat…considering how much it was! And I shared with Kristin and Katie too. We took the metro to the Spanish Steps because Katie really wanted to see them. She said they’re the widest stairs in the world. Cool! We get there, start walking up them (I’m still eating my pizza), we get to the top, the view is really pretty, and decide we should take pictures. I took pictures of them and then it was my turn. Now, how many people can say they ate it on the Spanish Steps? Yeah, I sure can. I walked down a couple of the (slippery!) stairs, and just on my last step my foot slipped out from under me and I came crashing down on my other knee. And since they were steps, and slippery ones, I didn’t just stay in the same place- I started slipping down the stairs. I was able to stop slipping, stand up, and compose myself for a picture, but needless to say I am not the biggest fan of the slippery Spanish Steps. Beware!
Alright, this post is pretty long now so I’ll save the rest of the day for another post!
Today was ROME day! I’ve been waiting so long to go to Rome! I know it’s not possible to do Rome in 2 days, but that’s all I had so I was ready to conquer! Katie, Kristin, and I took a late morning train from Civitavecchia to Rome and got there at about 1 pm. The ticket was only 4.50 euros! On the train, a woman came over to ask if we had a map her friends could look at. Then she asked if we were on Semester at Sea. As it turns out, she used to work on the ship! She got a better offer on a different cruise line and was there to get better experience, and hoped to return to the MV Explorer in a higher position. She started naming different crew members that we knew. We asked if she knew Crispen our cabin steward, and Darwin and Perry up in the dining hall. She said she knew them both! It was really cool to meet her!
Once we got there, we got to our hotel and checked in (THANKS MOM!!!!). It was great! So cute and so nice. We left our stuff there and set out to find the Vatican. We bought metro tickets, figured out the metros, and finally got there. It was SO hot, and in the Vatican you have to have your knees and shoulders covered so we brought cover-ups. It was so hot. It was so cool being in the Vatican! Did I mention the heat? The museum for the Vatican was too long and it was expensive, so we went into St. Peter’s Basilica. It was huge and so ornate inside! There was so much to see, and it was all so beautiful. In the center above the alter was the biggest dome, and there was a ray of light shining in through one of the windows. A line had formed to take a picture in the ray of light, and we thought it looked cool so we got in line too. Right in front of Katie was an Asian lady. She went up, had her picture taken…and didn’t move. Instead, she gazed into the distance, posing for 500 more pictures. Then she switched to another gazing pose, and her boyfriend moved around and was taking so many pictures of her. Not smiling. Same pose. About 100 pictures. You would have thought she was having a model photo shoot. Anyway, she finally moved and Katie went up so we could take her picture. Snap, snap. Then she moved on. Then it was my turn. I walked up and just as I’m smiling and about to have my picture taken, another Asian lady comes up and stands 1 or 2 feet in front of me and does a gazing pose for HER photo shoot. Right in front of me, as I’m smiling for my picture. The good news is that there’s a picture of my face at that moment! She took about 50 pictures, then I just said excuse me until she turned around and acknowledged me, and I politely asked her to move. Snap! I got one picture. Kristin turned the camera to take it the other way, and just as she was about to take it that first Asian lady came up and literally SHOVED me- physically pushed me- out of the way and said excuse me and resumed her gazing pose. I haven’t seen anyone be that ridiculous in a long time…it was so bad all I could do was shake my head. Like, seriously? They’re being serious. IN St. Peter’s Basilica. Really??? Wow. Okay, anyway, Kristin ran up really quick to get a picture and luckily avoided more drama with the Asian ladies. Then as we were walking away, they had found another beam of light and were doing the same thing there, so Kristin photo bombed a couple of their pictures. We have proof! :) Anyway, we were in the Basilica for awhile. It was so pretty!! I took plenty of pictures. On the way out, we saw the Swiss Guards. Their outfits are so funny!
After the Vatican, we were hungry so we looked for some food. Katie and Kristin found a place where they got sandwiches, but nothing there looked that good to me so I passed and was going to keep looking. Now, in Italy every man calls you beautiful, bella, bellisima, etc. So by this point, we’re used to it and usually ignore it. We were all exhausted and starving, so as I walked into restaurants and food places to see what they had, when they’d tell me how beautiful I was and oh, by the way, did I want to sit down and order?...I usually wasn’t in the mood to be really really overly friendly back. I usually just said “no thanks!” and walked out- they were just trying to get me to eat there. I stuck my head in the door of one place, and the guy behind the counter said something probably along the lines of “Bella, beautiful! How are you today?” and I probably smiled quickly, looked at the prices, and walked right out. This next part of the story proves how out-of-it I was. I walked around the corner and in the next door saw pizza- yum!! I step inside to ask how much the pizza is—and it’s that same guy I had just ignored and blown off…in the same store. A corner store. Genius here! So when I got in there, I was already embarrassed. But the pizza looked amazing and I couldn’t pass it up! The guy that worked there was young, about our age, and friendly and was trying to keep the conversation going. When I sneezed he blessed me in Italian, and asked how we say it in English. He was pretty funny, too. And you all know me…so you’ll be able to imagine this interaction. Okay, so I ask how much the pizza is. He says 10 Euros per kilogram. Uh…per kilogram? Okay…so I say “Uh….per kilogram? Can I have 5 Euros worth?” He goes, “5 Euros worth of pizza? I guess?” So he put the knife over about half of the huge square pizza and looks at me questioning if it was okay. I just said yeah, however much 5 euros will get me. He cuts in and weighs it- I was in awe of how much I was getting for 5 euros!!!! Kristin and Katie were back a few feet sitting down and we were all laughing at how much pizza I was getting. But I hadn’t eaten all day! I was hungry! And it looked delicious! Okay, so he weighs it and brings it back down to the cutting board, and asks if he wants me to cut it in three, and I say yes please. My thought process: it’s a HUGE piece of pizza so obviously I need it cut up to eat it. His thought process: all 3 of us are splitting it, because it’s so huge. So he cuts one piece, then folds it all up in this handy little eating/napkin-contraption, hands it to me and says, “one!” Then he does the second piece, holds it up, and looks toward Kristin and Kaite. So naturally I’m confused out loud- “Huh? Wait…what?” I started to tell him it was all for me, and Kristin chimed in for me to just go with it- but of course he heard, so he got confused and looked as if he wanted to know…so I told it him was all for me. His eyes got huge and his jaw dropped and he started laughing, but tried to control/hide it. But we were all laughing like crazy. I’m sure at that moment I turned bright red, as always. I just stood there, bright red and embarrassed, as he counted out the three pieces “all for you!” and handed them to me. He went back into the back room to get something- I think the key to the cash register.
So now it’s time to pay, right? Now remember, I have my cards and passport in my money pouch underneath my dress, and all of my cash in my bra. I thought ahead and got out my debit card while he was in the back room sneakily- kind of- so when he came out and said it was 5 euros, I handed him my card. He asked if I had 5 euros in cash, and I said no only a 20. He said “oh, fine!” and looked at me expectantly. Well….all my cash was in my bra. And I had to pay with cash. I kind of awkwardly turned my body and tried to hide where I was getting the money from—well, no hiding it. As he’s standing there waiting for the cash, I reached in and grabbed it really quick and handed it right to him, and Kristin and Katie were already laughing. I was too, but kind of in a shocked, I-can’t-believe-this-is-happening way. The second I reached for it, his eyes opened wider than I thought was possible and he reached down and held the counter, like for support. That just made the girls laugh even harder and me be even more traumatized. If you’re not already laughing hard enough, that isn’t even the best part. So I hand him the money, and he takes it….and immediately holds it to his nose, takes a huge sniff, and says “OHHH, it smells so beautiful!!” All of us were laughing so hard at this point, I’m pretty sure all of us were crying from laughter. I was so humiliated, and every inch of my skin was lobster red, but it was one of the funniest experiences I had ever had. He took the cash went into the back room to get my receipt. When he came back, he had tried to compose himself but we were just a lost cause with the laughing. One of the girls was almost on the floor she was laughing so hard. When he saw all of us again, he lost it and laid his head and hands on the counter, laughing hysterically. He looked hesitant when he gave me my change, still laughing hard, with a look on his face and asked if he had to look away while I put it away. I just shook my head and kept it in my hand, and at this point I’m sure I was crying from laughing so hard. My stomach HURT from the laughing. As we were about to leave, he asked if that’s where all Americans kept their money. I’m pretty sure I RAN out of there. Once outside, we lost it AGAIN. There’s not even…I just…yeah, no words.
So after we recovered from that incident, we headed back to the metro as I enjoyed my delicious pizza. It took awhile to eat…considering how much it was! And I shared with Kristin and Katie too. We took the metro to the Spanish Steps because Katie really wanted to see them. She said they’re the widest stairs in the world. Cool! We get there, start walking up them (I’m still eating my pizza), we get to the top, the view is really pretty, and decide we should take pictures. I took pictures of them and then it was my turn. Now, how many people can say they ate it on the Spanish Steps? Yeah, I sure can. I walked down a couple of the (slippery!) stairs, and just on my last step my foot slipped out from under me and I came crashing down on my other knee. And since they were steps, and slippery ones, I didn’t just stay in the same place- I started slipping down the stairs. I was able to stop slipping, stand up, and compose myself for a picture, but needless to say I am not the biggest fan of the slippery Spanish Steps. Beware!
Alright, this post is pretty long now so I’ll save the rest of the day for another post!
Our hotel! Tissue bow = good sign :)
The Vatican
The Vatican
St. Peter's Bascilica
St. Peter's Bascilica
St. Peter's Bascilica
St. Peter's Bascilica-
Trying to get my picture taken...
St. Peter's Bascilica-
Finally got my picture!
St. Peter's Bascilica-
Notice Kristin photo bombing right behind her!
St. Peter's Bascilica
St. Peter's Bascilica
Spanish Steps- post wipe-out
Spanish Steps
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