Brandon O'Brien

Saturday, October 19, 2013 @ 5:18 PM in 2013 Europe

Day 115

I've covered quite a bit of distance today. I started off in Naples, Italy at my hostel (Hostel of the Sun). After eating and packing I went to the Napoli Centrale train station and got on my train to Rome. I arrived in Rome a little after 12pm and went in search of a bag check so I could go explore the town for a few hours before my train to Paris left.

After a few minutes I finally found the baggage drop off point but there was a pretty heavy line. Rather than wait in line for a half hour and pay 5 euros to drop off my bag, I just sucked it up and carried it around with me. I set off to the Colosseum first. Unfortunately they had a large section of it behind scaffolding. I guess that's one of the disadvantages of visiting big monuments in the off season.

I saw the Roman Forums which are next to the Colosseum and then walked over to the Pantheon. Along the way I stopped at a grocery and got some apples and a to-go sandwich and ate lunch in the shade of the Pantheon.

From my last trip to Rome back in 2008 I remembered a really really good gelato place. It has over 150 different flavors, all of which are delicious. I wanted to see if I could remember where it was and find it without checking my map but unfortunately I was off by a street.

When I got to it, I ordered a pistachio stracciatella / Kit Kat gelato. Both flavors were really good. With plenty of time to burn I went over to the Piazza del Popolo and then looped back to the train station. Carrying around my big backpack plus my small backpack in my hand and the heat of the day kept me from running around more. I had time to run to the Vatican but it would be only to snap a photo. I still remember it from last time I was here so I didn't feel the need.

On the way back to the train station I ran into a guy who was staying at the same hostel as me in Naples. It's pretty funny how run-ins like this happen with as much frequency as they do. Another example was a girl at the hostel in Naples was talking about how she did a little bit of traveling with one of the guys who I stayed with at my hostel in Florence. Another "small world" moment.

Back at the train station I bought two small wine juice boxes and a donut for the train (the wine for tonight with some sandwiches I made earlier and the donut for breakfast). Fortunately I found an outlet in a waiting area at the train station so I can do some last minute charging of my devices and sit in comfort while waiting for my train.

I'm set to arrive in Paris a little after 10am tomorrow morning. I'm glad I don't arrive too early. The last couple of night journey's I've done have gotten me in around 6am which makes it hard to get a full night's sleep. When I get into Paris I'll do a little shopping so I can buy some food for dinner and breakfast for my hotel. It's going to be quite the shock having a 20+ degree drop in temperatures from southern Italy up to Paris. It's been nice wearing shorts and t-shirts for the last couple of weeks.

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Tags: daily journal, italy, naples, rome

Posted from: Italy

Friday, September 5, 2008 @ 11:00 PM in 2008 Europe Wedding

Today is our last full day in Europe before we catch our flights back to the states tomorrow. There was just one last major spot we needed to see while in Rome and that was Vatican City.

We toured the museums and the Sistine Chapel on the Vatican grounds. The main chapel at the Vatican was gigantic. It's incredible how much work was put into all the paintings, woodwork, architecture and sculptures. I felt like an idiot but when we walked through the Sistine Chapel I wasn't looking up and missed the Creation of Adam painting (to my credit, we were being cattle herded through the whole thing so I got confused which part of the tour we were actually on). After realizing it, we did a quick backtrack so I could grab a quick look. They were being super strict about photography so I didn't get any pics of it.

We had a nice dinner with some pasta and wine before doing one last evening stroll and photo session. Rome is beautiful at night and the pics we took only kinda capture it.

This was a whirlwind trip where we covered so much ground in a little less than two weeks. This was the typical "American" approach to travel where you need to see as many sights as you can. While I loved the trip, I made sure that subsequent travel to Europe and elsewhere had me spending a lot more time in each location I visited. Feeling like you have time to actually learn the area and pick up on more of the culture is such a cool feeling.

Note: This post was written about 13 years after I went on this trip. Unfortunately I didn't keep a journal so this is pieced together from our itinerary and photos.

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Tags: italy, rome, vatican

Posted from: Italy

Thursday, September 4, 2008 @ 11:00 PM in 2008 Europe Wedding

We hit a lot more landmarks in our sightseeing adventure today. These included the Piazza del Popolo, Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II

When we were in the Piazza Navona, there was some kind of filming for a movie going on. They had a bunch of people dressed as hippies protesting around the obelisk. I'm still not sure what that was for, but it was interesting to see. We walked from there to the Spanish Steps where people kept trying to get us to buy knickknacks and flowers. We didn't stay too long before walking past the Trevi fountain and taking a lot of pics.

The Pantheon is another favorite of mine. The architecture and the hole in the roof are really unique. We started walking around near the Pantheon and stumbled on Nice Ice Gelateria which blew our minds. They had more gelato flavors than we'd seen at any shop throughout the trip. I was partial to the Stracciatella (vanilla with some chocolate pieces in it) and had been trying that flavor whenever we stopped for gelato. (Unfortunately it seems like this place has closed down and isn't around anymore. That's a shame.)

After stuffing ourselves with gelato, we made our way to the Piazza Navona and then walked over to the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II to round out our sightseeing for the day.

Note: This post was written about 13 years after I went on this trip. Unfortunately I didn't keep a journal so this is pieced together from our itinerary and photos.

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Tags: italy, rome, gelato

Posted from: Italy

Wednesday, September 3, 2008 @ 11:00 PM in 2008 Europe Wedding

We left Venice at 6:45am and got into Rome a little after 11am. We checked into our hotel and then set about exploring the city. The first spot we made sure to hit was the Colosseum. We paid for entry so we could walk around inside the Colosseum and took more pics than I'd like to admit. The Colosseum was definitely a highlight for me, not just in Rome but the whole trip.

We walked from the Colosseum to the old Roman Forum which was basically the "downtown" back in roman days. Seeing all of those sights and walking around was enough for one day, so we went and caught a train back to the hotel (we were staying slightly outside of Rome, but not far from a train station).

I don't remember having many feelings one way or another about Rome prior to this trip. I knew it was a city filled with history but I don't recall it being one of the destinations I was really looking forward to. We booked Rome because the flight back to the US was significantly cheaper. I'm extremely glad we made it here though. Some people say Rome is a hot touristy destination, but I really liked the city.

Note: This post was written about 13 years after I went on this trip. Unfortunately I didn't keep a journal so this is pieced together from our itinerary and photos.

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Tags: italy, venice, rome, train

Posted from: Italy