Berger in Rome

On the train to the plane to the gate to the car to the home... or so I hope.  Today's been pretty mild, which was to be expected. The Continental breakfast at the hotel was much more impressive. Meeting Michele at the McDonald's within the Termini was harder than imagined (not sure why he couldn't find my hotel this time, or why I thought there wouldn't be a McDonald's just outside Termini as well as one inside it).  But we found each other within around twenty minutes of looking, which might have been our record, and we got on a train to San Giovanni, another fucking gorgeous church.  San Giovanni I came to think about the excesses of religion in a different way today: why would you pay such fealty to a god you believe to be all-powerful, if you believe it to be all-powerful? What would it need with such pitiful gifts you could provide, however great you might find them? Anything that you give the omnipotent, isn't it pathetic?  Yes, if your god i...

I swore a couple of days ago that I would be thinner when I returned to the states. I am no longer so sure. I'm still working hard out there, every day, walking and sweating a lot, but today, I'm not sure how far I actually travelled, how much work I actually did. Today I went to Ostia Antica, the other buried city. The one that isn't Pompeii.  First, I got breakfast. First time one of my hotels had a complimentary breakfast and I could get moving early enough to do something about it. Of course, it wasn't in the actual building I was staying in, so I had to wind my way through Navona to a different hostel to find the rooftop where a continental breakfast was available. The food was all right. I ate too much of it.  The view - like every view here - was good.  I was thinking how Spider-Man would have a tough time in this town. Then I checked out of my hotel, and heading my last lodging in Rome, a place just a block or two from my first. The last hotel is in th...

I was beat, but it was Saturday night, and there were hours left before midnight. I was beat, but I wasn't beaten, y'dig? So I got my shoes back on, wondered if I was starting to blister, and went full on stepping to the Spanish Steps. My map abilities appear to be shit. I think, after a few days of being turned around half a jillion times, I've recognized one particular problem: Google Maps' interface always keeps North up, auto-rotating, so that, whatever direction I'm facing, I need to mentally reposition my head not to think that when the map says left, it's left, but when the map says left, it's East, even if I'm walking south. When turn-by-turn controls are on (when full GPS is in place, Google Maps doesn't keep Due North in place.  The path to The Steps. Anyway, I got lost a bunch of times, but I've been quicker to course correct, then quicker to self-flaggelate, then quicker to do the right thing. The path to the Spanish Steps s...

Thee Circus Maximus was closed when I got to it, but my phone could sneak through the gate enough for a pic.  I  am going to be thinner when I return than when I left. I saw a scale on one of my first days, but it didn't work, and it was metric anyway. But yesterday, between the megatour and getting lost a couple of times, I must have walked roughly five gigameters. I'm still weary, after an undisturbed full night's sleep.  A couple of people have suggested things I do or try, like I am some trained monkey who will simply perform on demand. Let it be known that if I have, by sheer coincidence, done the exact thing that you might have suggested, and used the precise language you used in describing the process, it is sheer coincidence. I was probably too busy to have even read the comment in which you made the suggestion, even if we discussed it at length. That being said: Porchetta - Check, Sonya.  Late night walks in the Travestera - Lara and Siv, got it....

Today's room, I noticed, had a tiny washer in it, so upon waking, I decided to take advantage. There wasn't detergent in the apartment, so I just used shower gel. Really, I figured, a little soap and water on the clothes would leave them better for traveling.  I don't know why I assumed the tiny washer was actually a washer/dryer. It was just so compact; I figured it was made to do both. There was no evidence to support that hypothesis.  So there was a half hour to check out and a load of wet clothes laying out in the room.  "This is not the worse thing I have done," I said, eating the rest of yesterday's leftovers. "I have eaten brains. Instead of entrails." With my half hour left in this place, I decided to look at the church down the block. There was a big Italian sign out front reading "Dream," but it turns out, it had a twelve Euro price tag. Unnecessary. Like many, it looked like a real old building.  I took my bags the five...

Today is the day I gave up on Venice. I've had fun on my travels in Rome so far, but if I'm honest with myself (and why would I lie to me? I'm an incredibly sharp judge of character with a withering line for those with deceit in their hearts. I certainly know better than to cross me, and that's the truth!), I've not used my time so far so efficiently. I should have gone on guided tours right away, and then, with the knowledge collected, tooled around myself afterwards. I kind of know the lay of the land a little now, but my time's already half over. Why couldn't I have scheduled a decade here instead of a week? Goddamned Expedia... it's their fault. It has to be somebody's.    Anyway, I decided that I now have a handle on Rome (just a little), but it would be back to drawings in Venice. Maybe next time around (Venice, anyone?). So since I had to find another room for the next couple of days, I decided that I'd be looking closer to home. I pi...