Rome, getting to know the grounds and the Colosseum.

The scare

At last I arrived at the Hotel in Rome, but who said it was all flowers? I was due to arrive at 16, but with delays I ended up arriving at 18 and having one of the biggest scares of my life, as I saidI ended up buying the hotel in the dark, on a website that I didn't know very well, for fear of sleeping on the street once again through Europe! So when I arrived at my planned destination, tcharãm! Where's the hotel? Well, this is the address, but I don't see a sign, just an old building and no one answering the intercom! And now???? Suitcases on the floor, despair in my chest and then what? What do I do? Calm down, breathe, think, there's a store nearby, I'll ask.

Uffa, the best thing I could have done, my heart was calm, the guy in the store had been very nice and helped us, he called the owner of the hotel and he was already on his way, the cold was being replaced by the absurd heat that was in Rome, in less than 20 minutes the guy arrived and explained that he would only be at the hotel until 4pm, and as we were due to arrive at 4pm he didn't think he needed to tell us that, because travel without a little trouble is no fun.

After the misunderstanding had been resolved, he simply arrived, took a card from his pocket, pressed the old intercom and puft, the door opened! And inside it was like another world, everything new, state-of-the-art and perfect, nothing like the façade of the old building we were standing in front of. Now I was able to rest, put my suitcases in place and take a nice shower! Wi fi in the room, news for the family, I was back in the world and off to see Rome, I wasn't sure where the hotel was in Rome, and I wanted to be surprised! I went out to find somewhere to eat and wander around, as I usually do, I leave my things at the hotel and walk around to see what's around!

Getting to know the city

In my wanderings I discovered some cafés and a very useful grocery store! There was a main street near the hotel where there were lots of restaurants, one nicer than the other, so I chose one at random, sat down and we chose a pizza (going to Rome and not eating pizza would be absurd, and I wanted to do it straight away!), the waiter kindly explained that it was usually individual, but we still decided to share, we weren't very hungry, and it was the best thing we did! Their individual pizzas aren't very individual, so two people can eat them, depending on how hungry they are.

The pizza looked like something from another world, it wouldn't be too much of a sacrifice to eat alone, but it was a bit much, especially for someone who wasn't very hungry. The tomato sauce was reminiscent of whole, juicy tomatoes on my palate, rather than the bland, watery stuff we have here! The rest of the pizza was very well done, delicious dough, cheese, everything! But what really caught my eye was the tomato sauce, which really made the difference! So good! The accompanying wine added the finishing touch.

When we'd finished eating, a question arose: the next day we wanted to rent a scooter to get around Rome, since our time in the city was minimal, so we asked the waiter if there were any rental stores around.

Right away he took me by the hand and started shouting and joking and carrying me to a store about three blocks away. He took the leaflet from the door and told me in Italian (I don't speak Italian, but it's not difficult to understand) that it was the best store around, and on the way back he stopped people and joked that I was his girlfriend, MIO AMORE, MIO AMORE ! The most handsome waiter I could find was middle-aged, cheerful and playful.

And when I got back to the table, Igor looked like he didn't understand anything, and he was a bit put out when he saw the waiter coming back shouting MIO AMORE, MIO AMORE and smooching my hand, but in the end he understood that it was all a joke, we talked some more and found out that the Colosseum was at the end of that street, very close! We paid and went on our way, I was really looking forward to seeing this monument.

It was quite late, past 10pm, but the weather was pleasant, better than in the morning, the Roman summer is very intense, the sun is strong and the heat is even hotter. Our walk was enjoyable and we didn't even see it go by, before we knew it we were in front of some beautiful monuments! Near the Colosseum there are absurdly beautiful buildings, it's inexplicable and the surprise made it even more beautiful! I was delighted, even though I was closed I wanted to go up close and see and touch everything I could, so I grabbed my camera and started clicking!

The bad impression I'd had at the beginning of the trip had really gone and my luck had changed! I was super excited and wanted the next day to come soon, I wanted to get into the Colosseum, see the rest of the city and do a thousand things! I had very little time in Rome and the next day would be the only one I'd have in that place, the next day I was leaving for Civitavecchia. Would I be able to see everything I wanted to?

I let go of this anxious feeling and continued walking, each step something cooler, the ground, the stones all gave me a very different feeling, the place was amazing! How many stories have passed through there!

I sat near the Colosseum, on a piece of something that might once have been it, then I saw the nearby Arch of Constantine, the Roman Forum from the outside, the Palatine Hill, and all this only made me want to go back there sooner! I stopped and admired the scenery for a long time, I loved everything, the atmosphere was light and delicious.

It was very late and I needed to get back to the hotel to sleep, the next day was going to be very busy! But first I had to stop at the grocery store and buy some important things like water and sweets.

I went to bed with my mind racing, already thinking about the news that was to come.

*Continue*

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