A Very Lucky Girl

We woke up in our B&B in Genova, Italy on Wednesday, Jordan's 23rd birthday. Our train to Rome left at 6:10 AM and we arrived at Rome Termini station a little after 10 AM. Our hostel was located a short 7 minute walk away. We dropped our luggage off at Hotel Alessandro Palace and Bar and announced it was Jordan's birthday. The gentlemen at the reception desk told us to visit the rooftop bar that evening for free champagne. We made a mental note before slathering on the sunscreen and setting out to explore with a paper map.  We hadn't eaten a proper breakfast so we were on the verge of hanger. We turned our steps toward the Via Nazionale which was dotted with restaurants. We made a poor choice. Eliseo's was imitation Italian at best. The cheese on my pizza was waxy and the bolognese Jordan ordered tasted as though they were serving cans of Chef Boyardee. Disappointed and only somewhat full, we continued into the city center of Rome. We found the Trevi Fountain firs...

it's really just all pirates and politics It was about an hour and a half from Arezzo to Rome and LDL made a friend on the way. He had already extended an invitation to his place in Dubai by the time we pulled into Roma Termini. We booked a triple room for three nights at Hotel Cressy a few blocks away from the main train station and checked in immediately. LDL and I took the double bed and Gibby took the single. After dumping our backpacks, we hit a nearby restaurant for pizza. Where LDL proceeded to spill vinaigrette on her leather purse from Prague to add to the marks of beer and gelato. I dissolved into fits of giggles.  After lunch we wasted no time in locating the Colosseum, the place of death for half a million people from 80-406 AD. Though the place is in ruins, those ruins were spectacular.  We joined a tour that refreshed me on the history I learned from Mr. Davis in Latin class at St.David's. From the Colosseum, our tour guide, Brent, led us to palatine h...

Since Taylor C. was so generous with her hospitality, we stayed in Arezzo for two nights and used our day in the middle to take a trip by train (what else?) to the famed city of Florence.  The place was surprisingly packed despite it being the bare beginning of tourist season. I imagine the proximity of Easter was a large draw. We braved the streets without a paper map and moved blindly through the maze of tourists and vendors. My first purchase of the day was raspberry gelato for breakfast. The fruit base made me feel slightly better about my nutrition choices.  We found a giant arch near a carousel that probably is really significant and continued under it until we reached the river. We walked along the edge until we accidentally found the right narrow street that spilled us into Piazza del Duomo . The cathedral was the most spectacular building I saw. The intricacies of the architecture was flawless and mesmerizing. We walked around outside for quite a while for two ...