Part of planning is expecting something with go wrong and
being prepared to just roll with the punches.
The alarm went off this morning at 6am and Jill and I
were up and ready by the time our room service breakfast came at 6:45. We ate
and drank some coffee and we were off to get in line to exit the boat by 7am.
We had scheduled a walking tour today in Rome which started at 9am so we needed
to be quick. Unfortunately our captain had other plans. He told us that we
where #6 of 7 boats all wanting to port this morning into Chivitavecchia and we
didn't get cleared to exit the ship until 7:45. Every other day this week we've
been able to exit by 7am. Every minute counts when the trains run only twice an
hour and you're going into Rome for the first time.
Jill and I were literally the FIRST ones off our boat
today and in the front seat of the first transport bus to the port gate. We
immediately grabbed a map, train schedule, and two metro tickets. From there we
jogged a mile to the train station and waited a few minutes before getting on
the 8:02 train to Ostiense where we power walked our way through the crowd to
get to the roman metro train which took us to the doorstep of the Colosseum.
Even though Jill and I were moving quicker then those 'Amazing Race'
contestants we still ended up at our scheduled meeting spot at 9:30. And we
were the only ones there.
We did all we could. We couldn't have gotten to Rome any
faster considering the given situation. It was out of our control. And although
we wanted to be mad we had to remember that we were in freaking Rome! We got a
map of Rome and walked to the Colosseum where we found a guided tour for both
the Colosseum and the Roman Forum which included front of the line tickets for
both too. Growing up you remember seeing pictures of Roman buildings like the
Colosseum and the Roman Forum but when you actually stand inside it you get a
real sense of how immense the buildings are. The United States don't have any
buildings that are comparable. And the fact that Rome is still excavating and
unearthing new items is even more remarkable.
After our tour was over Jill and I found the bus that
went to the Vatican where once again we felt so small and insignificant due to
the scale of the structures surrounding us. We gave my mom a call to wish her a
happy birthday while standing in the courtyard of the Vatican and had to leave
her a message. From there we had to start for the train back to Civitavecchia. Unfortunately
so many other boats were at the same dock and on the same schedule as us and
the fact the the train runs twice an hour and the it was a normal working day
for the residents of Rome our 16:04 train was standing room only and we were
packed in there like sardines. That was honestly the longest train ride ever.
And the fact that the locals were short tempered and yelling at you for not
getting out of their way didn't help matters. I've never been so happy to walk
a mile as when we got back to Civitavecchia and off the train. Jill and I got
back to our room by 17:30, cleaned up, and laid down for a bit before our
dinner reservations at the ship's steak house, a well deserved reward for a
long day.
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