Italy 2005, Rome, Friday 02.09.2005
Getting up early again to get a bus heading to the Vatican. Boarding the bus without a ticket as nowhere was written were to get one. Asking the driver brought me not a step further. An Italian businessman standing next to me and had followed this conversation gave me one of his unused tickets and explained me that tickets can be bought in the shops with the T-sign hanging out.
Arriving at the Vatican I lined up at the entrance of the San Pietro instead of visiting the Vatican Museum with the Sixtinian Chapel first. Which turned out to be a failure because after visiting the San Pietro with it's catacombs it was so crowded in the Vatican Museum that it was impossible to walk free through the museum. The sixtinian chapel at the end of the route in the museum is very impressive. To bad that people just are unable to shut up and enjoy the beautifull paintings in silence.
At the hostel people said that visiting te Castel Saint Angelo is just a waiste of money and visiting means more steps (referring to the Spanish Steps), so I decide just to take a picture of the Castel Saint Angelo which you can find in every tour guide book. Had lunch at the Campo dei Fiori where everyday a market is held. In the past the inquisition used to execute people on this place. Passing the Palazzo Spade were the famous perspective colonade is located (I did not enter, just whatched the picture on the wall) I walk to the church Santa Maria in Cosmedin.
In front of the entrance of this church people line up to put there hand in the so called Bocca Della Verita, the mouth of truth. From the church I pass the Circo Massimo and walk to the other side of town to finally visit the bones located at the Via Vittorio Veneto in the Santa Maria della Concezione. The “catacombs” of this church are decorated (against the wall, ceiling) with the bones of over 3000 munks.
Getting back at the hostel an announcement hangs on the fridge: the bar located on the street opposite of the hostel holds a party: 10€ entrance, free beer all night. Unnecessary to say where everybody went to after dinner:-) With the10€ entrance fee also a look-a-like Budweiser Zippo is included. Great party...everybody knows everybody...even those who do not stay at the hostel.
Italy 2005, Rome, Saturday 03.09.2005
Getting up a little later due to the great party last night. Having lunch/brunch at the Pantheon.In the afternoon the Catacombs di San Castillio are on the program. We (Dave, Mathew and I) take the underground from Rome Termini to the Porta san Giovanni just next to the Saint Giovanni in Laterno from were we take the bus to the catacombs.
The entrance fee at the catacombs also include a guided tour, which, is a must as you will get lost in the 20km long hallways of the catacombs. The tour was guided by an American priest who made the tour with his stories and jokes both interesting and sort of funny at the same time. After the tour was finished he blessed everybody and gave all visitors a hand.
The temperatures in the catacombs were at a comfortable 15°C if compared with outside, were it must have been around 32°C.
Heading back to the Porta San Giovanni we also visit the cathedral Saint Giovanni in Laterno were they just start with a service. Funny enough people keep walking around as the service continuous and still people are allowed to enter.
On our way back to the hostel we also visit one of the oldest churches of Rome, the San Pietro in vincoli. Here the chains of Petrus are kept as a relic.
After getting back to the hostel and having dinner we (Nadine, Dan, Dave, Mathew, a guy I don't remember his name and myself) go to the Via dei Fori Imperiali were Elton John awaits us and 400.000 other people in front of the Colloseum. Arriving at the Via dei Fori Imperiali we make our way through two security points up to the last television screen in front of the Colloseum. The stage now must be about 250m away from us.
Punctually at 21.00h Elton John enters the stage were he played old hits like “Daniel”, “Crocodile Rock” during the next 2,5 hours. Unfortunately he didn’t play “Tiny Dancer” but nevertheless it was a hell of a concert…and free of charge after all.
After the concert we wade through the crowd deciding to stop at the nearby Irish Pub. In here they move us from room to room twice as they want to clean. When we wanted another beer….they said they just closed the bar. Next stop…the bar next to the hostel, where we meet about everybody from the night before, no-hostel people included.