Rome day 2

Its my birthday! I was awake for 6:30 A.M. After sharing a room with Kim and Kami several times before, I learned very quickly that unless I'm the first in the bathroom, then I've no chance until mid afternoon! Nah, they aren't that bad, but I'm always awake first anyways and like to get in and out before they both wake up.

Beth knocked on the door to see if we were ready to go to breakfast. I was! 20 minutes later the girls came down to breakfast with a card and present for me. Aww! The card had some little sticky post-it notes with reminder messages for "forgetful aging people"--remember to flush, turn off the gas, and stuff like that. The Gunzingers also got me an amazing piece of Murano glass when they were in Venice. It's a small fish bowl with two little fish in it--two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl. After breakfast we all headed back to the rooms, and, surprise, surprise, surprise, someone had posted post-it notes all over my bed just to remind me to do things today! Thanks girls!

My birthday present                      My post it note bed      

  

I left the post-it notes on the bed as we left for the day to do some sightseeing, wondering what the maid would make of it all. I guess the birthday cards on the bedside cabinet would give it away, though. My friend Gail from Arizona had mailed a card out to Kami before she came to Italy, so I had three cards to open and display :)

First stop today was the Vatican Museum. We took a taxi and met up with Joe and Zach in front of the Museum. We had tickets booked for 9 A.M. and it was just as well, since the line for tickets was around the block! Despite leaving our hotel the night before late and getting back to their hotel at 2 A.M, Joe and Zach were up at 6:30 this morning and took the metro for an hour to arrive just in time!

Zach mid yawn!                                  Kim & Kami ready to do the museum    The Vatican museum

   

After going through airport type security we were now in a different country! Yup! The Vatican city is its own country! We no longer in Italy and in The Vatican City! It has its own police, fire service, and even its own money!!

The entrance to the museum

    

I was totally blown away by the museum. I'm not the biggest fan of museums, but the sheer scale and the amount of things to see was outstanding! We actually spent the best part of four and a half hours looking around inside!  Sculptures, paintings, tapestries, statues, maps, and more were all there, and they weren't behind barriers either! It was all right there in the open.

I could go on and on about the things that we saw, but the best thing is to just check out all the pictures in the album below:

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We eventually made our way to the exit. We had “lost” Kim, Zach, and Joe inside the huge edifice, but had arranged to meet them outside the museum. When we couldn't find them at the arrange meeting place, we called them a couple of times and couldn't get through. We left to have lunch in a small outdoor restaurant just around the corner from our next stop--St. Peter's Basilica!

Joe called half an hour later to say they left the museum early and already saw the Basilica, but they would meet us at the entrance. After meeting up for ten minutes, Mark, Beth, Kami and I headed through more airport type security for St. Peter's. I'd come to the Basilica before when I saw Roger's shows in Rome in 2002. However, I hadn't taken it all in--it was only a short visit. I wanted to go to the top of the dome and see the view of Rome this time. It's a total of 550 steps if you walk the entire way, or 320 if you take the elevator up halfway and walk the rest.

St Peters Basilica                                       Kami, Beth and Mark                                The chosen one!

    

Mark and Beth decided to take a taxi back to the hotel after seeing the Basilica and the crypt where  past popes were laid in eternal rest. We had been standing on our feet for the last seven hours, and it took its toll on them. It was also nearing 4 P.M, so Kami and I went up the dome alone.

This is where we were heading             Close up shot                                   Extreme close up!

    

We decided to take the elevator halfway up, and after getting out of the elevator and seeing the sweat on the people that had walked we were pretty happy! The second half was a combination of oddly sloping stairs, uneven steps, and an extremely narrow spiral staircase with a rope for a handrail. As you get closer to the top you actually have to walk leaning to one side, as the inside of the dome gets more curved and narrow the higher up you get.

The view from the top was well worth the walk, though! It was a glorious, sunny day in Rome, and we couldn't have picked a nicer day for it.

The Vatican Museum                                                                                             Coliseum in the distance

     

After taking a few pictures and just taking in the views, we headed back down. This time we decided to walk all the way back down the steps. It actually wasn't as bad as I expected. I know we were going downhill, but the steps weren't steep at all--more long and low and level. Had I known this before coming up I would have probably takes the stairs all the way. It's easy to say that after the fact, though!

The Vatican cops!

   

We took our time going down, stopping halfway to get a post card for my dad. We mailed it from outside the gift shop, too, so it will have the Vatican country postmark on it!  We walked down the main street that leads up to St. Peter's and then crossed the river on one of the two carved stone bridges that connect Rome to that other country!

We caught a taxi back to the hotel where we met up with Mark and Beth and chilled out for an hour or so. Joe and Zach had booked a room in the hotel next to ours for the night since it was not only my birthday, but it was also Joe’s. They didn't want to risk getting drunk, return to their distant hotel, then get all the way back to our hotel for 7 A.M. the next morning for our trip to Pompeii!

We all headed out for dinner around 7 P.M. The first restaurant we tried was recommended by the hotel and looked very nice,  but we were told the whole place was booked out for a private party. The second place looked great, so we sat down, then  we looked at the menu, and it didn't look too great  anymore, so we up and walked across the street. After looking at a couple more places we decided on one and all had dinner together--except for Zach who wasn't well--he stayed back at the hotel. (No they didn't send us along as a surrogate band.) So after dinner Kim, Joe, Kami, and I headed down to the bar Kami and I went to the night before for a few drinks before heading back to our hotel around midnight. We all had to be up at 6 A.M. at the latest, and we all had a full day walking around sightseeing, so I think I can speak for everyone when I say we were all pretty glad to get to bed “early.” 

I have to say it was one of  (if not THE) most memorable birthdays I've had--from the second my watch said midnight the night before to the second before midnight that night--I had a fantastic time with amazing people, and I just wanted to say thanks again to Mark, Beth, Kim, Kami, Joe, and Zach for making it a great day.

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Wednesday, 6th April, Milan to Rome

So after another amazing show the last night in Milan, it was time yet again to move on. Kamilla and her family went to Venice over the weekend while I stayed in Milan with Kevin. We were all taking the train to Rome around the same time, so we'd meet at the central station sometime in the early afternoon.

Kevin and I checked out of the Westin in Milan at 10:30. Kevin took the train to Brussels and stayed with Philippe for the Dutch shows. We walked to Milan central station, and while Kevin bought his reservation ticket, I had my last taste of Gelato! (well for a couple of hours...)

As we went up to the train  platform level, I saw Jon, Robbie, and Pat stood at the top of the escalator. They were going out to lake Como for the day, and, like us, had to wait till their platform was announced.

Jon, Robbie, Kevin and Pat                                                     Kim, Joe and Zach arrive in Rome.
              

We chatted for a good fifteen minutes before all five of us headed off to our respective platforms, saying we'd no doubt see each other soon.

I caught the 11:15 train, and it was due to arrive into Rome at 3:00 P. M. I knew Kamilla's train from Venice left at 11:30, and I knew it would stop at Bologna 30 minutes after mine was due to. When  I got to Bologna, I jumped off my train and found the platform where Kami's train was due. She had told me her carriage number earlier, so when their train arrived, I made my way to carriage 7 to surprise everyone. There was another two and a half hours on the train, and it was cool to just sit and have someone to chat to, especially since my laptop was broken. It was killing me being on a train for several hours with no laptop and no one to talk to. They were all telling me how nice Venice was and how much they had enjoyed it. I've always wanted to go, and I will one day. Kami, Kim, Joe, Zach, Mark and Beth were all sleeping on the train before I arrived due to them being exhausted with the sightseeing and early mornings in Venice.

Joe and Zach were staying at a different hotel to us somewhere West of Rome. Kim, Kami, and I were sharing a triple room while Mark and Beth were in the room next door. We took two taxis to our hotel, and Joe and Zach came to our room to chill out and shower before heading over to their hotel later on that night.

We all rested up for an hour before Mark suggested we go see the Pantheon before it closed at 5:30. We took a couple more taxis and arrived 10 minutes later.

     

The inside of the Pantheon, Rome is amazing. It's difficult to get pictures that do it justice due to the size. The Italian painter and architect Raphael is buried there. The building is filled with amazing statues and busts.

After spending a good half hour inside, we made our way out to take some pictures and find something to eat. Beth wanted some Gelato, and never one to miss a chance, I agreed that Gelato would be good. Mark said he read that the best Gelato shop in Rome wasn't too far from where we were. The store was absolutely packed with people, and it took us a good 20 minutes to get through the line. Was it worth the wait? You bet! It was the best Gelato I've had in Italy!

We then took the fifteen minutes walk through the streets of Rome to the Trevi Fountain. I didn't see it the last time I was in Rome, but as impressive as it was, it was a bit too over-the-top for my liking. Obviously  it attracts the tourists. However, it was here that I proved without a shadow of a doubt that I AM Spartacus! Zach tried to imitate me but was duly slaughtered by the sword!

     

It was both Joe’s and my birthday the next day, and we decided that we would have a big dinner tonight with the seven of us to celebrate since we had to be up VERY early Friday morning for the train to Pompeii. We found a nice restaurant just around the corner from the fountain in a nice little courtyard with tables outside where we sat and ate and drank for a couple of hours. We then headed back over to the fountain to see it lit at night. After that we all walked to the Spanish Steps where I stood in the middle of the road dodging oncoming traffic just to get some pictures of us all.

   

By this time it was going on 10 P.M. and we were all tired from the day's traveling and five hours sightseeing! After various “No its this way, no its that way,” conversations, Kami took hold of the map and a 30 minute walk later, we were back at the hotel. Joe and Zach started out to their hotel, but they had no idea how to get there. They started by looking for the bus! Kami and I found a little bar about 100 yards from the hotel with tables outside and sat there drinking (Fanta and Coke!) till the clock turned midnight, so we both saw my birthday arrive. About 20 minutes after arriving at the bar, Joe and Zach walked pass Kami and I, nodded, and carried on walking! It was so funny, Kami and I just looked at each other and shook our heads! They finally got to their hotel at 2 A.M! We got back to the hotel just after midnight and had an “early” night  since we had a full day of sightseeing planned for Thursday.

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A few Panorama pictures from Rome and Pompeii

View over the Vatican  piazza

Rome from the top of St. Peter's Basilica

Mark looking into the Coliseum

Exterior of the Pompeii amphitheatre

Kim and Zach looking out over the city of Pompeii

The Coliseum

The Pantheon ceiling. This was made up of 9 pictures--I wish I took more to fill in the ceiling.

(click the pics to see a larger version)

Home, home again

I'm back home until Wednesday, then I fly out to Croatia, take a train to Prague, train to Poland, and then fly back home, home again.

I had a great time in Rome and Pompeii. Will try catch up on the blog over the next few days.

Simon in Pompeii

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Guess where I am today!

Arrived in Pompeii and hour or so ago. We just sat and listened to Echoes and Set The Contols on my phone in the Amphitheatre. 
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Milan 4th and final show

AMAZING show tonight, i take the train to Rome tomorrow for my birthday and will have four nights there without the use of a laptop!

Will be back on the blog on the 10th April.

Fans at the train station on the way to the venue and a nice couple we met in the venue.