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Post by on_the_edge on Oct 4, 2023 15:40:09 GMT -5
Do not try and fill your water bottle in one of the many fountains or scratch your initials in any walls. If you do get caught doing something you shouldn't just tell them you are an American. They will understand your lack of knowledge and grace.
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Post by paul on Oct 5, 2023 11:07:47 GMT -5
Just got back from The Colosseum and what an experience that was! I did a two hour Skip The Line guided tour.(Just like Eric Cartman I HATE waiting in lines). The tour also included The Roman Forum and Palantine Hill which were also pretty impressive. I was going to post some photos I took on my phone but I'm having difficulty figuring out how to do that. I will try again later on tonight.
While Rome is a beautiful city my one criticism so far is that it's not pedestrian friendly. Many of the streets, around my hotel have no sidewalks and you NEED to be watching out for traffic as traffic is DEFINITELY not watching out for you.
Also, unlike North America the area around my hotel doesn't have street names posted on signs or traffic lights. Instead they're posted on the sides of buildings so if you're not keeping a close eye out it's easy to get lost which is exactly what happened to me this morning. Luckily I planned for such a scenario and left for my journey very early. Once I realized I was hopelessly lost I headed back to my hotel to start over again. I found out where I made my mistake as one of the streets I was supposed to turn on had its sign on a building that was to the back of me. Once I saw that I was back on track and I made it to the Colosseum with an hour to spare which was nice as it allowed me a chance to grab some lunch beforehand.
I have a quick warning for anyone traveling to Rome in the future: Be very wary of ANYONE approaching you to start a conversation. They are likely only doing so to unload some "free" tchotchkes on you. They slip it on your wrist or hand it you saying that it's free and then ask you for money. I had read about these people online and today one of them approached me and asked me where I was from. Being Canadian I wanted to be friendly so I answered his question. He told me he was from Senegal, shook my hand and lo and behold slipped a bracelet on my wrist and asked me for money. I removed it, handed it back to him and walked away. For the remainder of my trip I'm following the advice given to us in kindergarten about "stranger danger" and not talking to anyone who approaches me on the street.
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Post by Vegas on Oct 5, 2023 11:32:17 GMT -5
Just got back from The Colosseum and what an experience that was! I did a two hour Skip The Line guided tour.(Just like Eric Cartman I HATE waiting in lines). The tour also included The Roman Forum and Palantine Hill which were also pretty impressive. I was going to post some photos I took on my phone but I'm having difficulty figuring out how to do that. I will try again later on tonight. While Rome is a beautiful city my one criticism so far is that it's not pedestrian friendly. Many of the streets, around my hotel have no sidewalks and you NEED to be watching out for traffic as traffic is DEFINITELY not watching out for you. Also, unlike North America the area around my hotel doesn't have street names posted on signs or traffic lights. Instead they're posted on the sides of buildings so if you're not keeping a close eye out it's easy to get lost which is exactly what happened to me this morning. Luckily I planned for such a scenario and left for my journey very early. Once I realized I was hopelessly lost I headed back to my hotel to start over again. I found out where I made my mistake as one of the streets I was supposed to turn on had its sign on a building that was to the back of me. Once I saw that I was back on track and I made it to the Colosseum with an hour to spare which was nice as it allowed me a chance to grab some lunch beforehand. I have a quick warning for anyone traveling to Rome in the future: Be very wary of ANYONE approaching you to start a conversation. They are likely only doing so to unload some "free" tchotchkes on you. They slip it on your wrist or hand it you saying that it's free and then ask you for money. I had read about these people online and today one of them approached me and asked me where I was from. Being Canadian I wanted to be friendly so I answered his question. He told me he was from Senegal, shook my hand and lo and behold slipped a bracelet on my wrist and asked me for money. I removed it, handed it back to him and walked away. For the remainder of my trip I'm following the advice given to us in kindergarten about "stranger danger" and not talking to anyone who approaches me on the street. Very cool, I have plans to see the Colosseum, Forum, and Palatine Hill in December. I am also going to Vatican City, the Spanish Steps, and taking a train from Rome to see Pompeii. |
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Post by TTX on Oct 5, 2023 12:13:02 GMT -5
Sounds like a fun time for each of you. Enjoy.
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Post by paul on Oct 5, 2023 14:50:18 GMT -5
Did not have a fun evening. Had a moonlight walking tour of the city booked but it never happened. I was told to be in front of Neptune's Fountain by 7:50 and the tour guide was supposed to be holding a yellow flag. I got there at 7:30 and walked all around that damn fountain for half and hour but never saw any yellow flag. By the time 8:05 came and went I gave up and headed back to my hotel. The company tried to call me to see where I was but I didn't hear my phone ring. Hopefully I can get my money back.🤞
I got lost on my way there. Trying to see the street name plaques, which are faded, on the buildings in the dark is virtually impossible. Finally a helpful police officer was kind enough to point me in the right direction.
Got lost on my way back to the hotel too. Ended up having to turn my mobile roaming data on to use Google Maps to find my way back.(Goodbye to $15 from my bank account for that one) My hotel is just a few blocks away from The Pantheon so once I found that I knew where I was.
Trying not to let this spoil my trip but I was pretty upset tonight. It's a good thing one of those con artist peddlers didn't approach me because I probably would have told them off; For fun I looked up how to call someone a f****ng as***le in Italian before I left for my trip and I likely would have used that expression tonight.
Going to see The Vatican tomorrow and I'm taking a cab there as my tour starts at 8:00 in the morning. I also have another walking tour planned for tomorrow night so hopefully that one goes better than tonight's.
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Post by paul on Oct 6, 2023 5:27:14 GMT -5
Just got back from The Vatican and it was quite the experience. Once again I'm glad I did the Skip The Line option as the lineup to get in was quite extensive. It was still quite crowded inside though. I took a 3 hour tour, a 3 hour tour however unlike the SS Minnow this tour had a happy ending.
My tour guide took our group through the highlights: The Hall Of Maps, The Raphael Rooms, The Sistine Chapel etc. Even with the headsets we were given it was still hard at times to hear our guide because of her accent and the noise of the other people. With that said I still heard the bulk of what she was saying.
Before we entered The Sistine Chapel we were told that speaking and taking photos was strictly prohibited. While I was a good boy and kept my mouth shut there were A LOT of people talking. It took away from the peace and tranquility of the Chapel a bit but it was still amazing to marvel at Michaelangelo's magnificent ceiling. We finished off in St. Peter's Square and then we were free to explore St. Peter's Basilica on our own.
Quick word of advice to anyone going to The Vatican in the future: They have a strict dress code. Knees and shoulders must be covered for both men and women and from what I've read online they will deny you entry if you don't adhere. You don't need to show up in your Sunday Best but one should remember it's a place of worship and dress appropriately.
On a side note I heard that taxi rates in Rome were rather expensive. I've actually found the opposite to be true. My cab from The Vatican back to my hotel was 8.60 Euros which converts to about $12.15 Canadian. Based on the distance traveled there's no way in hell I'd be able to get that rate back home.
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Post by on_the_edge on Oct 6, 2023 16:40:28 GMT -5
. On a side note I heard that taxi rates in Rome were rather expensive. I've actually found the opposite to be true. My cab from The Vatican back to my hotel was 8.60 Euros which converts to about $12.15 Canadian. Based on the distance traveled there's no way in hell I'd be able to get that rate back home. To be fair it is a bit further from Canada to Rome.  Happy to hear that for the most part you are having a good time. You may want to invest in some bread and leave crumbs while walking around to find your way back.  |
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Post by paul on Oct 7, 2023 3:24:31 GMT -5
. On a side note I heard that taxi rates in Rome were rather expensive. I've actually found the opposite to be true. My cab from The Vatican back to my hotel was 8.60 Euros which converts to about $12.15 Canadian. Based on the distance traveled there's no way in hell I'd be able to get that rate back home. To be fair it is a bit further from Canada to Rome. Happy to hear that for the most part you are having a good time. You may want to invest in some bread and leave crumbs while walking around to find your way back. Thank you for the kind words. Yeah, I'm considering becoming a reverse vampire for the rest of my trip by getting back to my hotel before dark. At least in the day time one can READ the faded signs on the side of the buildings. It's virtually impossible once the sun is down. |
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Post by Bazzy on Oct 7, 2023 5:10:53 GMT -5
Going to see the Colosseum? I'd love to see that
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Post by neilybob on Oct 7, 2023 6:14:28 GMT -5
Enjoy your trip paul. |
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