Paul Goes To Rome

[on_the_edge]

Have you seen Justin Timberlake and/or Jessica Biel? They are supposed to be in Rome vacationing.

Not sure if you figured this out yet but PAUL is a store you opened up when you traveled back in time so you could have that energy drink you like on this trip. Think about it. It makes complete sense.

You may want to talk to someone at the front desk of the hotel, if they speak English, or Canadian lol, to check your directions for tomorrow. Since the place(s) are so close they should be able to help.

[paul]

Oct 9, 2023 15:32:12 GMT -5 on_the_edge said:

Have you seen Justin Timberlake and/or Jessica Biel? They are supposed to be in Rome vacationing.

Not sure if you figured this out yet but PAUL is a store you opened up when you traveled back in time so you could have that energy drink you like on this trip. Think about it. It makes complete sense.

You may want to talk to someone at the front desk of the hotel, if they speak English, or Canadian lol, to check your directions for tomorrow. Since the place(s) are so close they should be able to help.









I haven't seen Timberlake or Biel yet but would love to. "Can't Stop The Feeling" is one of my all-time favorite songs and I've had a crush on Biel since high school when she was on 7th Heaven.

Your time traveling theory is intriguing. I only wish I had used those powers to pick the winning lottery numbers. Oh well, maybe next time.

Thanks for the front desk advice, friend. It's always useful for hotels/airports to have someone who speaks Canadian as evidenced by the video below. Sorry for the f-bomb being dropped at the end, buddy.

[paul]

Just got back from my sightseeing for the day. As I mentioned in one of my posts yesterday the taxi drivers in Rome were supposed to be on strike today. I don't know what this "strike" was supposed to consist of but I had no problem getting a taxi both to and from my morning activity plus I saw plenty of taxis out on the street. Perhaps the strike just meant a reduction in service for parts of the day or maybe a bunch of drivers decided to cross the picket line. Whatever the reason I'm not complaining as it made my day a lot easier.

Anyways, this morning I visited the Castel Sant'Angelo which definitely has a fascinating. and colorful history. Over time it's been used as a prison, a place of execution and as a fortress for the pope when invading armies tried to conquer Rome. One of the Pope Alexander's, I forget which number, even had a private walkway to The Vatican constructed for himself which is still visible. They also had some of the original catapults used to defend the Castle which was cool to see.

Out of all the activities I've done this is the one I'm most glad I had a tour guide for. There seemed to be a lack of signage around the castle explaining its history and without the tour guide's information I feel like I may have thought of it as just another boring museum.

This afternoon I went to visit The Pantheon which was the easiest activity for me to get to as it's only about a block away from my hotel. I was at the meeting point literally in about 30 seconds. While the tour guide was friendly enough he was kind of hard to understand because of his accent and I feel like I would have got a better experience if I had downloaded the audio guide onto my phone.

It was still fascinating to marvel at The Pantheon which is the best preserved of all the Ancient Roman buildings. The majority of it is still the original deal from the gigantic doors to the columns, the marble floor and the beautiful domed ceiling. With that being said it's definitely not an attraction you can spend the entire afternoon at. Even with the audio guide the average person can probably go through the whole thing in about 30-60 minutes.

I'm probably going to just relax in my hotel room for the rest of the afternoon, maybe post some Fed results, and then go out for dinner later on tonight.

[paul]

This morning I discovered my first two mosquito bites from my trip to Pompeii on Monday. I feel there will be more to come as those little bastards were everywhere.

Went to see the Palazzo Venezia this morning which I mentioned earlier in the week was Mussolini's residence during his reign in power. Took me awhile to find the entrance to the place; They should definitely spend some money to put signage up around the building pointing people in the right direction.

When I finally did get inside it was kind of a mixed bag. I didn't have a tour guide which I feel would have been helpful in explaining the extensive history of the building. Walking through some of the majestic Grand Rooms was fascinating. According to the signs in the rooms Mozart even performed a concert there once!

I also seemed to be the only person in the place. Walking through the vast palace with nobody else around was really eerie; I kept expecting Jack Nicholson from The Shining to pop out of a side room with an ax to try and kill me. LOL!
Eventually I did come across some security guards but it wasn't until I got to the room with the suits of armor that I saw another tourist.

After that I went over to the monument of Vittorio Emanuelle and climbed up a nearly endless set of stairs, my legs are still hurting, to get up to the elevators which take you all the way to the roof terrace. From there you can snap some amazing panoramic photos of the city.

Once I was done there I went back to my hotel and had a quick nap. When I woke up I took a taxi to the Borghese Art Gallery for a guided tour. While I'm not really an art person there were several beautiful pieces that caught my eye. Most of them were ones the guide wasn't talking about though. After that I grabbed a taxi back to my hotel to unwind for a bit. Once I'm done with this post I'll likely head out and grab some dinner.

Tomorrow is my last day in Rome as I fly out early on Friday morning. While I've enjoyed my time here I'm definitely ready to go home. The only activity I have planned for the day is visiting the Capotoline Museums. Since I'm not doing a guided tour I can head over there on my own schedule which means that I can sleep in for a little while until housekeeping shows up. At that point I can head downstairs for breakfast, come back up to my room and grab a few more hours of sleep if needed.

[paul]

Just got back from my final activity here in Rome: The Capotoline Museums: Their most famous piece of art is probably the bronze statue of the She-wolf nursing Romulus & Remus. I snapped photos of that one and several others that caught my eye.

Unlike some of the other museums I've visited this one didn't feel like it was essential to have a tour guide, although it might help. Every room was well labeled and I was able to get the necessary information for the pieces that I liked. As I mentioned in my Borghese Gallery post I'm not really an art person but even I enjoyed this one. Art is of course subjective and I feel like there was something for everyone here.

Still waiting for housekeeping to get my room done but once they are I will likely just relax in my room for the rest of the afternoon and go out for dinner tonight. I will try to go to bed a bit earlier tonight as I have to be up early for my flight tomorrow. I have a 1 hour and 30 minute flight to Frankfurt, a brief layover there and then a 10 hour(!) flight back to Vancouver so I will need all the sleep I can get for the long day ahead.

[Tournament Master]

I keep seeing this thread and keep thinking it is about the greatest of the Four Horsemen, Paul Roma

[on_the_edge]

Oct 12, 2023 10:48:20 GMT -5 Tournament Master said:

I keep seeing this thread and keep thinking it is about the greatest of the Four Horsemen, Paul Roma

In a way it's a metaphor for his career.

[Vegas]

Oct 12, 2023 5:39:16 GMT -5 paul said:

I have a 1 hour and 30 minute flight to Frankfurt, a brief layover there and then a 10 hour(!) flight back to Vancouver so I will need all the sleep I can get for the long day ahead.

Frankfurt is actually where my sister lives and teaches in Germany. It is major hub for US travelers entering and exiting Europe. Before Paris was recently added, the only 2 direct flights from Las Vegas to Europe were London (which I flew out of in 2021) and Frankfurt (which I flew out of last year after going to Berlin.)

It is a long flight home across the Atlantic and then across most of North America. I am bringing my Nintendo Switch again for the flights there and back when I go to Rome in December.

[paul]

I made it back to Vancouver safe and sound yesterday although tired as hell from the long day of traveling. I took today off from work to recover from the jetlag and I'm glad I did.

My flight from Rome to Frankfurt left late and it's a damn good thing my flight from Frankfurt to Vancouver left an hour late late too otherwise I would have missed it due to the logjam at passport control in Germany. One of the locals in line who traveled frequently for work mentioned to me that this was a regular occurrence. I was frantically checking my watch as I waited in the massive line. A large group of kind Samaritans up at the front overheard me mentioning that I was probably going to miss my flight and let me cut to the front of the line which I thanked them for extensively.

I ran to my gate as quickly as I could, for a 300 pound guy I've been told I can move pretty fast, and discovered that the plane was just beginning boarding procedures which was a huge relief for me. Other people on the flight might have been annoyed by it though.

Overall I enjoyed my vacation. Rome is a beautiful city with lots of great historic sites to visit and the food was great too. I only have one criticism but it's a BIG one. While far from being an experienced world traveler Rome is the least pedestrian friendly city I've been to. From poor street markings to lack of sidewalks and vehicles traveling at reckless speeds on streets lined with people it was a nightmare at times to walk around. Granted the pedestrian/vehicle relationship is a two-way street (no pun intended) and I've seen plenty of people crossing the street busy on their phones and completely oblivious to what's going on around them.

I didn't see anyone get hit by a vehicle so I guess the pedestrians and motorists have a system worked out but all it takes is one vehicle turning a corner too fast and you could have several people going to the hospital or the morgue. I always purchase travel medical insurance whenever I travel outside of Canada and this was the first time I was concerned that I might have to use it.

Like I said overall it was a fun time. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read, like and comment on the postings of my journey and I hope you enjoyed reading about my adventures. I hope everyone has a good day. 😀

[TTX]

Glad you got home safe, Paul. Glad you had a good vacation.