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Post by neilybob21 on Dec 19, 2023 5:14:49 GMT -5
Next time don't wear the shirt in texas.
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Post by Vegas on Dec 19, 2023 14:06:15 GMT -5
I am in Dallas and getting some dirty looks and even one nasty comment directed at me. It turns out some if the locals are upset with me for wearing my 2023 VGK Stanley Cup Championship shirt and we eliminated Dallas in the Western Conference Finals last season (I did not think about that.). About to board a 10 hour flight to Rome. People in Dallas care about hockey? definitely not as much as they care for their Cowboys, but the Dallas Stars have their fans |
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Post by Vegas on Dec 19, 2023 14:09:29 GMT -5
I am in Dallas and getting some dirty looks and even one nasty comment directed at me. It turns out some if the locals are upset with me for wearing my 2023 VGK Stanley Cup Championship shirt and we eliminated Dallas in the Western Conference Finals last season (I did not think about that.). About to board a 10 hour flight to Rome. That's unfortunate. While there's certain sports teams I don't care for I would never make a serious, nasty comment towards one of their fans. I might rib them a bit in a good natured manner but that's it. Some people forget that it's just a game and that the person wearing the opposite team's uniform probably isn't much different than they are. yeah, in Dallas I went to a cantina to wait for my connecting flight, I had the misfortune of running into somebody who was upset becaise he said he attended Game 3 Of the Western Conference Finals last year when the Golden Knights shut out the Stars. We also already swept the Stars in our regular season series this year too. |
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Post by Vegas on Dec 19, 2023 14:25:39 GMT -5
connecting flight from Dallas to Rome was about 10 hours, I watched Barbie as it was offered for free (it was OK but I think that movie is overrated,) read the new Early Classics handbook, played games (I have my Switch with me,) and tried mostly unsuccessfully to sleep (I have been mostly awake for a little over 29 hours.)
Upon arriving in Italy, I went to lunch and had some anitpasta as an appetizer and and some ravioli pasta for my main lunch and a couple of Italian beers.
saw the Pantheon, went to the Spanish Steps (at a bar at the top had a beer and watched the sunset over the downtown skyline of Rome,) and then to Trevi Fountain, it was nice seeing Rome sort of lit up at night for Christmas
staying in the Nicola Fabrrizi area of Rome (this part of the city was added to Rome in the Medieval Period just across from the Tiber River which was the original boundary for the city of Ancient Rome, but we were still within walking distance of the Spanish Steps and the Tivoli Fountain)
traffic in downtown Rome is crazy, alot of time the pedestrians and vehicles both walk on and drive on the same streets with the drivers often coming very close- literally inches- to the pedestrians and the people here just seem accustomed to it, I am surprised more pedestrians don't get hit by cars and by the motorcycles that are all over the place here
tomorrow, have a scheduled tour of the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, and the Forum
Thursday, Pompeii and pizza in Naples (the birthplace of the modern/tomato-based style of pizza)
Friday, Vatican City
Saturday, don't know
Sunday, not much but going to Christmas Eve dinner somewhere in downtown Rome
Monday/Christmas morning, fly back to Las Vegas
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Post by topdollar on Dec 19, 2023 14:45:21 GMT -5
Have fun in Rome! Remember what I told paul when he visited Rome... If you see a Roman, Acknowledge him! |
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Post by TTX on Dec 19, 2023 14:55:07 GMT -5
Sounds like a fun schedule. Hope it goes well.
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Post by paul on Dec 20, 2023 6:25:38 GMT -5
Yeah, that traffic in Rome is insane. All it takes is one motorbike taking a turn too quickly and you've got pedestrian(s) heading to the hospital or the morgue.
I had difficulty sleeping on my flights too.
Glad you were able to see The Trevi Fountain and The Spanish Steps. Somehow I missed the Steps on my trip and was never able to get a good look at Trevi due to the crowds.
Rome definitely does look cool when lit up at night.
Enjoy the Colosseum. It's quite the sight to see!
Hope the rest of your trip goes well.
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Post by Vegas on Dec 20, 2023 17:49:07 GMT -5
Yeah, that traffic in Rome is insane. All it takes is one motorbike taking a turn too quickly and you've got pedestrian(s) heading to the hospital or the morgue. I had difficulty sleeping on my flights too. Glad you were able to see The Trevi Fountain and The Spanish Steps. Somehow I missed the Steps on my trip and was never able to get a good look at Trevi due to the crowds. Yeah, the traffic is very chaotic here, some of the cab drivers even drive down the rail tracks. They said they are allowed to do that in some places in downtown according to posted signs in Italian, but it threw me off at first. I think one advantage of visiting Rome is December is that there is reportedly less crowds of tourists. Our tour guide for the Colosseum for example told us today during some parts of the year he personally runs 4 tours/day of just the Colosseum but right now he is only doing 1 tour/day of the Colosseum and his tour right now also includes seeing the Forum and Palatine Hill because the crowds are not as big. It makes sense that the crowds would not be as bad right now. I know in Las Vegas the slowest time of the year is always from Thanksgiving through Christmas and then right after Chrstmas it immediatley picks up to be the busiest time of the year going through New Years Eve which is why this year and last year I have scheduled my flight home from Europe on Christmas when it is not as busy (plus I have no choice anyway this year as my parents who I am staying with now at this house rental in Rome are flying out on Christmas morning to their home in Portugal.) |
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Post by Vegas on Dec 20, 2023 18:10:09 GMT -5
Today I toured the Forum, Palatine Hill, and the Colosseum. It is really remarkable when you are riding down the street in a taxi and suddenly you can see the Colosseum in front of you. On the guided tour of these places, as a World History teacher, I knew alot of the information already but I also learned some things too and it was very cool to visit all those places today.
On the tour in the Forum, when we got to a memorial site dedicated to the Senate's assassination of Julius Caesar, the tour guide asked us why the Senators assassinated Caesar. I was about to answer with things such as they felt threatened by his land reform intentions for the poor (plebeians) as it would have taken land away from the rich (patricians) which included the Senators and their supporters but somebody else instead gave a lame answer of "the Senate was unhappy with his rule." The tourist looked at the tourist and said "that is correct." Well no kidding as the Senate assassinated Caaesar, but I could have answered that question better by explaining why they were unhappy with his rule.
I had pasta again for lunch and once again had some of the best pasta in my life. But for dinner tonight, I had my first pizza in Rome at this nearby place which a leader of a food tour reportedly has called the best pizza in Rome. Maybe I was expecting too much and the pizza wasn't bad, but at the same time I have had better pizza in Las Vegas. In Rome they bring you the pizza unsliced and you have to slice it yourself with a knife and fork which is not as easy to do as it might sound.
I am waking up early tomorrow to take a bus tour that goes to Pompeii (the tour includes a stop for more pizza and beer) but I am still up as I slept a couple of hours before dinner and I will probably sleep a little on the bus trips to and from Pompeii tomorrow.
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Post by on_the_edge on Dec 21, 2023 2:28:47 GMT -5
I see no problem having the customer cut their own pizza but they should offer the pizza rolling cutter. I got one many years ago for when I make pizza at home and it is a blessing. Only way to properly cut pizza.
Yea I know, you are in Rome and I'm talking food lol. But it sounds like you are having a great time and enjoying one of the greatest cities on earth. Hope the good times keep rolling.
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