When In Rome... Do Not Fly in to Ciampino.

Alrighty ladies and gents, buckle on up, it's going to be a long ride.
So last week was pretty much the usual, which was nice to feel like I was in a routine. I did get a job for this summer and it was the job that I really really really wanted, so I was SUPER pumped about that. I had a final and a paper due in my intensive class, so that took up a lot of my time. I also started out on a new running route/routine, and I really like all that I get to see while running. But where the fun really starts is this past weekend.

Waiting in Seville!

On Friday, I had my exam and after that I went out with Marcy, Eric, and Emily for coffee. Then I came home and got my stuff packed to meet Holly at the train station to catch our bus to the airport to leave for Rome! (I know, a bus at the train station seems weird.) We made it to the airport pretty early and being inexperienced travelers on Ryanair, we thought we had to wait in the lobby to check in until we saw our flight pop up on the screen by the check in counter. Little did we know that that was only for checking bags in, so once we figured that out, we went straight through security to our gate. Once there, our flight got delayed an hour. Keep in mind we were originally supposed to get in to Rome at around 10. So we waited and waited until a half hour before the flight when all of the sudden everyone gets in to a line unannounced. We had no idea what this line was for, but we figured we should get in it, so we did. Turns out it was to check hand luggage and your ticket. Also, Ryanair doesn't assign seats, so when we boarded the plane it was a mad dash for who could get the best seat. Ryanair really is just a whole new experience for anyone who has not flown with them before. Holly and I decided it is like the fast food of airlines. Don't get me wrong, I love how cheap the flights are and everything, but it pretty much is you do everything yourself or we charge you for it. But I digress...

We finally landed in Rome and we were so excited! And we didn't realize that you don't have to go through customs when you are flying between EU countries, so that was kind of cool. Holly's friend, Caitlin, lives in Rome this semester, so she was letting us stay with her, God bless her. But because of where she lives and how late we got in, we couldn't take the public transportation to her apartment, we had to take a taxi. In Rome, the rule is that as long as the taxi is taking you some where within the city walls, it costs 30 euro... right. Anyways, we went outside to wait for a taxi and it was about 33 degrees and raining. And there were about forty people waiting in line for one without a taxi in sight. We just assumed that they would be there shortly, so we waited in line. In about 30 minutes, one taxi came. At this time, the rain turned to snow and it was coming down hard. We ended up waiting in line for about an hour and a half in the rain/snow. Finally, two taxis came at the same time and I couldn't wait any longer and Holly and I both were in physical pain, so I did something my father would do. I ran out in front of the taxi before it could get to the awning and asked the driver how much. He said 50 and I said deal and jumped in the cab while waiting for Holly to get there. At this point neither of us cared how much it cost, we just wanted to be somewhere warm.

Colosseum

Vaticano!

The taxi got us to the apartment after a few near death experiences, and Caitlin was a saint and had tomato, mozzarella, and bread waiting for us. And after we finished that, she made us pasta. Holly and I talked about it the next day, and we have no recollection of what was said that night, that is how much shock we were in from standing outside for so long. So ridiculous. We went to bed after that and got up bright and early the next morning to go to the Colosseum! It was so cool because as soon as you get off the metro stop, there it is! And it was covered completely with snow, so that made it that much more beautiful and majestic. Sadly, because of the snow we couldn't go in, but it was still awesome to see it from the outside. As we were walking around seeing everything, there was a news station doing a report on all the snow and we walked by it. Then when we were in a cafe for breakfast, we saw the report and there we were in the background! Practically famous. And the cafe we were at had the best pastries that were completely fresh and wonderful. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. After the Colosseum, we got a call from our Vatican tour place saying that due to the snow, the Vatican was closing everything at 1 and that our tour was cancelled. So we hoped on the metro and went to the Vatican to see as much as possible before it closed. Once again, we only got to see things from the outside, but it was still super cool. We saw the Vatican sites, then we got pastries and gelato. When in Rome right? By this point our shoes were completely soaked through, so we headed for home, but not before picking up delicious panini from this precious sandwich shop that Caitlin showed us. We took about a three hour siesta while we waited for everything to mostly dry out.

Nutella and Chocolate Gelato

Saturday night we went out for a traditional Italian dinner. We went to this tiny restaurant where we had three courses each with wine and bread. The pasta was so perfect and I had lamb chops too. In case you were wondering, the only thing we bought this entire trip was food. Just to clarify.

Making a Wish at Trevi Fountain

Sunday morning we got up early again and packed everything up. Then we went to the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps. Both were incredible to see, even if it was freezing cold once again! After we saw those sites, we had to make our way to the metro station to catch our bus to the airport, but not before we stopped for eggplant and tomato pizza. We said goodbye to Caitlin, who was so wonderful to us, and hopped on the bus. We made it to the airport, Ciampino, fine and got through security really fast. Just to give you an idea, Ciampino airport is about half the size of the Lexington Bluegrass Airport. We are talking tiny and the only people who fly in there pretty much is Ryanair. We were supposed to leave around 3:45, but we ended up not boarding our flight until 6:45. Needless to say, it was a slightly stressful trip traveling wise, even though it was completely worth it in the long run! When we finally got back to Seville, Holly and I could have kissed the ground. This feels like home to us now, and there is no feeling like coming home after a stressful day.

We Hate Ciampino

 
And that is my story. It was a whirlwind of a weekend, but it was amazing. I still am in shock that I was in Italy this weekend, it just doesn't feel real. But I wouldn't take it back for anything. And now I want to go back, only next time, maybe I won't fly in to Ciampino.