Chrissy knows the trains well and we venture out to do some sight-seeing. It was very considerate of her to show me these places even though she has probably seen them multiple times. We saw the Spanish steps, the fountain of Trevi, Piazza de Navona, the Pantheon, and more. There is so much to see in Rome. The history is rich in Rome, obviously.
It was nice and warm when I arrived. We sat to eat lunch and Chrissy said that it had rained at 4:00pm the last couple of days. Once 4:00pm hit, whatta ya know? Rain... I had a delicious gnocchi dish. Also, the lead guitarist for Rammstein was sitting next to us. People on the streets walking by were asking to take a picture with him and the Norwegian couple sitting at the table next to us did too. I didn't recognize him. We tried to wait out the rain and then decided to screw it and walk in the warm summer rain. It wasn't a heavy rain so it wasn't a bad walk.
I love taking public transport in foreign cities. I guess I should clarify. I love taking public transport when I can figure out what is going on. It can be overwhelming at times. I have yet to get too lost or taken way off track. I'm sure it's bound to happen.
After taking the city bus back to Chrissy's, we relax and talk for a while. I'll tell you this now. I had only met Chrissy once. It was in Denver the year before and we only met because of a friend of a friend. I had not talked to her since that night we met and here she is letting me stay with her in Rome! Chrissy barely knew me and took me in like we were old pals. I can't express how thoughtful the gesture is to let me stay with her. So needless to say, we talked to get to know each other better. It was such a comfortable conversation. It did feel like we had known each other for a long time. After a nice talk, we get ready to go meet with a friend of hers in an area called Trastevere. We didn't find her friend so we had some dinner in the same area. It is right next to the Tiber river. Very charming area. We even had a funny street performer do magic in front of us. He was actually pretty good.
It was time to go home after a nice dinner. We took the bus home and I have never been in a city bus that was so packed. It was the last bus of the night so all the younger kids were trying to get back after the bars. We literally couldn't move. Luckily, we didn't have far to go because it was a tight sqeeze. It is pretty neat to be in a city bus and pass places like the Colosseum and other magnificent buildings. I was a little awestruck.
The next day I slept in till 9:30am. It felt nice. I decided to walk Rome. I walked from Chrissy's place, which was a little southeast of the center of Rome. i walked to the Colosseum first. It was a couple of miles away. What a sight! I didn't go in because the queue was very long but I did walk around it and took lots of pictures. Then I walked to the Vatican. Another amazing place. It was bigger than I thought. So many people walking around. I didn't go in there either. I know, what's the point of going. I just enjoy seeing the outside of these buildings and I was pinching pennies. Italy is expensive. After walking around Vatican City, I went up north more to see the Piazza de Popolo. It was one of the bigger piazzas I had visited. I was a long way from home and it was hot. I decided to make my way back. I stopped by the Colosseum one more time. It is such a wonderful piece of architecture. This place is full of them. If you are a history buff and haven't been to Rome, I strongly encourage visiting.
I grab a slice of pizza on my walk home. The pizza here is a little different than in Florence. In Rome, they ask you how big of a piece you want, weigh it and then cut it in half and fold it together like a sandwich. The pizza tasted better in Rome. Both were good, though.
Finally, made it home. I was beat! I walked for five hours straight. Only to stop for pictures and a slice of pizza. Chrissy had an appointment that evening so I just relaxed and wrote in my journal. It is nice to get caught up. That evening was another delicious Italian dinner with some wine and good conversation.
The next day I was very sore. I was surprised since that's all I have been doing on my travels is walking. I decide it's a good day to get caught up on the travel blog. It had been over three weeks since I had posted and I felt bad. Plus, I was getting yelled at by someone for not blogging enough. I won't name names. They know who they are. I do like the encouragement, though. I typed for over four hours! The only thing I haven't posted enough of were pictures. It's just really hard since it takes so long to download and upload.
After I finish up my blog, Chrissy gets home and she suggests we take a train to a close little town called Frascati. It was a cheap and quick trip there. We buy some pizza and then sit at a cafe and drink a beer and people-watch. Chrissy was excited because she found a store that sold skin care products she likes. I was excited because we went into a gelato place and it was cheap and I got three scoops!
The next day was my last full day in Rome. It has been very nice and relaxing. I walked around the neighborhood and checked out a street market. I bought some beers for Chrissy and I since we were going to the beach. Castel Porziano beach to be exact. Chrissy bought a beach umbrella and we grabbed some pizza and we were on our way! We had to take two different trains and a kind of long bus ride to get there but it was a nice beach. I tried out my new bright orange swim trunks. I keep trying to get these white legs of mine tan so I bought some shorter shorts than I usually wear. I can't seem to get these chicken legs tan.
The water was nice. It was a hot day. I got in the water a couple times. Of course, there were topless ladies there. It's funny how it's ho-hum to me now. I'm losing my American sense of modesty. Not such a bad thing, I think. We only had a couple hours there since we were meeting with some of Chrissy's friends for dinner.
The trip home was faster. We both get ready speedy-like and head to the meeting place. I meet Gina, Maggie and Kylie. Me and a bunch of girls. Nothing new. Gina is from the states and Maggie and Kylie are from Australia. The place we were at was cool. You pay 10 euro for your first drink and it includes food. They had a great spread of pasta, veggies, meats, cheeses, olives and bread. It was all very good. We all sit for a while and talk. Everyone I met was really nice and easy to talk to. Everyone seemed so well traveled. I was getting pointers and tips for upcoming destinations of mine. You can't have too many resources.
After dinner, we walk to a bar to have drinks. As time passes, it starts to get pretty busy. It's Friday so I guess it makes sense. We all talk some more and have some wine and beer. It starts to get pretty late so Chrissy and I make our way to the train station to catch the last train. We just happen to catch the last one.
The next morning Chrissy is nice enough to make breakfast for us. She goes with me to the train station to make sure I make the bus to the airport. Chrissy, you are a wonderful and generous person! Grazie mille, doesn't say it enough. You have been awesome! Some day, I hope to return the favor.
So I am off to Krakow, Poland. I wasn't sure where to go next. I had been told Krakow was great and cheap so I booked a flight and a hostel a couple days before I left.
I get to Krakow at around 5:00pm. I read that it was easy to take a train to the city center. I start walking, following signs that say train. I get to the stop and ask a taxi driver if I was in the right spot. He didn't speak much English. He tells me the next train is in 25 minutes and asked whether I would like a taxi. I ask him how much and he says 15 zloty. I read that the train was around 12, so I think it's a good deal. The exchange rate is a little more than 3.5 zlloty to a dollar so it was cheap, so I hop in. I attempt to talk to the driver but he doesn't understand me very well. He does point out museums and other interesting buildings. We get to the city center, or market square, as they call it and I only had a 50 zloty bill I exchanged in Rome. I hand it to him and he says thank you. I told him I needed change. In broken English, he said it was 15. He pulls out a pad of paper and writes down 50. This whole time I was thinking 15, but it was 50. I tell him I thought it was 15 and tell him that's all the money I have. He starts to get a little frustrated and rubs his face a few times and then writes down 25. I say great and he gives me 25 back and I rush out of the cab. He wasn't very happy with me. Come to find out, that was a very good deal for me.
I get dropped off really close to my hostel. The hostel is pretty much in the market square. Great location. I check in, get a tour of the hostel and meet my dorm mates. I meet Keer, she is an Asian from Manchester, England. Then I meet Tom and Robert. Two young Dutch guys who live in Amsterdam. Later I meet David, he is from Houston. I get settled in and then go to the common room to meet more people and see what there is to do. There were these Welsh guys who now live in Krakow, Sean and Rich, who were funny. I also met another David from Canada who lives in Krakow now, too. He was putting together a vodka tasting in the common room. I also met another Canadian named Dan whom I hung out with mostly that night.
David starts handing out shots of vodka. It's lemon and cherry flavored vodka. He then makes a shot called a Mad Dog. We ask what's in it and he wouldn't say until we tried them. Not a good sign. We all take shots. It burns. Turns out to be vodka, raspberry syrup and Tabasco. Not my favorite combination. The room is full with people taking shots now. Dan and I call it quits on the vodka and then some other girls who work at the hostel tell us about the pub crawl going on. Funny, cuz I booked this hostel as opposed to another one that was recommended to me called, "Greg and Tom's Party Hostel" because I read it was too much party there. I guess you really can't escape it in hostels.
Dan and I decide to try the pub crawl. My dorm mates, Tom, Robert and Keer decide to stay. The people going on the pub crawl start to leave the hostel to go to the meeting spot. There is only Dan and I and two girls who work at the hostel. I start to think it's going to be a lame pub crawl. We get to the meeting spot and there are about 100 people there. It turns out to be the biggest pub crawl I've been in. We get to the first place and pretty much take over. We pay our 60 zloty and it's all you can drink for an hour and a half. Dan and I meet a couple of girls from Finland and Australia. They were nice and then decided to ignore us. We meet other people and everyone is very nice. The next bar was cool. I am amazed at how they can direct so many people on this crawl. Talk to some more cool people and drink some more beer. Beer here is 4-6 zloty, by the way. Ridiculously cheap. After two bars, it was time to go to the first dance club. Dan and I see the Finnish and Aussie girls again. We dance with them a little and then they disappear. Off to the last dance club. Dan is talking to a new girl every time we get separated and then meet up again. It was funny. He must be quite the charmer. The last dance club was very big. I lose the people I was hanging with most of the night so I decide to leave early. It was 3:00am. What a way to get introduced to a new city. I guess it's not the first time I've been introduced this way. It was a fun night.
The next morning I talk to Tom, Robert and Keer. They are going to the Schindler Factory. They ask if I want to join, so I do. It was about a two mile walk. We did get a little lost but eventually found it. It was a really interesting museum. This type of subject matter is really heavy and emotional. We walk around the museum for a couple of hours and then we head back to the market square. We stop at one of the restaurants to have a cheap beer and talk. We stayed there for a while and talked to our server, Kasia for a while too. It was her Dad's restaurant/bar. She gave the best service I have had in Europe. I was amazed. Since nobody works for tips in Europe, the level of service isn't what it is in America. Kasia is the exception. She tells us to come back for karaoke. We agreed to do so.
We get back to the hostel and we all take a nap. We find out the hostel has organized a karaoke night at one of the bars as well. Robert decides to go to the hostel one and Tom, Keer and I go back to Kasia's place for karaoke. It wasn't very busy. Everyone in there is a local except for us. The first few people who sing are really good. It was a mixture of American music and Polish music. The three of us have a hard time deciding on a song. We settle on "Summer Lovin'" from Grease. It was pretty bad. We stayed a little longer, sang one more song and decided we would try and meet up with the other karaoke people. We find them after some time searching and it was all winding down a bit. This bar was mostly doing Polish music so we left. I had enough karaoke for one night.
The next day we all woke up late and we were all in slow motion. Robert, Tom and Keer were going to Auschwitz. They asked me to join. We weren't really sure how to get there. We walk to the bus station and I ask a lady but she doesn't speak English and she just points to an area. We walk that way and see a mini bus with a sign that said Auschwitz. It was only 24 sloty round trip. It took about an hour and a half to get there. We got there after 3:00pm so we got in free. We didn't have a tour guide either. We just walked around and checked everything out ourselves. It was a lot bigger than I had thought. It was an extremely emotional place. More so than the Schindler factory. At one point, I think we were all so emotional that we sat a table and discussed what we all knew about the holocaust. It was a very serious and captivating discussion. I still can't believe how this all happened.
Enough seriousness. I was glad I was able to visit Auschwitz. We barely made the last bus back to town. Robert and Tom had a night train to catch so Keer and I said farewell to them. They were really, really fun and cool guys. I hope to visit them in Amsterdam some day.
After Auschwitz, I was drained. I went to bed super early. It was nice. I woke up the following day early enough for breakfast and refreshed. There was a free walking tour and a few of us from the hostel decided to do it. It was one of the better walking tours I have done. Our tour guide, Joanna, was really good and very cute. She spoke multiple languages, of course. I am so impressed with how many multi-lingual people I have met. It is truly inspiring and I wish the American educational system would adopt the idea. I know... one thing at a time.
After the walking tour, the four of us from the hostel (Dan the Canadian, Sam, another Canadian and Emilio, a New Yorker) went to go eat pierogis. They are little dumplings. I had the Polish sampler that came with mushroom/olive ones, cheese, meat and potato pierogis. Cheap and good. Less than $4 for the meal. Emilio and I headed back to the hostel. We chilled for a bit and then for a walk a few hours later to a restaurant that was recommend. Here, I had a potato pancake dish with goulash. Extremely filling and equally as scrumptious.
After dinner, Emilio and I grabbed some beers and hung out in the common room to chat with people. The two Welsh guys, Sean and Rich, were there and they wanted to go do karaoke. They obviously love karaoke in Krakow. Emilio and I go with Sean and Rich and Rich's girlfriend to a bar to check it out. Since Sean and Rich know the bartender, we get a beer for three sloty. That's less than a dollar. Craziness. The bar had a bunch of young Polish kids singing Polish songs. I was tired and left after one beer. I think I've had enough karaoke for a while.
The next day, I decided it was a good day to do a solo day. I walked to the Jewish Quarter and went into some museums and just surveyed they area. It was a cool neighborhood. I was close to another recommended restaurant and went there to eat healthy. I have had enough kebabs and street food. I had an awesome salad and some lemonade for 15 sloty. I would have eaten here everyday if it were closer to the hostel. After lunch, I walked along the Wisła river. It is actually pronounced, vee swa. It was fun to try and pronounce the words here.
That night, David, the Canadian who lives in Krakow was putting together a "hug crawl." It is a pub crawl where everyone gives out hugs on the street. It was a success. We even got, Kay, a wonderful 67-years-young California woman to join. I hung out with Kay almost the entire night. She was truly and inspiration to a lot of people who met her. She travels by herself for two months every year and stays in hostels. What a lovely woman. We even danced at one of the clubs. She is a very good dancer. We picked up some randoms along the crawl. They were drawn to the "Free Hugs!" sign and the welcome reception of randoms hugging in the street. We even gathered some locals to join. Overall, a successful crawl. Good job, David!
The following day was my last in Krakow. It was another good day to just walk around and take in this beautiful city. Emilio and I grabbed some delicious lunch at a random place and just hung out in the common room. Staying in one place for a while has allowed me to meet so many people and get to know them well. I extended my stay in Krakow a couple of days after a few too many beers one day and I didn't regret it. I know of at least ten other people who did the same. If you are ever in Krakow, stay at the Flamingo Hostel. The place and the staff are the best!
It was time for me to leave Krakow, sadly. I will definitely be back. I was now headed to an all-too-familiar spot, Hereford!!! I have missed my roommates, Jill and Sean, and decided to go back for a third visit. They are probably sick of me. Now it is time to spend some quality time with these two amazing people and plan on where to go next. Greece, perhaps. Then, out of Europe and into Istanbul, India, Southeast Asia and beyond!!
Pictures are coming, I promise.
Be well!
No comments:
Post a Comment