My Trip!!!

I had an AMAZING 5-day trip to Rome and Madrid! Want to hear about it? Just read on...
Sunday morning, I got up at 4:45 am, since I was told that the shuttle would be arriving between 6-6:20 am. I got out to the meeting point at 6 am, and waited...and waited and waited. The shuttle showed up more around 6:50 am. I got to Beauvais airport to check in, and was told that I'd need to check my bag since it was too big to use as a carry-on. I paid 18 Euro to do so, went through security (I had to take my boots off there), and had a croissant while I waited to board the plane.
Our flight took off at 9:30 am, and we arrived in Rome at 11:00 am. After picking up my bag, I went to information and asked about the best way to get to my hostel. I found out that the hostel is in the middle of Rome, where the 2 metro lines intersect and where all the buses run from, so I just took a shuttle bus to the Termini station. The whole ride into the city, I was looking out the windows; it was so beautiful, and looked like a still from a movie. (Of course, my next thought was that it was bad that I was thinking in terms of life imitating art rather than vice versa.)
My hostel was very easy to find, being 3 streets away (on Via Varese) from Termini. I first almost walked past it, since it looked to be a laundromat with Internet, with an apartment next door. (It was the Funny Palace Hostel, and I highly recommend it. If anyone's interested, just ask me about it.) I then saw a tiny "Funny Palace" sticker stuck in the corner of the doorway, so I figured that I must be in the right place. I met Elisabeth, the girl who worked the front. After I paid my amount, she sat down with me and helped me plan out what I would see and when, as well as the bus route(s) I would take there. Then, she walked me to my room, showing me which of the 3 keys to use at any given door. I then dropped my stuff, and went to lunch at a pizza place one street over that Elisabeth had recommended. It was an older guy and a younger guy working the place, and the younger guy immediately came up and started talking to me, asking me my name and where I was from and everything. Then, in the middle of my meal, he came to check on me and asked me to come back that night around 8:50 pm (when he got off work), and he'd take me out to dinner and go shopping. I was a little put-off by the fact that he was so (to use an 18th century word) forward, and so was noncommittal in saying that I didn't know what I was doing that night.
After I finished eating, I wanted to go exploring more, and decided to go back and change out of my boots and into my Chucks. I got through the building and apartment doors fine, but a small problem occurred when I was attempting to open the room door. I was twisting it within the keyhole, and heard a crack. I pulled the key back, and my fears were confirmed: I had twisted the key off, and part of it was lodged in the keyhole. I left the suite, intending to go tell Elisabeth, but was stopped when I got to the apartment door that led outside. Why? I had broken the apartment door key in the room keyhole, and so could not get out. I then went back upstairs , and had a bit of a time getting back inside the apartment, getting frustrated to the point of banging on the door a few times. The reason I went back upstairs was that I remembered something that could be potentially helpful: As I was about to leave, I had seen a guy leave the room next to mine going to the shower. I knew he had to come out of the shower sometime, so I planned to wait for him to come back to his room and ask to borrow his keys. I waited for what felt like half an hour, and then as he came back, I was like, "Um, hi, I'm really sorry, I know this is really random, but I just broke my room key (holding up said key), and I was wondering if I could borrow your keys to get out and get someone, I'll return them right after". He held out his keys and was like, "Yeah, you better", and I felt really bad. (To make things worse, I looked like shit, and since he had just come from the shower, he only had a towel around his waist. Looking back on this scenario, I'm surprised Hollywood hasn't latched onto that meet-cute for our demographic. I swear, I felt out of place in my own life there.)
I got Elisabeth, she came up to look at the key, and then we went back down because she had to call her supervisor to see what we needed to do. (I also returned the guy's keys, handing them around his door and thanking him.) It turned out that he wasn't going to be in until later in the afternoon (it was around 2 pm at that point), so Elisabeth said I should probably just go out and explore until the evening.
I first just wandered up and down a few streets stemming from Termini Station, taking pictures (it seemed that every building was pale pink, pale green or pale yellow). One thing I rapidly found out: If you merely look an Italian guy in the eye, he will feel free to say, "ciao bella" to you, so I just avoided people's eyes (and maybe blended in). (Maybe it was the boots playing a part as well.) I stopped at one place, U. Guiliani's to 1) rest my feet and 2) get some real tiramisu (which had some sort of extra dimension of flavor to it that I can't describe, but made it the best tiramisu I'd ever had). It was a really nice place, with all of the dishes displayed at glass counters, and you sit on wicker chairs at white-clothed tables to eat, and all the waiters wearing white shirts and black vests.
After my dessert, I wandered around a bit more, going to a couple of gardens that were attached to museums and taking lots of pictures. As I was walking around, it really struck me that Rome was reminding me a lot of Savannah and Charleston. It was something about the combination of the lush foliage with the smooth, pastel-colored buildings (like Charleston's Rainbow Row). I don't know if the looks of Charleston and Savannah were planned to be modeled after Rome, but it seems likely.
I also went to a couple of fountains. One was the Repubblica, which was in the middle of a circle, where half the sides were hotels and the other half was an ancient church. That one was pretty. I then hiked up to another fountain (whose name I can't remember, and am currently too lazy to look up). It featured a merman on a shell, also in the middle of a traffic circle. I think I took pictures of that one from all sides, which shows you how much I liked it.
I also walked up and down the main street, Via Cavour, for a good while. I saw a church that Elisabeth had marked out for me, and then meandered, going into shops occasionally. I went into one and really liked one dress, a green faux-wrap with a v-neck and cap sleeves. I tried it on, it looked great, and was on sale! I had to get it (and can't wait for the weather to warm up so that I can wear it).
I got back to the hostel around 6:30-7 pm, and they had gotten my key fixed! I went up to my room to get changed (into more comfortable shoes) and walked down the street to find somewhere to eat. I found a small, inexpensive restaurant a street over and had some pasta. After that, it was a bit late and I went back to the hostel. I found the owner, Mabri, there and explained about the key situation, and he was really nice about it, and said I didn't need to apy for it or anything.
I then went up and decided to take a shower and get ready for bed. After my shower, I was in the bathroom, doing the usual teeth-brushing/contacts routine, when the guy whose keys I had borrowed earlier came up and we started talking, first about my keys and then about other stuff. His name was Jonathan and he was from Ireland, and had been all over the world. We ended up talking in the common area for about an hour, and he asked me to get dinner with him the next night. With that, I went to bed to prepare for an upcoming busy day.
Monday, I got up at 7:30 am, having not been able to sleep well the night before and consequently still a little tired. I got dressed and went to look for some breakfast, since the hostel didn't provide any. I got what I thought was a croissant, but turned out to have some lemon custard inside. (I didn't know the name, I just pointed to what I wanted.) I then walked to Termini, where I boarded the #40 bus, which would take me to St. Peter's Basilica. I had originally planned to eat on the bus, but it was so packed that I didn't get a chance to even move my elbows from my sides until halfway through the ride. I did finish it before the ride ended, and then I got off and walked up the street with everyone else to Saint Peter's.
Elisabeth had told me to get there early in the morning, and I was there around 9:10 am. I was surprised, the line moved really fast, so that I was inside around 9:30 am. I spent some time wandering around, taking pictures of the fantastic architecture and decoration. Afterwards, I went to the gift shop, where I got some postcards for my Grandma. I had been told to allow about 4 hours in order to see it "properly", so guess how long I spent there. That's right, 45 minutes. I'm efficient like that.
(For some reason, this thought struck me at the Vatican: I was thinking of the traditional papal vestments, how they're white with gold embroidery. Then I thought how Elvis's jumpsuits in his later career were white with gold sequins. The 2 outfits are similar. I wondered if Elvis somehow became the Pope in some twisted cosmic joke, he could just wear those jumpsuits and it would probably look the same, nobody would be able to call him out.)
I had decided to see the Vatican Museum, but after spending half an hour in line and then seeing that it was a regular museum, I ducked out and walked back in the direction of the nearest metro station. On my way, I stopped and ate a cheese pizza (yes, a whole one, since it was really thin and I didn't eat the crusts) for lunch. I walked along the street to the station, and stopped and looked around in some of the clothing boutiques. At one, I saw this purple long-sleeved shirt with short puffed sleeves at the top, with a cowl neck that revealed a black sewn-in tank with ribbons decorating it. I tried it on, it fit, and was only 10 Euro! I was on a roll with the clothing in Rome there.
I got to the Ottaviano metro stop, changed lines at Termini, and got off at Cavour station. I then walked in the direction of the Colosseum and the Ruins. On my way, a lady stopped me and asked which direction the Trevi Fountain was in. I couldn't tell if she was speaking Italian (since she prefaced it by saying "scuzi") or French (since she referred to directions as "la"), but either way, it was flattering as always.
I got to Ruins, and spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get inside so that I could go down into them and walk around. I found what I thought was the entrance, but it turned out to be the exit. I just kept looking to see which direction people were walking to, and eventually found it. I walked around and took lots of pictures.
I left and went to the Colusseum, which was practically right next door. Since I had gotten the ticket to see both at the Ruins, I skipped the line and went inside right away. It was interesting, and I kept wanting to do the Russell Crowe in Gladiator thing and yell, "Are you not amused?!" into its depths (but I refrained). In circling around, there seemed to be a lot of school groups there (imagine just being able to pop over to the Colusseum for ancient history!). One group in particular caught my eye. It was a big group of 8-year-olds, and some were sitting on steps, and some were clustered on the ground (this was on one of the levels). They all had pencil and paper, and were drawing! I leaned over to look at some of the drawings, and took some pictures. Once in awhile, one kid would go up to the teacher with his drawing, and she'd say something like, "That's good, keep going in that direction" (I just inferred this, since I don't speak Italian). It was so cute, though.
After finishing there, I wandered over around the Vittorio Emmanuel palace, and ran into Jonathan sitting there on the steps. We talked for about half an hour, and he ended up joining me in my quest to go to the artist's square for what Elisabeth said was "the best gelato in the city". It was a good thing he was there, since he was pretty good at the whole map-reading thing; it was also good to have someone else to talk to. So we walked along and talked, and eventually found our way there. Sure enough, a lot of people were painting or singing and playing the guitar. We both both gelato (I got a mix of mint and straciatella) and sat on the curb to eat it. After we were done, we went to go see the Trevi Fountain, where I did the requisite "throw a coin over your right shoulder and make a wish" (why not?).
After that, neither of us had anywhere else we were dying to see, so we decided to wander around for awhile. Somehow, we ended in this really nice section of Rome, where all the 4-star hotels and fancy foreign cars were, so that was interesting. (Incidentally, it was also relatively near the hostel).
We got back to the hostel around 6 pm, and I went to take a nap that ended up lasting about an hour. (Apparently, Jonathan had knocked on my door twice, so I must have been completely out that whole hour.) Right before I left to go out to dinner with him, a guy named Robert from Vienna came in, who was going to stay for 3 nights. We talked some, and he offered to write down his address later if I ever wanted to come to Vienna.
Jonathan and I ended up going to the same restaurant I had been to the night before. We had some good conversation over dinner, and went to a bar for a bit since he wanted a drink. We got back to the hostel around midnight, and it appeared that we were the only ones awake. Since I was leaving the next morning, he said to just knock on his door when I was about to leave.
The next morning (Tuesday), I went to a breakfast bar I had seen the day before, and got a pastry and cappuchino. (It 's interesting the way that I've noticed breakfast is done in Italy: Everyone stands at the long bar, or at a couple of high tables, and eats and drinks. Nobody sits down. But everyone just stands shoulder to shoulder. I saw a few businessmen share counter-space with some nuns.) I then went back to pack. Robert was up so we exchanged addresses, and he expressed surprise that I had packed light. I finished packing, went downstairs to drop my bag and found Jonathan there. He was about to go get some breakfast and invited me to join him. We ended up going to the same place I had been, and we exchanged contact information.
We walked back so that I could get my bags (Jonathan also was impressed at my packing efficiency), and then walked to Termini to wait for the bus. One of the workers there told me that catching the next bus might cut it too close for me, so I opted to take a taxi to the Ciampino airport. I said goodbye to Jonathan, and was at the airport within 30 minutes. I checked my bag and boarded the plane for my 2 and a half hour flight.
Once I got off the plane in Madrid, I got my bag and took the metro to the Tribunal station. I found the Albergue Juvenil hostel easily, settled into my room a bit and went down to ask where I could buy a new memory stick for my camera (since I had used up most of mine in Rome), and the lady at the desk directed me to FNAC, the same electronics store we have in France. (For some reason, I assumed FNAC to be an exclusively French store. I think it's because I assumed the "F" to stand for "French" and the "N" to stand for "National".) I found it easily, taking one street (with lots of little shops) down to (what I assumed was) the commercial center. I found a memory stick, paid for it, and went in search of some dinner. I stopped in a little cafe, where I got a pizza with pepperoni and strips of bacon on it. (I had been wanting a pepperoni pizza while I was in Italy, but somehow it was never available.) After dinner, I went to the computer lab to check my email. As I logged into my account, the girl next to me asked if I went to N.C. State. After I answered in the affirmative, she said that her brother went there for grad school. We talked a bit more, and it turned out that she taught English to young kids in a small town in France (one that I had not heard of). We talked more about ourselves and our experiences until she left. I then went back to my room and relaxed and went to bed early in preparation for the next day.
Wednesday morning, I got up early, showered and had breakfast before leaving for the Prado Museum. I walked there, stopping many times to take photos of the amazing architecture. I got there around 10 am, and spent a good 2 and 1/2 hours wandering through the rooms and up and down the floors. My main goal in going to the Prado was to see the work of Hieronymous Bosch (or El Boscho, as he was called in print there), specifically the "Heaven, Hell, Garden of Earthly Delights" triptych. It was beautiful, I just stood for awhile and looked at it, taking in every person and relationship depicted. Also in that same room was his "Seven Deadly Sins", painted in a circular fashion. There was also another painter that I had not heard of before, Joachim Patinir, whose style was similar to Bosch's, and who I'd like to find out more about. I had forgotten that Velasquez's masterpiece "Las Meninas" was there, so that was a pleasant surprise to see. After I was done with the collection, I went to the giftshop and bought the museum catalogue, along with a few postcards for my Grandma. I also had a very good lunch at the cafe.
After that, I wandered around and took some pictures in the botanical garden. Then, I decided to see the Royal Palace, which was about on the other side of the city. I walked there, enjoying the view. I eventually found it and got some good shots. By then, it was late afternoon and I was about done for the day. I walked over to Callou Square, near the FNAC, and got some mint ice cream. I then went to my room for a bit before going out and looking for something to eat for dinner. I had wanted to try some paella, but every menu said that it was a dish for at least 2 people. I ended up at the Zahara Cafe back in Callou Square, where I got salmon on scrambled eggs with fries. It was pretty late by the time I was finished, so I went back to the hostel and read before going to bed.
Thursday morning, I got up early and had breakfast, and packed my things. I talked with another one of the guys in the room who was from Napoli (Naples), and gave me his address in case I wanted to visit there. I also found out that another girl there was studying in Aix-en-Provence and was originally from California, so that was cool.
I checked out and left my stuff. I then killed time by browsing the many shops that lined the nearest long street. I happened to eat the same meal at the same restaurant for lunch, and then I went back to get my things.
I needed to take the metro to the airport, but ended up getting off at the wrong station. Fortunately, I wasn't too far from the airport, and guy in the station was nice enough to walk me there. I got to check in, and went to go pay for my checked luggage. At the stand, I was told that I needed to come back in 20 minutes, the 20 minutes later which was when the boarding call was scheduled. I came back to tell the ticket lady, and she was really nice about it and said I didn't have to pay and to just go through security. I did, and then we spent about 45 minutes waiting to board the plane. The plane was early arriving into Beauvais, and I found the guy from the shuttle company easily. I rode with a family with 2 boys, and they got dropped off first. (I don't know if it was the driver or that I was really hungry, but I almost felt like I was getting motion sickness near the end dropping the family off. I had to get out of the car and get some air for some minutes as we dropped them off.)
I then got dropped off around 9 pm, and my trip was over. I had to run out to Monoprix to get some food (since I had eaten everything perishable before I left), and relaxed the rest of the night.
I'm so glad that I went on my trip, and even more so that it was just me! I did everything by myself, and look, I'm still alive to tell about it. I was also more spontaneous and open to new things. I'm just sad it's over, I already want to go back to Rome/Italy!