Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible. This I did. This is my recollection of my trip from my trip to Italy. My goal is to make it as honest as possible while at the same time respecting those encountered throughout the course of my travels. I regretfully admit that I was unable to keep record of events while on the trip itself so all of these things are being relived from Boston with the aid of maps and photographs. I can only hope that I correctly relay the happenings and emotions of this trip unbiased by the ever-clear lens of hindsight. I don’t pretend to be impartial. Please take it as a personal narrative pieced together out of memory. This memoir might be more for me than anybody else so I apologize if it is rather wordy or haphazardly thrown together.
Prologue
Sometime in the Summer months of 2008 Audrey Torres, one of my closest and most valued friends, informed me that she was going to be studying in Italy come January 2009. I don’t remember exactly how it came to be but as it became more and more a reality that she was indeed going to Italy for a semester it somehow, probably as a joke, came up that I should visit her in Italy. By mid-October I booked a flight from Boston to Rome via Paris and that was that.
Within days of booking the flight, I had a travel companion, another one of my closest of friends, Shane Harris. I can honestly say that this trip would not have gone as smoothly or been as enjoyable in his absence. I don’t know if I could have made this trip without him. I often marvel at the fact that he and I have known each other less than two years yet in that short time have seen and done so much. One never knows when they meet an individual what kind of impact, if any, they will have on their life. I have no memory of being formally introduced to Shane but I am quite confident that even in my wildest of dreams I couldn’t have thought up half the things we’ve seen and done. Whether it be late night drives to Santa Cruz or late night walks in search of the Italian answer to the Taco trunk.
Soon after the much-welcomed addition of Shane to the trip another individual attached their name to the list, Anna Carlson. One could best define the nature of our friendship as turbulent. I am uncertain as to how things arrived as they did but I must admit that I’m sure I had a greater hand at the start in aiding in the demise of what was once a pleasant friendship way back when.
Later on Maureen “Mo” Mitchell was asked by Shane to accompany us on this trip and I was pleased when she was able to come. Both Mo and Shane attended to the intricacies of the trip, such as transportation within Italy and hostel reservations. I have to admit when it comes to things such as that I am pretty much helpless.
With all the other details of the trip worked out I anxiously awaited Mo’s arrival in Boston the Thursday before our departure when we would meet up with Anna at Logan and the three of us would rendezvous with Shane in Rome.
Chapter I
Mo arrived in Boston early Thursday evening. In a short time she had found her way via the T to Boston College. This was when the fact that I was leaving the United States for the first time, save a brief trip to Canada, really set in. For the longest time this seemed more like a made up game the four of us were playing. I never really stopped and thought about it. But once Mo was standing in front of me I realized, “Shit, I’m going to Italy tomorrow.”
After class Friday Mo and I left BC for the airport. I packed a medium sized Nike bag, which ultimately contained more than I would ever need on the trip. I am a pretty light packer by nature but in this case I still had too much. Mo and I made our way by T to the airport. As a side note I’ve never understood why anybody would pay $60 for a cab ride to the airport when the T runs you $1.70 and is only somewhat slower. Without any delay we made it to the airport and to Air France. This is where I ran into the first hiccup on the trip. Apparently, my bag was in that grey area between ok for a carry on and checked baggage. My mind instantly flew to images of me standing in an empty, drearly lit baggage claim area in Rome with my personal affects nowhere to be found. Luckily for me, Air France was looking out and I received the much coveted “Cabine” tag for my flight.
Once clearing security we saw Anna. I was impressed at how economical she was in her packing for the trip. She had a single backpack filled with anything and everything she could need yet it looked no bigger than a backpack you would see on any high school or college student. Instantly, I felt like the girl when it came to who packed what. In my defense, my bag was half full. Once we compared seat assignments Anna accused me of changing seats. I can truthfully say I had no hand it the seat switches. Still, I don’t think she believed me.
At the terminal I ran into Victoria Weiss and the rest of BC Chorale also preparing for a departure to Rome and Florence. She was gracious enough to give me an itinerary of their trip which allowed me to acclimate me to some of the sites in Rome and Florence as well as what to be on the look out for. It also made it clear that I should have take more care in gaining intelligence prior to the flight out of the country. Before boarding the plane I exchanged my money for euros. The exchange rate didn’t do me any type of justice. Euros are funny in my opinion. I do like how the bills are different sizes though. I exchanged a conservative amount for the trip as I was on a budget and had funds dedicated for primarily food and a few museums. I am happy to say that with the exception of 28 euros for two belts I my funds were used for their original purpose.
As our turn came to board the plane a mixture of emotions came over me. First looking at the sheer size of the massive 747 shook me up a little bit. It was hard to comprehend that something of that size was capable of sustained flight. Mo and I were lucky to find ourselves with a wall in front of us as we had the middle seats of a four person row in the upper center of the plane near the nose. This allowed us more legroom, which was utilized across the Atlantic. Also, as the plane started to taxi out it was weird to think that I was actually leaving the United States. True for only 8 days, which I realize is a very short amount of time all things being equal. But leaving one’s homeland always brings on some kind of emotion. For some it is welcomed others not so much. I had no problem leaving and was excited at the prospect of arriving in the land of my ancestors but at the same time some feeling I can’t really define came over me. There is no question, I am very patriotic and love America, even when it is tough to do so.
Whenever I leave the Bay Area for Boston or any destination I salute deck before we takeoff. This is most certainly the wannabe Navy Pilot in me as it is part of the takeoff procedure for pilots as they leave a carrier. At the Oakland airport I am looking at San Francisco- the City and place closest to my heart. This time there was an American Flag outside the window which I found appropriate. And with that the mighty 747 revved up and the United States was behind me.
Chapter II
The flight to Paris was, for all intensive purposes, very smooth. Air France is a fabulous airline and I would highly recommend it. Mo found our TVs hiding under our seats and I was content to watch Forrest Gump, Entourage, and Sex and the City (I won’t lie) as we made our way across the pond. They gave us quite a nice dinner and it was nice being able to order wine (which was free). Though the flight attendant did want to make sure I was 18. That was a first for me. I didn’t sleep at all during the duration of the flight and arrived in Paris somewhat fatigued.
The Paris airport was thought up by Satan, himself. This I am certain of. All of the terminals start with 2 and are then a letter from C-E. Of course, there are two 2E’s. We were told in Boston we would have ample time to make it from terminal 2E to 2F even though our lay over was just shy of an hour. We jumped off the plane and Anna led the way to the shuttle which was to take us to 2F. Of course it moved eerily slow and time was quickly running out. As we made it up to 2F we realized we had to go through customs. The line weaved back and forth and it didn’t seem logical that we could make it to the terminal in that time.
Out of the blue my French came back and I was told we could go into the expedited business line. Once we reached the front we were told otherwise and my French is not good enough to argue with the speed of my wit. Defeated we went back to the now even longer customs line. Along the way I met an American traveler, also a college student. I motioned for him to come up with us. This was the first time that I felt a greater sense of nationalism. Sort of like, Americans looking out for Americans. I have yet to really reflect on the significance of this but still feel like the notion of looking out for fellow Americans is a recurring them in the course of my travels.
We made it through Customs and my passport was stamped for the first time. Anna and Mo cleared before me and sprinted ahead to make the plane, or so we thought. It was instead the next hurdle, security. At this point it seemed clear we were not going to make our plane. This time after my pleading we made it to the business line and worked our way through security, which was very disjointed. At this point I think it is safe to say we were all running on anxiety and adrenaline. With my shoes on I sprinted for the gate in hopes of stalling it until Anna and Mo could make it. From what I saw the interior of Terminal 2F is exquisitely decorated. I could see our gate with the words Final Boarding flashing, success. We had made it. I don’t want to say I qualified for the Olympics during that sprint, but I qualified for the Olympics. Of course, it’s only fitting that the plane would remain at the gate for 15 minutes after our impromptu dash through the airport. We left Paris after some delays and thick fog that even San Francisco would have to respect. While the plane powered its way towards Rome the Italian Alps made their way into my window.
In a relatively short amount of flight time (at least compared to the first flight) we landed in Rome. The airport was huge and confusing as to where we were supposed to go. Not having any reason not to we decided to go straight. Anna led. I’m not sure for whose benefit but she did appear as if she knew where she was going. As I had no reason to suggest another route I followed along with Mo. We stopped to go to the bathroom. The first cultural shock: Italians don’t use paper towels. Instead there is a continuous almost linen like towel that is continuous. This would have been ok but I really needed to blow my nose.
Walking out of terminal was quite odd. I expected to have to once again go through customs but instead we simply walked out some sliding doors and there we were, in Rome. Anna later explained that since we were going from EU to EU going through Customs wasn’t necessary. I’m not sure if I totally believe this or if we just found a loophole in the terminal. But one thing was certain: we had made it to Italy.
Chapter III
All airports look the same on the inside, at least in my opinion. Sure they may be set up different but all things being equal there are a bunch of shops, a duty free place, and gates. This was also the case with the Da Vinci Aeroport. Anna and Mo were both hungry so we sought out food inside the terminal but thought better of it after looking at the first vendor. Remembering that we had to catch a train to Florence after meeting Shane we thought it well to inquire as to where the train station was. From there we moved on to terminal B to wait for Shane.
At this point we sat in a café inside the terminal and I made my first international purchase – a coke. I really didn’t taste that big of a difference to be honest. After waiting for not very long at all Shane emerged from the crowds. We had all made it safely to Italy and now the adventure was really underway.
Chapter IV
After catching up with each other at length we looked at our train tickets and saw that our train was to depart at 13:30 and so at 12:30 we made out way to the train station which is connected to the aeroport. Upon closer inspection Shane and I realized that the train leaving at 13:30 was the one we were supposed to take from the Roma Termini and not the aeroport station. Thus, we had a problem. We caught the first train we could for the Roma Termini but missed our train to Florence. On the train ride I was rather nervous as the houses that lined the tracks were very beaten down. This was my first reaction to Italy but as Shane pointed out, the cheapest housing is along train tracks. It was at this point where I was thankful that Shane was there. At times I can overreact or get stressed in a situation as that but Shane has a calm about him which transfers to all in his company and so it did with me. We then sought out where to go to get another train and find out what to do.
Nobody at the Termini gave us straight answers and we were set from place to place. At this point I was just taken aback by the sheer size of the Termini along with how many people where there. We went from ticket booth to ticket booth and then told we were to go to the main booth. We ended up walking through a shop and as I walked out the alarm went off. A guard came up to me and asked that I open my bag. Soon enough he realized that I hadn’t stolen anything and on we went. At the main booth we learned all we had to do was get on the next train and pay a total of 8 euro. Simple enough though that information would have been appreciated from the beginning. I am uncertain if it was because of all the reminders I had gotten from people or the fact that in general I am more self aware in big crowds but as we waited I was watching everybody. I had been warned of Italian pickpockets and so everybody was a possible target to me. Before long our train arrived and we were on our way to Florence.
I very much enjoyed our train ride. We had a quad set up and a table separating us, which allowed us to pass the time playing cards. While playing cards was a lot of fun I also loved taking in the Italian countryside. Once again as we drew nearer to Florence the houses along the tracks were beaten down and old. I guess I just naively expected the houses to look differently. Upon arrival in Florence I called Audrey and her roommate Taylor who then met us in front of a McDonald’s.
It was rather odd seeing Audrey in this context. For the entirety of our friendship we have only known each other in the Bay Area so to see such a close friend established and prospering in such a distant land was a little mind boggling. Now at this point Shane wasn’t exactly clear where the hostel was but at the train station they gave us a basic idea of where we were supposed to go. So we walked down the street bags and all until we arrived at a hostel. The only problem was that it wasn’t our hostel. After getting the address courtesy of Anna’s iphone Taylor or as we came to call her, “Mapquest” traced a route for us. The only problem? We had to walk to the other side of the city. One we went walking for close to an hour. This would become a normal walk for us but the added weight of bags and lack of sleep didn’t aid us in our travel.
Turning down the street our hostel came into view and at first we were all concerned. It looked like a shack. Entering into check in didn’t quell our fears. As we made out way to the room I held my breath as the door opened. And as the lights flickered on I let out a sigh of relief. The room was very nice with four beds and our own bathroom. Shane and I got to business and pushed all four beds together.
Settling into the hostel we set out to find dinner. Our travels let us to a pizza parlor and then to a nearby supermarket where Shane and I found an 86 cent bottle of wine. Never again. The wine tasted like white grape juice. After eating back in the hostel we all fell asleep for and slept relatively soundly for the night except for Shane and myself as we were both stricken with a cough.
