Our travel itinerary to Rome had a number of steps, any one of which could have been a challenge, but the entire day went very smoothly. Step one was to hit the post office right as it opened (that's a whole other story regarding some expensive French bandage scissors.) then to get to the airport rental car drop off. The route to the rental car lot was well signed and we made it there by 9:30 am. Then it was a short walk to the airport terminal and an quick investigation to determine our gate. At this point we were a couple of hours early, so we found a seat and Sherrie worked on her knitting while I read a book.
The flight was on time and by 3pm we were descending into Rome. Sherrie went to buy our future train tickets to Siena while I purchased train tickets into the city. We had researched the route, so I was surprised when the man at the counter proceeded to talk me out of tickets for the Leonardo Express train and, for only one more Euro, purchase tickets for a shuttle bus. Several of us stood around for 15 minutes until the guy decided he didn't have enough fares to make the shuttle profitable. At that point he gave us the train tickets I asked for originally, 2 Euros in change, and we were back on our planned route. The train ride into the city was quick and before I knew it, Sherrie and I were making our way through the streets of Rome. Sherrie did a great job of navigating the complex streets and in about 45 minutes we were at our new home away from home for the next two nights.
Our host, Elisabetta, met us at the door and showed us to our room. She was very friendly and pointed us to several places to see nearby. Armed with her advice, a guide book, and a map, we headed out to find dinner. We stopped at a very nice place that was almost empty and had a great dinner while listening to fun blues music and watching people walk their dogs for the evening.
With dinner concluded, we walked about a block to the Pantheon which was lit up for the evening and still open. This is truly an incredible building. Built over 2000 years ago, in addition to it's massive marble columns, it had the largest dome in the world for over 1500 years and is still the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world. At the top of the dome is an opening over 25 feet in diameter (the oculus) and rain that falls through drains automatically through a system of hidden fenestrations in the slightly sloping marble floor. Our evening stroll concluded with an impromptu stop at the Trevi Fountain where we took photos and tossed coins over our shoulders to ensure a return visit to this incredible city at some point in the future. (Hey, it worked for Sherrie last time!)
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