When the Airlines Hand You Lemons, Make Limoncello: How to Spend a Twelve Hour Layover in Rome

I am rather confident that someone has put a traveling curse on me. My most recent adventure involving trains helped to strengthen the idea in my mind, but events on Monday confirmed it for me.

Sometimes I take a bus to Chicago because I can get a cheaper, or more preferable flight combination from there; in this case, I had a short, 16 hour flight to the Republic of Georgia going from Chicago to Amsterdam, then Amsterdam to Tbilisi. On Monday, about an hour before leaving for the bus, I received a phone call from KLM telling me my second flight was cancelled and they were re-routing me to Istanbul before going on to Tbilisi. Nothing like adding to my travel anxiety! I was annoyed, but knew I could manage. I made it to Chicago, had dinner and stayed with a friend from college, which was great! I even slept well!

In the morning, I thought, "Maybe I should call the airline and see if they can do something better or at least compensate me for adding 10 additional hours of travel to my trip..." Good thing I did because when I called  there was no record that my second flight had ever been confirmed; in other words, I had NO flight to Tbilisi scheduled! After 1.5 hours on the phone trying to find a flight for me (everything was booked until next week!), we finally found something that did not involve 4+ connecting flights. I was now scheduled to fly from Chicago to New York, then to Rome where I would have a 12 hour layover, and then on to Tbilisi.

Rome and I have a history. She was the first city I ever visited abroad in addition to being the first place I ever visited alone. I love Rome! And as a person who studies the Romans, it is even more fantastic for the archaeology in the city. While one day is too short for proper visit to Rome, 12 hours is ok for getting out of the airport and enjoying some of what the city has to offer.

My bags were checked through to Tbilisi, and I luckily did not have to worry about bringing them with me. I also had the good fortune of knowing a colleague in Rome who had some free time to visit with me. For 14 euros one way, or 28 euros round-trip, there is a train that goes from Fiumicino Airport to Termini Station, central train station for Roma. The train is much faster than the bus, and cheaper than a taxi, which runs about 50 euros. The train normally takes about 40 minutes, but was delayed while en route adding an additional 30 minutes to my trip into the city.

I finally arrived, met my colleague, and tackled my first priority: delicious coffee! I sometimes forget how mediocre coffee is everywhere else I have been compared to coffee in Italy. Even their not-so-great coffee is better than some of our best coffee. Heaven in a little tiny cup!

Second priority for the day: eat something delicious for lunch. It sounds cliche, but you can really not go wrong with pizza or pasta in Rome. I went with the former as it was slightly lighter. We went to a place that sold it by the gram, so you could chose exactly the best size piece, or pieces, or you! Of the three flavors I tried, the best had zucchini flowers and anchovies on top. Yes, anchovies. It is a love I have had since childhood when my father convinced me to try them, and I will not apologize for it!

Incredibly detailed floral decoration in stone. 

Rome is full of history, arts, and so on. My third priority then: to soak in some culture! I had visited many of the important museums and archaeological sites on my previous visits in 2005 and 2008, but one elusive attraction that I have been wanting to see is the Ara Pacis, the Altar of Peace constructed by the Emperor Augustus after the second Roman civil war in which he came out the victor. It had closed the year before my first visit to Rome and opened a few months after my second visit. I was determined that I should see it this time around! Entry was about 8,50 euros since I forgot my student card, but as it was my only expense for the day, I did not mind the cost so much. It was beautiful and exciting to see something I had studied in school!

The Ara Pacis from the front. Note the person on the left for scale. 

A complex scene loaded with symbols pointing to fertility and well-being. 

At this point in the day it was getting rather warm, leading me to my fourth priority while in Rome: gelato! We went to Giolitti, a famous gelaterie with a lot of character and totally charming inside. Fair warning, if you go, it is really busy with tourists in the summer and you have to just push your way to the front -- do not wait in a line, you will never be served :) And with a delicious and refreshing gelato in hand, we just strolled around Rome passing by the Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, and other sites that did not really require a visit. I had another coffee before heading back to Termini for my airport-bound train. Luckily my train was not delayed, and I made it through security and to my gate in less than 40 minutes.

This would be a rather easy trip to do for anyone with a long layover in Rome. Remember to grab a free map from the information desk at the airport, then factor in an hour for getting off the plane and through passport control, an hour for the train, about six to seven hours for your visit, an hour to get back, and two hours for getting through the airport. If you have less time, you can always shorten your visit. I really took my time in the city. You could always factor in more sites too, but when you have a short amount of time, it is best to not put a million things into one day. I highly recommend having a coffee, enjoying some food, and getting some gelato. Take the city in. Walk slowly, wander; you will enjoy it more.

After my pleasant layover, I hopped another plane and arrived in Tbilisi early in the morning where I was greeted by Reed and some of his Georgian friends. My exploration of this new city and country has just begun and I will be sure to update my loyal readers on my adventures. In the meantime, you can read about Reed's experiences in Georgia from the past three years at Adventures in Georgia: The Search for the Persian Leopard.

Visiting Lyon: Day 2

I got a later start than anticipated because I could not sleep the night before. The weather was looking a bit gloomy and my body was kicking me for walking up that giant hill the day before that I decided I should go back down to the center of town first and then I would hopefully have enough energy to walk back up the hill again in a little while. I descended and went to the shopping area as I had the urge to window shop. As I learned at the museum the day before, one of Lyon’s major exports was silk, and I hoped I could find a great silk store as I love textiles. Alas, I saw nothing of the sort much to my disappointment. In this area alone I walked three miles before 1PM.

I finished seeing all I wanted to see in the lower area (it’s called “The Little Island” as it is between the two rivers. I started toward the Saone and saw there was a fresh market that day. I love walking through street markets because the fruit always smells fantastic as does the stinky cheese and the meat looks so fresh. Yum! After browsing, I started to move toward the river walking under some trees when I felt something hit my head. I heard the flutter of wings and hoped it was not what I thought it was. Much to my dismay, it was; a pigeon shit right in my hair. I remember the last time I was pooped on by a bird. It was May 1996 and I was at the Detroit Zoo when a bird pooped on the sleeve of my yellow hoodie. This occurrence in Lyon will certainly be as memorable. I walked over to a fruit vendor who was packing up and asked her if she had a napkin and then showed her my head. She frantically began looking around for one as did her husband and the woman they were helping at the time also searched in her bag. Between the three of them they got a napkin and got me cleaned up. People can be so generous and kind at times it’s incredible. I thanked them thoroughly and continued on my way with a smile on my face thinking my trip to Lyon was now complete.

I did a lot more walking around the foot of the hill looking at different shops and bakeries and funny museums (they have a lot of unusual subjects for museums in Lyon such as one dedicated to miniatures that were used in films and animated wooden dolls/puppets). I made my grand ascent up the hill once more, which was a bit easier this time even though my body was exhausted. I made my way to the Musee Gallo Romain which happened to be free on Thursdays – woohoo! The museum was fantastic too! Lyon was a very important city in the Roman period and it has the finds to prove it! I took a lot of photos for future use in teaching and just enjoyed the museum. 

After the museum I walked outside to the Roman theatres which are right next to it. To my joy, another concert warm-up/practice was going on and I got to see another show for free! Once they finished, I walked slightly uphill again to the highest part of the city to see their famous (though not old) Notre-Dame de Fourviere which was perched on top of the hill overlooking the city. It offered a fantastic view of the city. It was incredible to see because Lyon, while it is the second or third largest city in France, it does not feel that big. Seeing it nestled into the river valleys though, the expanse of the area is evident and breathtaking. The other incredible thing of note is that from this point it is possible to see Mont Blanc on a clear day (and it was for me) which is 250km (155 miles) away! Unbelievable!

I headed back to my Couchsurfing host’s apartment and waited for her there. We made some pasta for dinner and she suggested we see a concert of Caribbean and African music that was playing in a park for free. Lyon has great summertime festivities for its residents and this concert was part of an event called “All the World Outside” which features different types of music each week. Well, we underestimated the precise distance of the other park and did not realize we would have to descend our hill only to climb up another. While on the map it is about 2 miles round trip, with the going up and down, up and down it was probably much more than that. We took one path that probably had no fewer than 300 steps going down. It was incredible and had me laughing most of the way. When we finally made it up the last hill to the concert it was packed with people, but we found a good spot on the lawn and had a listen. I really like African music because it sounds so happy and there are so many distinct sounds each instrument makes. Some jugglers came and were performing next to us too, so we had music and a show. We stayed for some time and then headed back to the apartment where I had no problem sleeping that night.

Visiting Lyon: Day 1

Yay! I have something interesting to write about! Its not that I don’t like my museum research, but it is sometimes a bit tedious to live it once let alone write about it again while trying to make it sound entertaining. Luckily though, I took a trip to the lovely city of Lyon this week and have lots to share!

I got a ride to Dijon on Wednesday and then took a two hour train ride to Lyon. In my train cabin I sat with a woman from Morocco who had been living in France for eight years. She was nice enough and patient enough to let me practice my French and I helped her with some English language questions she had. It was a nice ride overall and it was nice to spend it with a very smiley person! As we were leaving the train I somehow ended up talking to a French girl who was looking for a map like I was as it was the first time in Lyon for both of us. We found the information area, got our maps, and then went our separate ways.

The first thing I do when I arrive in any European city is to find the center of the town. From there it is possible to orient oneself, find a map (if you did not find one at the station), and find something to eat because, at least for me, I am typically hungry after my trip. I found a road on the map that went from the station to the center of town and followed the other signs which got me to my destination. While on my way, I crossed the Rhone River. I think this was my first time seeing it in person and it was quite large! The center of town was typical – a big square of some sort, a big statue, lots of shopping and lots of restaurants. I flipped through a tourism book that I got at the station and found something to do as I had some time to kill.

I chose to visit the Musee des Tissus/Musee des Arts Decoratifs de Lyon first. It was a fantastic museum that had a lovely and varied collection of textiles from all places and times. It starts with ancient textiles from Egypt which included lace, fine hair nets, detailed patterns and scenes (many with peacocks!). Later periods also have a wide variety of textiles and some complete costumes from various parts of the Near East, Turkey, Spain, and so on. While all of these were fantastic, the best part may have been seeing the fantastic dresses and garments 18^th century France and England! Oh my goodness! The style of the dresses, the fabric – this would have been my era! There were beautiful cuts and designs that flattered nearly any form. I loved it! The second part of the museum includes walking through various re-constructed rooms with objects and décor that dated to around the 17^th and 18^th centuries as well. This was quite lovely and it was nice to have a change of subject than my normal archaeology museum!

After the museum I walked around for a while and then headed toward the ruins of the Roman theatre. I had no concept of the layout or topography of Lyon prior to my arrival so I was quite surprised I had to cross yet another river, this time the Saone, to get to the bottom of a hill. The ruins were on the top of this hill and so I started working my way up. Ooo la la! This was a tall and steep path and I was sweating almost instantly! My hips, rump and thighs thanked me for the exercise!

 

I planned on looking at ruins in more depth the next day, but when I arrived I heard a warm-up for a concert that would happen later that night. I basically got to see a free concert while others later in the night would have to pay 30euros for the same show. It was a good deal and a nice way to conclude the afternoon.

Around 5:30, I headed toward my evening’s destination. I am not sure if I have talked about the website Couchsurfing.org yet on the blog, but I shall briefly describe it here. In a nutshell, this is a website for people who would rather stay in someone’s home than at a hotel. While it is typically used by young people, older people are joining the site more frequently because there are some great benefits to this idea. For students its great because you stay in someone’s home, so it is free. The main reason I like it, and the appeal for many others, is that it gives you a chance to meet people who live in the area and they can tell you good places to see or eat, or just basic things to know about traveling in the city. It gives you an opportunity to be a diplomat for your country and allows you to meet people from all around the world. You get to learn about a place and about people from these places. You give them a face to associate with your country and you also have a face to associate with theirs. It is an amazing opportunity to foster friendship and understanding.

I described all this because I have used it in the past and used it again in Lyon. It was a bit funny because I stayed with a German girl in France. She was very nice and hospitable and took me in at the last minute for three days! That night she had a friend coming over, another German girl, and the three of us made pizza which ended up being incredibly yummy! They suggested we go out for a little while after dinner. I never go out in the evenings because I am typically alone and because I am not really one who likes to go out often. It is incredible though to see a city at night; it can look so different. We walked by the opera house, which was beautiful all lit up and there was music going on as well. We went to a bar near there which was incredibly tiny and was decorated like the inside of a pirate ship inside! The floor was even the funny sort of wooden grates that you see in movies that someone is inevitably trapped under/inside. There were wooden kegs all around, wooden planks for the walls, and all sorts of funny things stored in jars behind the bar. It was loud and I was far too old to be there, but it was amusing nonetheless since I never go any place like that while in Europe.

Well, that certainly seems long enough for one entry. I shall describe the rest of my trip in another one tomorrow.

Off to Lyon!

Not much to really say yet, but I am finally forcing myself to get up and to get traveling! I am getting a ride to Dijon tomorrow, then am catching a train to Lyon where I will stay until Saturday morning (hopefully). I am excited to see some kick ass Roman ruins and might even take a day trip to Vienne (France, not Austria) for even more ruins! Woo!

I am looking forward to sharing some stories and, if nothing else, some photos!

Wandering around in the woods again…

Currently I'm staying at the oppidum (late Iron Age settlement), Bibracte located on Mt-Beuvray. Went up to the Brit-Yank-Deutsch site on Tuesday, which is near the Source de l’Yonne (source is French for 'spring'). Viewed their area briefly, which appears to be a small industrial area. Laura, one of the Brit leaders, said I should “go up the road a bit” and have a look at the Source because “it is quite lovely.” As I wandered up the road, I wondered how far “a bit” was and also how so much horse poop got here. The latter was answered in a few moments when I saw a horse farm. The former was a bit more ambiguous.

Across from the farm was a staked off circular area with a sign out front and tall grasses inside. There was also a silhouetted sculpture/outline of a man holding a stick in the shape of a wishbone – used for finding water. I read the French signs and looked at the maps and pictures, which were about the rivers the source contributed to and waterfalls, streams, etc. I entered the circle expecting to find a small pool or stream, but only saw a small boulder and grasses.

“Strange,” I thought, “maybe I’ll follow the road up a bit into the woods to see if there is something else up there…” After wandering down a road through the woods for a good 15 minutes, dogging beehives and trying to listen for water, I found two small signs maybe 2 ½ by 2 ½ inches big, each with a hand holding the water-finding stick. One pointed to the way I just came while the other pointed the opposite way saying essentially that was the way to the parking lot. “Well, the unmarked one must point to the source, I guess I’ll go back…” I retreated the way I came.

I returned to where I began and instead of going right, I went to the left this time following the “wish-stick” signs. These little markers led me past a house, then quickly up the hill/mountain full of trees and a soft floor of fallen leaves. I wanted to find the source, so I made this trip as briskly as possible. I climbed, zigged, zagged, stopped to catch my breath, contemplated the elevation because I was out of breath quite quickly, repeated steps 1 through 3 several times over, tripped once, yawned several dozen times, wondered where this damn source was thinking “its strange that it would be so high…”

The path began to descend and I thought, “If I have to climb up this again to get back I will one grouchy archaeologist…” I continued my descent with more zigging and sagging, wondering if this route was made because it is faster for getting to the source than walking around the hill, and also wondering if the water at the source was drinkable…if I’d have known I needed to hike to the source I would have brought some water… As I rounded a curve and descended I noticed I was coming to a road-like path…without a “wish-stick” sign telling me where to continue. I looked right, nothing. I looked left…and saw two small signs, one pointing to the right and the other to the left where I could find the parking lot! Yup, I was standing where I was an hour before.

Don’t remember the exact obscenity(ies) that came from my mouth, but I walked the 15 minutes out of the woods, dogged the bees once again and hoped that I hadn’t actually missed the source after all that. I returned to the circular place again, read the signs again, looked again, but still no water. “Maybe they plugged it with the boulder…?” I admitted defeat and wandered back to the excavation area after over 1.5 hours of accidental hiking.

The excavators asked what I thought when I arrived, saying they found it pretty disappointing themselves… “Where was it!??!?” I asked. “Underground in that circular grassy area. Did you feel it moving under your feet?” All I felt was soft, but not wet ground… It was right under my nose (and feet) the entire time.