My Italian Adventure: Getting to Rome

My last final was on January 20th. At midnight that night I took a bus into London in order to fly into Rome. I was fed up with studying and ready to start my adventure. The catch? I would be travelling all alone. I was nervous and admittedly did have some nightmares about it, but knew that in the end it would all be worth it. I won't lie. It wasn't easy and there were some times I wished I was with other people. But it is really freeing to be able to do whatever you want. This did lead to skipping a lot of meals in favor of eating nuts instead and getting to see more of Rome because of this. I don't know that anyone else would want to have done this, which is another perk of going at it alone.

But at the same time, it was utterly terrifying to be going alone. If I get lost, there is no one but me to rely on. I've never done this before, I have a terrible sense of direction, and I don't speak the language. Am I really qualified to do this alone? I had to ask Yaren just how to bus to Tesco and didn't even try to do it on my own. What made me think I could do this?

Well hell, I was able to navigate from my landing gate to where Swansea University was picking up students from the London Heathrow airport at the beginning of the year. No one helped me there. I've survived on my own in Wales this long. Surely I can try it all again, but in Rome.

 I got there really early as I was not sure how long check-in and security would take and the other bus option would be cutting it a lot closer. But by the time I arrived, the check-in desk wasn't even open as I was almost 4 hours early. But since I was early and waited patiently for the gate to open, the guy at check-ins thanked me for my patience by upgrading me to a window seat.

Still, I was really early and really tired. Even after checking in, I had to wait for the gate to be posted for my flight before I could do anything else. So for the first time in my life, I fell asleep in an airport. My legs were tightly wrapped around my backpack which held a weeks worth of clothing for Italy. In the breast pocket of my coat, an external phone charger revived my nearly dead phone. Since I have a hard time sleeping when it's light out, I pulled my hood over my eyes and rested for about an hour.

Never did I think I could do than nor that i would if given the opportunity. But there were tons of people in the waiting seat around me, and so I felt some security. I had an alarm set to wake me up at the estimated time of my gate time being posted, but did wake up a little bit beforehand.

From there it was a breeze. It was such a small aircraft that they didn't even bother to have people assigned to boarding times. Just board whenever you arrive and don't be late.

The pamphlets were all in Italian and the safety briefings were in Italian first, and then English. I was really leaving behind all the comforts of home. Before I left wi-fi, I quickly looked up some conversational Italian. Basically, "Parli I'ltaliano?" (Do you speak English?) and "gratzi" (thank you) would take me far with the basic Spanish I remembered from high school. The languages are quite similar.

It felt weird travelling on a plane and not travelling to America from the UK as that has been the extent of my air travel. At least now I wasn't scared and could actually enjoy my window seat view.

 

It was already very confusing when I initially arrived. I was at the airport, now how do I actually get to Rome? I tried following signs that led to the bus, but found they didn't seem to lead to the right location. Finally I just went outside the strange airport (I say strange because they literally drop you off in the airfield and you have to shuttle to the main area which does NOT look like an airport. Unfortunately, the buses filled fast and so I had to get one that wasn't leaving for a half hour. I really wouldn't have any time in Rome today.

Whilst figuring out which bus my ticket was for, I met an old lady in purple and who I assumed was her grand-daughter. It turns out that she was just another traveller and they happened to meet. We got to talking, ans I discovered that this woman too was travelling on her own, but she would be gone for months. This was just her first stop. Throughout her long life, she's travelled all over the world, sometimes alone and sometimes with people. She's lived abroad in multiple countries and is a complete inspiration. Never did she wonder whether or not she should. She just did.

I went on the bus with her and the other girl. This other one was meeting up with friends at her hotel. She had fallen in love with this city and convinced everyone she was travelling with to make this their first stop. I felt quite inexperienced between these two, but the older lady was quite happy for me. They both knew it was scary at first.

Once we got into the city, the older lady and I initially agreed to meet up as she said she would show me the Roman Forum or Colosseum. However, my hostel was located quite far away and the day was reaching it's end. The girl and I did still help her find her hotel as a cab ride would cost 20 Euro and apparently it was quite close. She was fine to do it by herself, but we both knew that all the bags she brought would be too much.

When she did find her hotel, it was very old and sketchy, as opposed to the fancy one she was expecting. Because it was hidden behind a scaffolding working on construction and hard to locate on the map, it probably took us a half hour to find. But we didn't feel comfortable not helping.

Afterwards, the girl went to the metro with me. Each of us needed to use it in order to get to our hostels. Mine was in Vatican City, and so I had a much longer ride. I was very nervous and hyper aware of pickpockets. The girl (from Belarus) kept telling me not to be scared. I was holding my backpack securely between my feet and looking around quite nervously. "You'll be fine," she promised me. But soon her stop came. She gave me a hug and said, "It was nice meeting you, now good-bye."

I was on my own again. It was extremely lucky that I had help, as I wouldn't have quite known how to navigate to and use the metro. The itinerary from STA Travel (the agency I used) included directions from the airport to the hostel, but it was still fairly foreign to use those to navigate for me.

On the metro

 Once I got off, I was told to go to a bus station near McDonald's. I didn't really want to pay for a bus and tried to start walking. Although the sun was setting, it wasn't quite dark. But after walking for five minutes and barely going anywhere on the map, I figured the bus was good. I was quite scared as this was way outside the main city, but I stood my ground. Once the bus came, I got on, paused a bit at the front, and then continued on. There was no way to pay the bus driver. No one else was paying. How do I do this? Well, I just tracked on the map of my phone how to get to the camping village stop, which apparently was right across from a grocery store.

Camping village? It also said I would have a tent to share with two other people. Where the hell did STA put me? I went with it and managed to stop and get off at the right spot. From there I crossed an overhead bridge and made it to the hostel to check in just as it was getting dark. Well, at least I got there.

Check in was easy, and I was informed that I would have it by myself for the first night before being joined by two girls. He gave me the key and all I had to do was walk up the stairs. This was an emotional moment for me. I was filled with fear and self-doubt the entire time getting here, but climbing up those stairs, tears rolled down my eyes and I said aloud to myself, "I fucking did it." Probably the first time I've sworn in a year, but I kept saying it over and over again. I was so proud of myself for actually doing it.

I wasn't in a tent, but a tiny bungalow. It was a camping village as some people were there in motorhomes. Some barking dogs as well, which I was nervous to pet as there were no owners around. Once I made it in my room, I dropped my bags and relaxed on my bed for awhile, simply enjoying the fact that I DID IT.

I figured out how to connect it to data (instead of relying on wi-fi) and messaged my mom. I had barely eaten, and so she insisted that I go out and get some Italian food. The main city was difficult to get to and I didn't want to go out exploring. Since the restaurant looked nice in the hostel, perhaps the food was good too.

Gnocchi is one of my favorite Italian dishes, but not everyone is as big of a fan. But this was my chance to get it smothered in pesto and parmasean. I was really looking forwrd to it.

Unfortunately, although it was alright, it was just hostel food. Nothing great. And there is no free water (you have to pay for a bottle). Oh well. It was enough to fill me up and give me a chance to plan out my day tomorrow. There was a lot to do in Rome, and so I had to figure out just what it was I wanted to see. Jason gave me some reccomendations as he had just been there for his winter break.

After I paid for my meal, I happily went back to my hostel, which was really a tiny hotel room. There was a party next door, but I didn't mind. I was excited for everything the next day had to offer and content to have my own place to stay. 

Bath at Christmas

This took place on December 4th.

The good thing about Swansea University, is that the school does a lot of good trips to introduce the international students to the new world around them. This is how I was able to see Stonehenge, Avebury, and Amsterdam. Plus they had a free trip to Cardiff at the beginning of the year, which is when I went to the castle. Even a quid trip to the Gower! I just wish there were more!

I was quite tired after getting back late from Yule Ball the night before, but luckily have become an expert bus napper. This meant that by the time we all arrived, I was quite refreshed. Plus I was with some of my friends, which seems to give me a natural energy. Focus is placed on interacting with them and exploring instead of thinking about my bed.

But Bath was pretty cool on it's own. The whole city looked as if it was from another time period. Old fashioned architecture and all very Roman. Which is because this was one of the cities Rome invaded. But to be fair, there were few places the Romans didn't invade.

Bath Abbey

What a door! And just now noticed the random guy with a Firefly hat! :D

The International Squad

As a proud Rotaract member, always on the lookout for stuff like this.

It was a gorgeous town and filled with plenty of holiday cheer! We were able to find a fudge-making store that was giving away free samples. We may like fudge in the United States, but I would say here it is a cultural staple. There are shops for it all over and people (rightfully so) go nuts for it. Probably right up there with English toffee.

Spreading the fudge.

Onto the next board with some more!

Neatly kept to set

In general, I just loved walking around the city and taking it all in. Everywhere we stepped was beautiful! Gorgeous buildings around every singe corner!

But what's that?

Father Christmas! (The proper name for Santa here)

Crowded Christmas markets. I wish these handmade nutcrackers were cheaper...

Our first stop after looking around for a bit was the Roman Baths. What the city of Bath is famous for! I had seen pictures from fellow study abroaders in Swansea, but had no idea just how gorgeous it could be in real life! I was also unaware that it was a whole museum that told of the ancient history and traditions. 

If you look closely, you can see statues adorning the top of the wall.

Guys in costume to help set the scene.

One of my favorite photos from the trip.

The bath is created from a hot spring that bubbles up at 115 degrees each day. It comes into the King's Bath here, which was built in the 12th Century A.D. There is also a reservoir beneath the baths which the Roman engineers created as well. Two smaller hot springs were nearby the main bath and were also used by the Romans.

The sacred spring was at the heart of the site and was used as a place of worship for those who entered. Bathing in generally was used for worship and not just to get clean.

Old chunks of the bath, some of which held inscriptions.

 

Model of the baths as they were.

Model of the baths as they were.

The Temple Pediment

 This was the front of the Temple of Sulis Minerva that looked down on all the visitors as they entered. There are only pieces left, but in its glory day it would stand nearly 50 feet tall.

What the whole design looked like in it's hay day.

Here are some more interesting parts of the exhibit:

Cool old head statue. Don't remember the significance, but I like it.

A skeleton dug up with a facial reconstruction above it.

Head of Sulis Minerva

Sludgy, muddy water

They used a pully system to construct the bath out of heavy stone.

The Roman Drain

Immersion Pool

 And now...onto see the actual baths! We kept getting peaks at it throughout the exhibit and the whole time we could see the steam rolling off of it. The Romans would hae been quite toasty in that bath. But they had cold water baths that they would go in as well. All part of the worshipping and cleanly process.

Am I in Rome? Or the UK?

Group photo! With us slowpokes who read everything and listened to all of the audiotour.

Found a Roman to pose with.

Another bath (outside the main one). This was a cold water bath where they would do a cold plunge.

All the empty baths looked like this. I wonder if this is what's beneath the water? Or if they are old
support systems for a floor.

Roof spine fragment.

Where yucky water meets pretty green water. All those minerals...

Ye olde pipe.

Love how they put this!

West bath for those unsavory folk.

Now I have read one of the signs I took a picture of (how I remember some key facts and names), I see that these pillars were indeed to hold up a floor. Hot, smokey air was drawn from a smokehole and circulated around the pillars. It also passed through hollow tiles in the walls. There were vents all around the room to let in the smokey heat. No bath here, just essentially a sweathouse.

Hypocaust of the Heated Room

 At the end of your visit, you hae the chance to drink some of the bath water. It came out warm from the tap the always flowed. I suppose this means it came fresh from the spring. I tasted it...and it was awful. Metallic and full of...flavorful minerals. I would like to bath in it. Probbly great for the skin!

The ones I fell behind with wanted to go shopping in the Christmas Markets, but they were a little too clausterphobic for me. Instead, I went off to find Kaileen and Robin and do something else with them. They had finsihed awhile ago and were waiting at Starbucks. 

We were content just to wander around and see what lies within the city. This took us to an indoor market. I've noticed pretty much all the markets in the UK are indoors. It's too rainy of a country to do otherwise. 

This market even had it's own pillar.

 Although it was too expensive to buy, we were able to find chocolate wine in the market. Free samples were given, and it was extremely tasty. I could definitely have that dribbled over ice cream instead of chocolate syrup. There were many other fun stores within and it was nice to just walk around and explore.

Bath is such a pretty city, that you don't have to do uch other than walk around. I did want to go to the Jane Austen museum, but we never did get around to that. Looking back, I'm not really that upset. Going in and out of stores and generlly just walking around gave me a good feel for the city. And I made the discovery that people really capitalize on the name of the city. There were MANY stores that sold luxory bath products. Even the gift shop for the Roman Baths themselves.

Best name for a cafe.

Even the non-touristy deserted places were cool!

We found a yarn shop.

 I was extremely excited to find a yarn store. As many know, I am a big knitter. Nothing would have made me happier than to find some cool yarn to take back with me from Bath. But sadly, it was all the same brands at even higher prices (because of the conversion rate). Kaileen commented that if I know brands, I must be an experienced knitter. I can be a little hardcore with it at times...

Robin getting doggy kisses.

A yarn store and a dog. What more do I need in life?

We essentially just spent the rest of the day exploring and trying to get inside the Christmas markets. The markets were so popular and crowded that you would at times be stuck in the middle with hundreds of people around you and no way to move. I don't typically have anxiety with crowds, but this got to me. Mainly because there was no way to escape. The others felt the same, which is why we tried to avoid it a little. Which is funny as the Christmas markets were the whole reason we came at this particular time.

Thick crowds of Christmas cheer.

He's so serious despite his hat.

 We found a really old wood shop where every item was handcarved. As I will let you read below, the shop is over 600 years old and still in its original spot. Probably not a top tourist attraction, but I thought it was pretty cool.

After some more exploring, we found the oldest sweet shop in bath. It too was crowded (this whole city was crowded), but we coud look at chocolate and various other forms of sugar to keep us calm.

 

Some Christmas decorations hanging in the street. Pretty much every UK city has these too.

Indoor craft fair.

Lots of cool stuff, some of which I could actually make myself.

At one point we decided to brave the Christmas markets again. The other two had some things they wanted to go back for, and I was willing to look fondly at my 60 quid handmade nutcrackers and attempt to find a smaller one that was cheaper (the smaller ones didn't look as good and were still overpriced).

We also found a place on the holiday map for "The Lodge." I wanted to try mulled wine as it is a holiday tradition here. The others were a tad more hesitant, but willing nonetheless. When they found that there was mulled cider instead, they wanted to try that, as we were all cider fans and therefore might enjoy that more. Nonetheless, I was insistant that we went for the mulled wine as it was traditional.

Because we are poor study abroad students and mulled wine was £3.50 ($5), we each split one and passed it around taking sips. Surprisingly, it was very good. The alcohol pretty much cooks out, so it's more along the lines of warm, spiced, grape juice. There is still some wine flavor, but not as strongly as you would expect.

The other two with our beverage.

We went back out to brave the markets some more before escaping their clutches and simply wandering around some more.

Soon the sun started setting and we were getting far outside the main part of the town. Our method for exploring was to simply turn down any unfamiliar street we had not yet visited. By this point we were seeing construction (new store, houes, or something of that sort).

We decided then that it was best to start heading back. Since we were still in the UK, there was no problem using data to navigate ourselves back to the main city if needed. But the other two generally were able to remember how to get back. I wish I had those navigational powers.

We found a store called IKEA which much later would be descibed to me by Al as "an IKEA for stuff." It essentially had everything you want and had no need for, but at a very good price.

This one was ultiple stories and incredibly huge. Like IKEA, there is a definite flow you have to follow. You HAVE to go through the entire things and will defintitely get something you never needed. I can't see anyone walking into that store with a purchase in mind as the stock is constantly changing and nothing there is particularly useful.

Everyone needs a hula girl for their car. If not that, for sure a robot.

I quite enjoyed myself and had fun looking at all of the wacky products. At the end of it, though, it was time to get food and then head back to the bus. We went to a spicy chicken place that was like an off-brand Nando's. Still very tasty. 

We took it to the bus station to eat, but arrived there quite early and were unable to locate our bus. Things at that bus park were very crowded and disorganized. Our bus was at least a half hour late (and it was a hired coach who's only job was to navigate us). No one from the uni was ushering us into one spot. Instead we just sort of had to find each other and ask the very frustated people trying to organize the area where/when our bus would arrive. No answers were clear.

People crowded the park and flowed off the sidewalk, giving the drivers backing up a really hard time and those in charge had to keep shouting at the pedestrians to back up. I was very thnkful when our coach finally did arrive as it meant getting out of the chaos we had been absorbed in all day and that we would finally be somewhere warm. 

This would be my last adventure before heading hom for the holidays, though heading home would be an adventure all on it's own. A nearly five hour bus ride to the airport, ten hour flight, and hour drive back home. Plus harassment from the people in the airport and missing a bus on the way back to Swansea afterwards. You would think I would be sick of travel, but still I was excited for my pre-planned adventure to Italy after finals.