Monday 3 August 2015

My Interrailing Adventure: part 1

I've just come back from spending a month interrailing around Europe, which has easily been the best month of my life. In the course of 30 days my best friend Izzie and I travelled to 10 cities in 6 countries and did everything from discovering the sites of ancient Rome to scaling the heights of a high rope course in the middle of a park in Berlin. In just four weeks we met so many interesting people from all over the world, from Scotland to Syria and learnt a lot about different cultures: not just  about the ones of the countries we visited, but also the ones of our friends we met along the way. Here's te first instalment of our trip, about our adventures in Italy.


Day 1: 

Today is the day! Our flight to Rome is at half 5, but we're already at the airport at half  2, excited  that the trip is finally starting, but less excited about the prospect of lugging a huge rucksack around for a month. 

We're all checked in and playing cards in the departure lounge when the boarding time on the board changes to a time after our flight is due to take off. After going down to the flight information desk, we discover that our flight is delayed by an hour. With a lot of tutting and grumbling we go back and sit down, annoyed that nothing was announced on the tannoy. 

10 minutes later we look up and see that our flight is now boarding and we have a matter of minutes to get down to the gate. Panicked, we half walk, half jog to the gate, which typically is one of the furthest away. When we get there they tell us that the flight is still delayed, but that they wanted to get us all organised for boarding. How nice. More grumbling ensues. 

We touch down in Rome just after 10pm their time. After finally getting our luggage off the world's slowest conveyor belt, we make it out the airport and onto a bus to Termini Station. Under the street lights we see our first glimpses of Rome.

Getting our luggage off the bus at Termini is an interesting experience. The bus parks up in the road, meaning we have to fight the mad scramble of travellers trying to get their bags out of the luggage compartment, whilst keeping out of the way of approaching traffic. Still we get out without any scrapes and head to our hostel, which is only a ten minute walk.

Home for the first 5 nights.
Our first Hostel is Hostel Alessandro Downtown. We check in just after midnight. At this point I am so tired that I can't speak straight and struggle to explain our reservation in half decent English and give up and say my name instead. I'm hot and sweaty and need a good night's sleep. 


When we get into our hostel room someone is already asleep so we try to find the spare beds in the dark, whilst trying not trip over all  the stuff on the floor. It looks like we're sharing with 6 boys. 

At around half 1 the rest of our dorm mates turn up - a group of 5 guys from Oklahoma and Texas. When they discover we're British we automatically become "the coolest dorm mates" they've had, as they, of course, " love our accent."

Day 2

We're up bright and early, despite the lack of sleep, to explore Rome. Armed with a free city map, we set out to find the Colosseum. On the way we wind though streets full of restaurants and shops, setting up for the day's worth of tourists. As we head off the main road and through a gorgeous brick walkway that is covered in vines, a guy plays "Volare" on the accordion and I automatically feel like I am in the "Lizzy McGuire Movie". All I need is a Vespa and a hot Italian. It is this point that I think "Yes, I am finally in Rome."

Minutes late we head round a corner and suddenly there it is in front of us. The Colosseum!! We grab our cameras. A lot of pictures are taken.

Oh Colosseum, you're so photogenic.
It's not even lunchtime, yet the queue for this mighty landmark is already half a mile long. We pass a fellow Brit who looks at the line and comments "It's not really a queue, is it?" We both have to bite our lips to stop ourselves bursting out laughing within earshot. 

The area around the Colosseum is like a Mecca for tourists and it shows. I have to fend off approaching street sellers left right and centre. I make a mental note of looking up how to say "No I don't want to buy a selfie stick" in Italian. 


                                                                  ****
In the evening, we decide to head out for some late night Gelato. We find several kebab shops, two guys selling watermelons out of the back of a truck for a euro, but alas no Gelato. We give up and go for a McFlurry. It might be ridiculously uncultured but it has free WiFi and Arctic-like air conditioning. 
We have sinned.

The Americans come in blind drunk at 3 tonight. We stay up for an hour talking about the different types of rain and the royal family. The agree to shut up and go to sleep if we tell them a story in our accent, as it's "so sexy", then attempt to do it themselves. We shun their efforts, as they sound like people from Oliver Twist. 

Day 3

I wake up this morning to find half of the American lads asleep on the floor (it's cooler apparently), with one of them hugging a pot plant. I really want to know what happened the night before, but they're all fast asleep when we head out and they're moving on to Prague today. I guess the pot plant will always remain a mystery. 

We're down by the Colosseum by half nine today, as we're keen to do the Forum and the Palatine Hill early before hundreds of tourists descend on it. By buying our tickets to all three attractions at the Palatine hill we avoided the already lengthy queue at the Colosseum and we're looking around within ten minutes of queueing up. 

The Palatine Hill completely blows me away. The fact that this settlement of ancient Rome is thousands of years old, yet a large part of it is still fully intact amazes me. The skill and sophistication of the architecture is incredibly impressive, especially considering that the only thing British cavemen managed to do around the same time was put one stone on top of each other. I don't think Stonehenge really has the same effect as this place.

 

By midday the heat is getting too much to handle. We head the back to the hostel for lunch and a siesta. The Americans have checked out and now we have two French girls, who are travelling around Italy. They apologise about their "awful English", yet they still manage to uphold a conversation. I, on the other hand can't remember any of my GCSE French and feel awful that I can't try and talk to them in their native language. 

                                                                  *****
We decide to visit the Colosseum in the early evening to avoid the worst of the crowds and the heat. The structure is impressive enough from the outside, but the inside is incredible. I can see why so many people travel to Rome, purely to see this. As an ex classic student, my love and respect for the ancient Romans goes up a level. The city they created with no technology and limited resources is outstanding. 

Holy Shit.
As we head back it starts to spit. Rain! Whilst the other tourists grumble we silently beg for a downpour. We are of course, Brits through and through. 
We really thought it was going to rain.


When we get back the dormitory is full again. We have three new room mates - Tiego from Brazil and Ute and Jonas from Germany. At the discovery of German room mates I get very excited and start babbling on in broken German. They seem shocked that a Brit is actually able to speak another language. 


Day 4

Today we finally give in and buy a selfie stick. We're not proud of it, but it does make our pictures amazing and we can finally get us and the landmark in the frame, instead of our faces with a bit of rock in the background. We try it out in front of this incredible Victorian palace. 

Look how much better our selfies are.



The main aim of the day though is to find the Trevi fountain. According to the map it's in the middle of a built up area of shopping streets. It's not the easiest thin to find, but we get there and - oh. IT'S NOT EVEN WORKING!! The water is completely drained and the whole thing is covered with scaffolding. I'm gutted. I wanted to throw in my coin and make a wish.  We seek comfort in our first proper ice cream of the trip. 

The Trevi Fountain may have been underwhelming, but the Pantheon was anything but. The building is impressive enough by itself, but when I go in and gaze at the intricately painted walls and ornately carved statues, I am completely in awe. I am starting to realise just how important religion is to this country. I may be an atheist but I can see why some people lead a religious lifestyle. 

Later on we go for a stroll and stumble across this church near our hostel. All the churches are free to look around in Rome, so they're a cheap way to get a glimpse of Italian culture. I am taken away by the beauty and decadence of the place, it seems like we should be in a palace not a place of worship. It is extremely calm and tranquil in here and I start to realise how for some people, their main comfort is religion. If I was able to come somewhere this beautiful everyday to reflect upon the good and bad in my life, then I would probably be a far less anxious human being. 

                                                                  ****
Tonight is our first night out of the trip. Our hostel organises bar crawls with it's sister hostel down the road. The night starts with an hour's open bar in the hostel bar, where we meet people from all over the world, from Australia to Argentina, though it's 4th of July, so there are A LOT of Americans who feel the need  to chant USA every 20 seconds. We befriend a group of friends from Swansea who are all friends from university. After all Brits know how to party the best.

After the open bar we head to an American bar that plays really good music. I dance with people from Switzerland, Canada and several different American states, including San Fransisco and New Mexico. I have never met such a diverse group of people in such a small amount of time. This is what it's all about. 

We end the night in this weird club that seems to be right under a block of flats. I feel sorry for the neighbours. The whole place is decorated to look like a house and is complete with chandeliers and bookcases, though no one seems to be in the mood for reading. It's a bit like freshers weeks all over again. Everyone from the bar crawl seems to be getting off with one another, keen to have a holiday romance. I observe it all humorously and keep on dancing. My forehead is a river of sweat, but I don't care. I'm free and I'm alive. I'm a born traveller. 

Day 5

I'm rather fragile this morning. I'm not used to drinking ridiculous amounts of alcohol in 30 degree heat. We decide to take it a bit easier today and take the metro everywhere instead of walking. For around £1 a ticket, it's hardly breaking the bank. 

We go and visit all the landmarks that we haven't done yet, as today is our last day in Rome, starting with the  Spanish Steps. I am rather underwhelmed- I know this sounds stupid but all they are are some steps. The aren't even particularly pretty and the view at the top is hardly worth the climb. I'm more impressed by the pretty water fountain at the bottom that is shaped like a boat. 

The Vatican, though, exceeded all my expectations. We didn't go inside, but the square itself is beautiful and impressive enough. I am lots for words at the beauty of it all. The Pope has got a really nice place here. 



When in Rome....
To mark our last night in Rome we buy spaghetti bolognese from the snack bar we have been frequenting and eat in front of the Colosseum, as we wait for the sun to set. There is a fantastic atmosphere, as everyone waits eagerly to see the huge building light up in the darkness. The only thing that ruins it is the damn street sellers. NO I DON'T WANT TO BUY A LASER POINTER!! The over touristyness of Rome has started to wear me down and I'm looking forward to going somewhere less busy. 

When we get back we have more new room mates. We teach two Turkish guys how to play Gin Rummy and play until we are all too exhausted to function. They teach Izzy how to count in Turkish and me how to say goodnight. 


Day 6

Our first travel day. We leave Rome around 10 and head to Venice. Although I have met so many incredible people here and have some great memories, I am excited to see somewhere new. 

The train journey to Venice is only 3 hours and we arrive there early in the afternoon. We're only spending the night here, so we drop our stuff off at the campsite and head back into the centre. Some places that are raved about can be disappointing in person, but Venice isn't one of them. The city isn't at all busy as we wonder round the winding streets in the late afternoon. The sun casts a gorgeous shade of yellow on the houses and makes the water sparkle. When we finally get to the Piazza San Marco  it is just as I remembered it when I visited 10 years ago. The buildings are beautiful and slightly eastern influenced. The building at the far end looks like a smaller version of the Taj mahal/ Brighton Pavilion. 

Tonight is our last night in Italy. We mark it with a traditional Italian meal, before heading back to the camp site and enjoying the last few rays of the setting sun. Tomorrow we head to Slovenia and a new adventure awaits. 




Find out about my travels in Slovenia in Part 2









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