By Glenn Andreiev.
Rome is one exciting and crazy city, and should be at the top of your list if you are considering a first-time European vacation. In early 2007, my friend, Shawna and I traveled to Rome from Paris on the Eurail, basically Europe’s equivalent of our Amtrack train service.
Romans, like almost all main Europeans have done away with the language barrier. Everybody there speaks some degree of English. Even the shopping cart handler at the supermarket next to our hotel was well versed in English.
Shawna and I (centered) next to Brooklyn's toughest Centurions.
Rome is a city that obviously respects their history. The streets wind around sets of existing ancient Roman columns. They would not dream of knocking down the columns, even if they are in ruins, placing them elsewhere, and building a street through it. Of course, you have to see Rome’s main ancient attraction- The Colosseum. There’s a long line to get into the place, but once you pass through that, you are making one spectacular dive into history. A large Roman cross is tastefully placed in what used to be the stage where the Colosseum games took place. There’s been a long debate as to if the ancient Romans really fed imprisoned Christians to the lions, or is that story a Christian-fabricated tale to gain sympathy. The somewhat unclear historic records of the time do state that bears, boars and tigers were used in the Colosseum to execute criminals. I took note of the numerous house cats that were hanging out in the stadium area. A guard told me that this historic site is a favorite among the stray cat population. When we left the Colosseum, we saw the all the familiar tourist attraction- guys dressed as ancient Roman Centurions. They looked at Shawna and me, and said in the thickest Brooklyn/Queens accent, “Yo, you over dare- come here and have picture taken with a real honest to goodness Centurion!”
“Where are you from?” I asked, noting the accent.
“I grew up in Coney Island, Brooklyn!” he replied. I didn’t ask how he wound up doing this gig 4,300 miles away from home.
The Italian Capital Building called "The Wedding Cake" by American GI's during World War II because of it's shape.
The other main Roman attraction is The Vatican. A tour bus takes you to the main avenue leading to the Vatican. Along the avenue is a somewhat pricey, but well worth it, pasta buffet place. All weight loss plans vanish once you enter this den of appetite! The Vatican is cavernous, with almost every section of their walls adorned with the most beautiful of old-world paintings and sculpting. One can’t avoid noticing the bodies of a few past popes lying in state in clear, glass caskets. The one pope from the 17th Century is beginning to look a bit spidery, but the 20th century popes look like they are napping. We were lucky to get there on a Sunday, and witness a most majestic ceremony.
Being a lifelong film fanatic, I immersed myself in Rome’s love of cinema, especially classic American cinema. In their video stores, you can find rare Hollywood cult classics that are not available in America. For example, try to find the 1941 madcap comedy “Hellzapopping” here in the states. It has never been released to American home video. (“Hellzapopping” is an extremely funny, almost plot-less comedy starring the forgotten comedy team of Olsen and Johnson. Martha Raye and the Frankenstein Monster make cameos here.) The first thing I see in a Roman video store is a stand-alone display of “Hellzapopping” DVD’s. Upon my return, my film-fanatic friends were in awe. They were moaning “Oh, dude, go back and get me a copy!” I also found rare, early films that Sophia Loren acted in before coming to America, and uncut copies of 1950’s and 60’s Italian horror films before American distributors cut them to ribbons. So, if you love movies, hit the Roman video stores.
Inside the Vatican, a very large looking indoor country inside of a city
There are some money saving tips I would like to share with future Roman, and European first time travelers. If you plan to use the Eurail, do not buy your train ticket on line in America. Wait until you get to the train station, and then buy your ticket. You’ll find the train fare is about thirty percent lower than the on-line price. Like the Long Island Railroad, or Metro North, seating should be available, unless it is during a holiday rush. I found the Roman population generally very pleasant towards American travelers, but you do get the occasional shady types. A Roman supermarket clerk told me that if a man, or especially a group of men at a café lay on the charm with “Oh, are you from America? I once lived in New Jersey! Come, sit and drink with us!” turn down the offer. More than likely, one of them will ask the waiter for a round of drinks for you and his friends. They will order a few more rounds, than vanish, leaving you with the bill. Also, at American fast food restaurants in Rome, such as Burger King, they charge for catsup packets.
I really wanted to try the Roman Chinese Restaurant we drove by, just to say I did it. We went to a small Roman Pizzeria, something I recommend that you do if you decide to visit Rome. The pizza is affordable; a medium pie is about ten euro, which equals fourteen dollars. When we were there, waiting for our pizza, we noticed a horrible almost rotting-flesh smell coming from the back. We wondered if the garbage men were on strike. The waiter brings the pizza, and the smell is coming from Shawna’s pizza, which was made with Gorgonzola. The pizza tasted great, she let me have a bite, but the smell- saints preserve us!
The Roman supermarket we found only proves John Travolta’s “Pulp Fiction” line of “They have the same things in Europe as we have here, only there are some differences.” The supermarket was a combination food mart and all purpose K-Mart styled store, with the teenaged store help moving around the place on rollerskates! We were able to stock up on affordable and tasty breakfast and snack items for the hotel.
When staying in a city like Rome, I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express. The prices were no different from stateside Holiday Inns and the service was excellent. I feel there is no need to go with a fancy hotel when traveling to a city like Rome, you are there to enjoy Rome, not the four walls of a hotel room. I do have to admit, Roman TV is a total hoot! Their game shows are ablaze with jaw-dropping savagery. If a contestant wins a sports car by getting question number one right, the stagehands will smash the sweet car with sledgehammers if the contestant gets more questions wrong. There’s nothing like unwinding a day of seeing the Colosseum and The Vatican with an American film like “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” dubbed in Italian. It was also convenient that the above-mentioned supermarket was next door to the Holiday Inn, so at the last minute we could buy more luggage to handle the American DVDs we bought.
One last bit of money-saving advice. Get to know your Roman cab driver. Get their phone number. Many of them own their taxi, or share it with a family member. They will be only more than happy to offer you a discounted ride to Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino Airport.
