Day Two: Gelato, Cappuccino, and Pizza, Oh my!!!

Today, we landed in Rome.

My group landed first.  We met an EF representative at the airport and she introduced us to John, our Tour Director.  John explained that we would be boarding our bus and heading out to Ostia.  Ostia was the location of the ancient port city that served Rome's needs.  I, of course, geeked out.  I often tell kids, when thinking of traveling, to purposely not do something you want to do.  If you leave something off of your itinerary, then you always have a reason to come back.  Well, a little over 10 years ago, I opted out of a visit to Ostia.  I figured I'd be back.  Today, I was headed there...As a lover of history, this ancient port city would be right up my alley.  We didn't go to Ostia Antiqua, however, instead, we went to the beachfront of the modern city.  We had a few moments for lunch.  Our options varied.  Many of the students ordered their first Italian Pizza.  I heard Darian say it was the best he has ever had.  A few kids complimented their lunch with some Gelato.  I veered down the road a bit to find a kebab stand.  [Frequent Blog readers will remember previous posts about kebabs]  For 6 Euro, I got a full kebab sandwich, french fries, and a Fanta.  I know I will have more opportunity for Kebabs in Greece, but it is my favorite European street food.  I will probably get a few more this trip!

After most of us had finished lunch, we walked down to the pier for some photos.

A couple of kids posing for a picture, but the group grew in numbers pretty quickly! 

A serious pose from a serious group of world travelers.

A serious group of travelers trying to be goofy.

We got back onto our bus and headed back to the airport to pick-up our friends.  Along the way, John announced that the ruins of Ostia would be on our right...I chose the right side of the bus!!!

Not all of us saw the ruins, however, as many had already taken advantage of the Italian traffic to take a quick nap.  I will probably begin tweeting a series of pictures of travelers sleeping under the hashtag of #SleepingSachems soon.  I just wanted to have the whole group together before I started...

and now...

the whole group is together.

Sorry its fuzzy, we hit a bump!

Our bus driver took us into the heart of Rome.  On our way, we passed the remnants of the Circus Maximus and the Imperial Palace.  Our destination was the Pantheon.  Originally meant to serve the many gods of Roman Antiquity, it now stands as a Catholic Church.  It is unique for several reasons.  It was the largest concrete domed structure in the World until the Louisiana Superdome was built.  It also holds the remains of some important Italians, including one superhero.  Raphael is an important member of the Teenage Mut...oops, got him confused for a second.  Raphael is an important Renaissance artists, sculptor, etc.  The Pantheon also has a whole in its ceiling.  This allows the all mighty to see what is happening, but it also allows Mother Nature to rain down inside the church.  Our trip was great.  A few of us chatted about how something like that could be built and others posed for pictures with friends.

The Circus Maximus held chariot races like those seen in Ben-Hur

Driving towards the Imperial Palace.

The door to the Pantheon with SHS walking through.

The all seeing eye?

Street musician playing the Pantheon

 We then ROMEd through some streets to come to the Piazza Navonna.  There we took some photos with the Statue of Four Rivers and some of our friends.

John giving the group some instructions.

The four gods represent four major rivers on different continents.

A very important Gelato stop.

Hanging out by the fountain.

A group of seniors posing for the photo-op.

While not a complete day, we have had a tremendous taste of Italy already.  This blog has been powered by a plethora of Italian coffees and chocolates.  Our kids have been powered by a variety of Gelato flavors and a multitude of pizza slices.  Both groups had travel times of over 10 hours and many had been working on limited sleep.  Like many of these tours, however, everyone seemed to maintain a positive attitude. I cannot accurately recount the number of times someone has said, "I can't believe I am in Italy."  I stopped one group, who were literally pinching themselves, to remind them it was not a dream and to live every moment.

The food has been quick and to the point.  It has served its purpose and left many wanting more...well, we got that tonight at our hotel.  Hidden deep in the hills surrounding Rome near the Nemi Lake, we found our first hotel.  It is more like a Villa and many people milling about were dressed to the nines.  Our dinner tonight earned raved reviews from the kids.  We started with a six layer lasagna.  I don't usually eat lasagna, but I tried the regular (with beef) and the veggie.  I think I like the veggie better.  It wasn't too saucy.  The next course was a strange combination of bread, croquettes, and french fries.  The bread was really bruschetta.  I enjoyed this course too.  Next, they brought out a salad for us to share.  I liked it a lot.  Finally, we had some Tiramisu.  It was the first time trying it for some kids and they seemed to like it.  I reminded them that there was a Gelato flaver for Tiramisu.

Course 4: Tiramisu 

Course 3: Salad

Course 2: French fries?  Everything was Italian.

Course 1: Lasagna

It is about 10:30.  The halls of our hotel are quieting down.  Most of the kids are exhausted.  All of the chaperons are too.  I am going to be checking on some rooms and taking a little nap.  I am thinking I will get more sleep than I did on the ride over here.  Tomorrow, we have a very busy day.  We are visiting the Vatican and the Colosseum.   At night, we will be visiting the Spanish Steps and the Trevi fountain.  Our ETA to the hotel is 10pm. I am hoping to be a little more clear of thought tomorrow and that my post will be a bit more entertaining.  I usually spend time, while on tour, thinking about what I should write, how I should write it, and does it fit into a bigger picture...today, I am am so sleepy, that I cannot provide deep rhetorical insight.  Tomorrow, perhaps!

Thanks for the comments via Facebook and on this blog.  I am glad to see people still reading it!!!  We had over 400 page views today.  Those stats and your thoughts make it all worth it in the end.  

Mr. Lavoie, currently in a hillside villa overlooking the eternal city.