Roman Arrival

The days leading up to my departure from California were an emotional rollercoaster.  Saying goodbye to Roscoe and the comfortable life I made for myself in Oakland wasn't easy.  Neither was trying to pack for the next 3-4 months.  Of course I was also extremely excited for what is to come.

Tuesday afternoon I took one last trip to Gordo's, hopped on the train to SFO and before I knew it, I was drooling on a flight to Zurich.  Blessed traveller that I am, I slept most of the way and arrived Wednesday afternoon at the fancy Swiss airport looking like a haggard local.  My wee bit of Deutsch, nordic style sweater and apparently Swiss features had all die Schweitze Leute thinking I was one of them.  I washed up in their fancy, clean bathrooms and soon I was on a plane to Italy.

 Fifteen hours after my trip began I found myself at Fiumicino, the airport in Rome.  After getting a little lost I found my bags and as I made my way through the exit doors, I was delighted to hear my name and see a familiar face-- Alice!  (the aunt of an old friend).  In her little red car, my Roman hostess took us back to her warm and comfortable flat where Alessio and Leah (Alice's partner and 13 year old daughter) awaited our arrival.  After a delicious dinner of pasta, salad and wine I feel asleep in Leah's bed, which she so generously let me have during my brief stay.  As I drifted into a jet-lagged slumber, the patron saint of Taylor Swift watched over me.

Woke up the next morning at some obscenely early hour, and after tossing and turning for a while I gave in and went into the kitchen to make a coffee in the percolator.  As I stood in wait for the coffee to bubble up, the first hints of sunrise peaked in from behind the balconies and palm trees of Rome.  The cat, Mrs. White nagged me to feed her and I obliged.  When my coffee was made I sipped it down in one fell swig and then looked gloomily into my tiny empty cup.  I felt like a perfect american, so accustomed to venti lattes, darn.

After many tiny cups of coffee Alice and I ventured out into the city and wandered.  We went in out of a churches, and ran some errands.  After we parted ways I wandered some more, allowing myself to get lost and never checking the map.  Having been in Rome roughly a year ago, I was surprised at my ability to navigate and found myself back at a little cafe I had visited last time I was here.  I had a light lunch and a beer, caught up on my diary and by the time two o'clock rolled around I was thorough exhausted.

Took the tram back to Alice and Alessio's and fell asleep for what must've been two hours.  When I woke the sunlight was already begin to wane and some of the afternoon haze had burned off.  I strapped on my running shoes on and left the flat, ran through the neighborhood until I reached the large park that (I believe) sits in the neighborhood of Trastevere.  As the sunlight slowly dwindled I ran past people walking their dogs and children playing on swings.  In an ill-fated attempt to take a scenic route I found myself running through a bog, got lost and then found again just in time to reach the entrance before dark.  As I meandered back to the home of my hosts I enjoyed observed the quotidian happenings of the locals.  By 8:30 everyone was home from school and work and we went out for delicious pizza.  I slept well that night.