Arrival Rome

September 9, 2015

Every sunset is followed by a sunrise; this one, somewhere over France, I imagine.

Sunrise as seen from our portal to the sky.

Arriving at the airport was actually a real breeze. Our flight was a half-hour early due to issues with the lavatories, which stopped working around two hours before our expected arrival of 7:30 AM. It was unclear why this resulted in dropping elevation to a more turbulent airspace and increasing engine speed, but I'm not the pilot!

Of course, arriving early would only exacerbate our check-in at the hotel. After negotiating passport control and customs (these people could hardly be bothered, it seemed), we stopped to compose ourselves, get cash, and hail a taxi. The taxi was easy, and, in spite of the set fare of 48 euros to central Rome, I agreed to 53 because of the bikes. The ride took about an hour due to traffic and congestion. And the Vatican, which occupies a huge footprint in the part of the city our hotel is located in!

Our bikes on arrival. No proof of ownership required!

We checked in but could not have a room until later that morning, so we wandered the neighborhood, which is dominated by St Peter's Square and Vatican City.

There was some event going on with the reading of names and the occasional cheer from segments of the crowd.

We had both toured the city and church before, so we only passed through for memory's sake and to pass time before the hotel room was ready. We wanted to eat a bit of something and then nap! It would take the day to adjust to the time differential!

The hotel was very nice. Returning to the hotel, we stored our boxed bikes in a finished basement area where they had meeting rooms and found our bags already delivered to our room, a cute little two-floor unit!

The lower, entry level, already peppered with panniers and scattered odds and ends.

The upper level with a queen bed. Lots of space! We'll be staying here three nights on our return.

After a serious nap to help with the jet lag recovery, we assembled the bikes. As suspected, no interference by TSA. So the boxes were in pretty much pristine condition and suitable for the return trip. The hotel had graciously agreed to hold them for us until we return on September 26th. That will save us considerable time when we return and pack the bikes for the flight home!

Then a bit more napping and cleanup before going out to dinner with Mark's niece, Amanda, and her boyfriend, Tano. He is fluent in English and both speak Italian. They are planning to move into a bustling neighborhood in the west bank of the Tiber called Trastevere and had identified a local restaurant recommended by a friend. They also delivered a SIM card for Mark's phone!

And finally, headed home over the Ponte Sisto.

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