Day 29 - Rome
Goodbye 26, and hello 27! Refreshed and ready to go we took our aging bodies all over Rome again today!
We decided to check out a museum that was close by our hotel that was hosting a music event later in the evening and was included in the price of a ticket! So we made our way to Palazzo delle Esposizioni to check out their exhibitions with a plan to come back later. We walked about and checked out some really cool exhibits - very modern and some abstract. It was science and nature and art combined. We had a lot of fun with the interactive parts.
After a good amount of time, we grabbed a snack at their garden café. A peaceful little patio that served up good food and yummy drinks at a fair price. How Italian's make a humble ham and cheese sandwich taste so good is beyond me. After a nice rest, we decided to check out the Roman Catacombs. Unfortunately, there was a strike shutting down all the trains and the trying to figure out the busses proved to be a very difficult task for us, so we called an Uber after about 45 minutes of us trying to figure out what to do.
In our sleek Uber, we watched Rome wiz by to the sound of disco our quiet driver was playing. In about a half hour, we arrived at our destination. Perched on top a hill, a beautiful piece of land with flowering fields, green grass and olive trees hid the catacombs. We bought our tickets and waited for the tour to start. I promptly took off my shoes and ran through the green grass and considered laying in it at the risk of looking like a crazy American.
Shortly after, our tour started. We were accompanied by a family from Ireland and France, a single traveler from London and a couple from Cambridge. A little melting pot of people here in Rome. We walked down to where the catacombs are and it was quite spooky. It once held 500,000 corpses - mostly women and children. Our guide pointed out frescos dating back from the 3rd century and told us stories of some of the bodies that lay here. The maze goes on for miles underground.
Back into the land of the living, it felt good to be back in the sun. We attempted another shot at the busses and this time we were successful. We hopped on and welcomed the chance to sit and rest until our stop. We grabbed a dinner of pizza and pasta (hey, when in Rome right?) and ventured out again to the museum to catch the show.
We were promised a show of laser lights and ethereal sounds. We sat down to what felt like an exclusive event with press there and photographers, (I assumed) Italians familiar with the art scene kissing their other art friends on the cheek delighted to see them - buzzing with excitement. Our performer came to the center of the room, sipped her water and then strobe lights blinked furiously and she started to "sing". She was hitting impossibly high notes and layering them with more impossibly high notes. I was shook. I sat there wondering how long this was going to last and willing myself not to pass out.
I looked around the room, and nearly everyone was covering their ears and/or eyes. The person next to me started nervously shaking their leg up and down. The person across from me had their head between their legs. A slew of people walked out. Sam wanted to leave but we had front row seats right in front of our performer, there was no way in hell I was making a scene to exit. After about 45 minutes, the show was over. Sam and I walked out laughing hysterically at what we just witnessed. It definitely made an impression on us and won't be a memory we soon will forget.
Our walk home was a quiet one - thank goodness. We popped in to a little bakery and grabbed an overpriced cannoli and went back to our room. The cannoli was delicious and the bed was inviting after an interesting day. Our last day in Rome. Tomorrow, we are off to Florence. I can't wait to see what this beautiful Renaissance city has in store for us!
Happy travels my dears
Keely
