We are soooooo done with Rome

No day is complete in Kait and Alli's world without a bit of drama....

Morning: Awoke, packed, ate our meager breakfast, deposited luggage in storage at hostel and departed for the tour bus that our tickets were still valid for.

Our plan: To visit the Colosseum (outside) briefly, then see the Trevi Fountain. Our train ticket was for 2:40, so we intended to head back to the hostel around 1 to leisurely grab out luggage and sit and wait for the train.

What really happened: It was a Saturday in Rome.... And we were on a tourist bus.... You can see where we went wrong. The city was more packed then it had been all wee. We couldn't even squeeze onto a bus. So we walked up the street, and by happy luck caught our bus 1 stop before the hectic train station stop. It felt like this bus was taking forever. Yesterday we zoomed through the streets, now we were inching. We finally made it to the Colosseum, check, did one lap, check, and b lined it back to the bus stop.

And waited.... And waited...deflected merchants.... Waited... Waited...ugh! We are definitely going to be late. Finally the bus arrived, and we boarded first (it pays to stand by the tour bus guide). We inched our way through the streets..drifting off to sleep a little...but anxiously checking our one time device... The watch. We finally arrived at the stop we wanted, followed the crowd to the fountained. Said ok... There it is, check, shoved through people to get near it, check, threw coins in, check.

And then attempted to go back to the bus. Let's talk for a moment about European streets.... They would give Pittsburgh a run for it's money... I mean we tried to follow a map. But certain streets aren't listed, and then other streets just don't go where they say they do. I tried my hand at leading... Took us the wrong way. We doubled back... Alli tried to lead... No luck. After several expletives and stomping of feet we realized we were lost and hungry and thirsty.... And majorly going to miss our train... And if we missed our train then we would miss our ferry... And most likely miss getting to Greece at all! Alli in her frustration mentioned taking a taxi, so I hoped right to it and hailed one down the quickest I could. We pointed to our hostel on the map and asked to get there fast. Our cap driver flew through the streets, I tried to watch where he was going, but I think he got a bit turned about... Grrrrr i don't know how to argue in Italian for money back, oh well... We made it!

Transportation thus far: Bus and Taxi We retrieved luggage, grabbed food, went to the train station and sat.... Ok we did it! We scarfed down our new staple (gyros) and I answered several people's queries about the train station, where Internet cafe's and hostels are, and where certain platforms are located. Apparently 2 females sitting on the ground with luggage and mouths full of food = information booth. Ha! Caught the train..... 4 hours later we were in Bari and went straight for the information area of the station. Neither of us knew how to get to the ferry from the train station... (Did I mention that check in for the ferry was at 6pm and that it was now 6:45 and the ferry leaves the doc at 8pm sharp?) Well the polite man at the info booth told us to take a bus to get to the ferry... "how long?" asked Alli... "15 minutes".... What! We are never going to make it on a bus that might take forever just to arrive at the station, let alone get to the docs. We decided to suck it up and take a taxi. Alli and I both found a taxi, and there was a bit of a scrimmage to decide which one to take. We told the man where we needed to go, and said ok 20€. "!€$@&!" whaaaaat... I said no way, and he said ok 15. Alli was still skeptical,but I agreed just to get us there. My nails dug into the seat cushion as he steamed through the Italian streets, cutting off multiple other drivers. Apparently traffic laws do not apply in the south of Europe. But we made it, checked into the ferry station. How do we get to the ferry? We wandered for some time down the pier, dodging 18 wheelers curing up to enter as well. Some old men kept calling to us, instructing us where to go. The security men were smoking so they waved us through... Guess our luggage has been checked... And we weaved through more 18 wheelers to enter the ferry.

Transportation Count: Bus, Taxi, Train, Taxi, Ferry.... How would I describe the ferry....hmmm. The Ferry is like a small cruise ship I think. We are in the dining area, commandeered 2 seats and hope we can stay here since it's going to be cold outside. Not sure how one stays comfortable. We both downed Dramamine.. I just sipped on a coke and my motion sickness passed. I have been using Internet I bought for 3€, and Alli has ear plugs in and is reading from Ronna's e reader. I have been watching the Greek tv that we are by. They is a tv show about a Greek couple, and it is making me laugh... I just wish I knew what they were saying. That's our update for now... Please leave comments and send love.... We have approx 18 hours on this boat, then somehow getting to Athens by bus or train, spending the night in Athens, then boarding an 18 hour bus to Istanbul turkey.... Wish us luck Adventure... To be continued.. <3 Kait and Alli