Perché noi siamo in Roma!

Yep, that's right--we're in Roma. Roma, baby! Do you know what we saw as we were wandering down the streets? IL COLOSSEO. Just chillin'.

I looked up to my left, and il Colosseo was there. I thought, '! [yes, I think in punctuation marks sometimes, like comic strip characters] Il Colesseo!' and il Colosseo thought back to me, 'That's right, Meaghan, I'm here--just chillin'. You know those ancient Romans whom you adore? Yeah, they built me. They called me Amphitheatrum Flavium, it's true, but it's all the same, really. No no, don't worry about coming down this street to see me to-day; I'll be here to-morrow. Like I've been for nearly two-thousand years. Heh. Yep. I'm older than dirt. And Romans built me. I know, bomb, right! Okay, okay, I'll let you walk. Yep, those are some ruins to your right. Okay okay, you get going now, dear, I know that you and Ryan are hungry. Yeah, that's right, I'm still here, behind you, watching you walk down the road, like I've watched all manner of people for almost two thousand years. I know, I know, I'll stop, you go now. I'll see you later.'

Holy my, Roma. This city is wonderful. It's almost as I've stereotypically imagined it, but just about 235u239q532905230952340 times more amazing. It's August, so nearly all Italians seem to be on holiday, and only a few places are open. There are tonnes of tourists, but it makes us feel less awkward. There are little piazze everywhere, fountains, random pointy things that I'm sure are important monuments--all sorts of things that I stopped taking pictured of because I was on a bit of a sensory overload and taking pictures of everything.

The only thing that I didn't expect was the quiet. Maybe it's because it's August, but this place is quieter than Hampstead at times. We sat a lunch and heard nothing for the entire time, sitting on a little back street and drinking Chianti (in Rome!) with my pizza margherita (in Rome!).

Out hotel is also the nicest in which I've stayed, probably--even nicer than the resort. The hotel in Disney World may have been technically nice, but it wasn't in Roma, didn't have a separate little vestibule and hall for the bathroom, wasn't in Roma, didn't have raised ceilings of wooden beams, wasn't in Roma, and didn't have a sink and a two-burner over. Also, nowhere that I've stayed has been in Roma before.

I am now, though! And we're safe. We had a marvellous time taking public transportation from l'aeroporto and saving some money, and we checked in early. Then we wandered around Roma (Roma!) until we were good and lost, ate, and wandered back. In Roma.