Following college graduation I took a six week trip through Europe. The only possessions that I had with me fit into a school-sized backpack and a small gym bag, and my money situation was such that sleeping in a bed each night wasn’t really an option; both of these limitations made for a very memorable experience. Here’s one entry from that trip:
02-July-1998
Yesterday was the first day I haven’t written anything, so here goes – I took the 1:00 AM train from Genoa to Pisa, woke up at 4:30 having long ago passed Pisa, and then took the 5:15 back to Pisa, arriving at 6:45. On the first train I met a really nice Tunisian fellow who spoke some French and was thrilled to tell me about how Michael Jackson had been to Tunisia. I also met an annoying German.
In Pisa I found the tower by 7:15, and no one was there so I didn’t have to pay or deal with crowds. They’re apparently shoring up the foundations – the tower was really funky. Neat architecture, but with the tilt it looked very odd. I later got a cappuccino and then caught the 9:15 to Florence.
Florence was really cool. After running around with several Mexicans looking for a room I found one on my own. I then went to visit the Uffizi, which houses some great art. The Duomo is their big cathedral, which is huge and has an amazing dome. St. John’s baptistery has the famous bronze doors. The streets and buildings were all in good taste, unlike the baroque mess in Northern Europe.
The heat and lack of sleep got to me by 5:00, and by 6:30 I was in bed. I woke up at midnight, did laundry in the hostel sink, and overslept until 6:30 (I wanted to get up at 4:30). Now I’m on the train to Rome.
11:48 PM
Rome so far has been amazing. If I could afford it I could easily spend a month here. I first went to the Colosseum and met a Mexican guy named Raoul. We went to the Colosseum and Pantheon, he gave me a sandwich for lunch, then we went to some museums. After he left I bought a map of Rome, went back to the Colosseum, revisited the Forum, then walked along the Appian Way. It was awesome – I stood on the spot where Julius Caesar was cremated, saw some of the most famous sights in the world, and I’ve only seen a tiny fraction of Rome. Tonight I have no place to stay although I may try to get a train.
Caveat: I’ve got nothing against Germans in general, but that guy on the train was a weirdo.