First day in Rome

March 3:

I got up at 10am to start our first day in Rome. Due to some quirk with the hostel Pat and I had spent the night in separate rooms. Once I got going I found Pat already at breakfast. The breakfast was really good at Hotel Lodi. Pastries, coffee and grapefruit juice all served up for free. I hadn’t gotten a great sleep the night before but these treats got me well on my way to a better mood. We talked freely with the other guests as we ate and soon made the acquaintance of Zoe, an American girl studying abroad in Italy and leaving Rome that afternoon to go back to school. She didn’t have plans for the day and as we didn’t either we decided to tour the city together. It is at this point where I must tell you that I forgot my camera this day so the photos involved are a sad few phone shots. We took the metro into the downtown and began to walk around. We grabbed some gelato as we wandered and saw many famous historic places such as the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Piazza del Popolo, the Pincio Gardens, and the Pantheon, if only from the outside.

We grabbed a lunch of pizza slices from a nondescript pizzeria. After lunch, it was time Zoe got going if she hoped to make her train so we headed back to the hostel. She had to collect her bag and we needed a rest. By the time we made it back to the hostel she was late for her train. After some quick goodbyes she rushed out to get a taxi and was fortunately able to make her train. 

Pat and I, now in the same room, went to our beds to rest for a bit after our many hours of walking. After a few hours it was time for a late dinner. We were directed to a place called Al Grottino, a local pizza place and each ordered their signature pizza, which had mushrooms, artichoke, prosciutto, and a fried egg on it. It was amazing. After dinner we headed back to our hostel and chilled for a bit before heading to sleep.