Outer Rome 6/4/09

Today was interesting. It was the day we planned the least, and it was one of the best days on the trip thus far.

We woke up, ate the hostel breakfast (breads, orange juice, canned fruit, ESPRESSO!), and took the metro/tram to Ostia Antica, an ancient ghost-town of a fishing village. It was pretty surreal to walk in these ruins because there weren't too many tourists (it's about an hour outside of Rome), and because these were the first ruins we went to where it felt like people could have actually lived.

There were two-story "apartment buildings (top)," spas, bakeries, and a theatre:





If you go to Rome, I'd really recommend coming here because things aren't as "off-limits" as they are in the rest of the touristy parts of Rome. You can hop over the stones and use the ports to go through the buildings (instead of around them). Hide and go seek, anyone?



After 3 hours of walking around (this was one of the longest walking days, too), we tried to find the ocean from Ostia Antica- it was a fishing village, afterall - but were pretty unsuccessful. After visiting big cities, places where the hills were alive, and ancient ruins, we were aching to see the beach/ocean.

So we hopped back on the tram. One of the stops, Castel Fusano, had a picture next to it that had trees and water, so we took the hint and got off there. A short 10 minute walk took us to the beach, but alas, it was full of rich, fat, over-tanned old people. There's tan, and then there's nasty-tan, people!



The first beach we tried to access was private, and we didn't have a hope of sneaking in (Asian-looking tourists do not blend in in Italy). Fortunately, it was only a five minute walk from there to the public access beach, which had a small food hut that served seafood! We ordered fried calamari, shrimp, squid, and octopus, which really hit the spot after all that walking. It was pretty funny when we paid because the waitress was really surprised when we tipped her. She held out the correct change for the price of the food, pointed to the extra in her hand, and then pointed to herself with the most priceless look on her face. I know you're not supposed to tip in most of Europe, but I read somewhere that you do in Italy. Now I'm not so sure, but oh well. It was worth it.



After eating, we walked down the beach (through the private areas, haha!), and I decided to start my collection of sand from the beaches of the world. I filled a small waterbottle I found on the beach with sand and shells, which I plan to bring home. I have no idea how I'm going to store/display my collection, but I'll figure something out.

We left the beach, and on the way back to the tram was another unplanned surprise. There was a line of people outside a small shack, and curious to see what delicious item was being sold, we took a closer look.



It was fresh fruit with shaved ice (granitas) or yogurt! Pretty tasty, pretty expensive, but pretty worth it.





Refreshed, we walked the rest of the way to the tram station, and tried to go to the catacombs, but they were closed for the night. We apparently got there an hour too late, but thought they were still open because cars/people were still walking up the hill to the site. It was really too bad that they were going to see some famous religious guy named Don Bosco give a talk instead of visiting the catacombs. I really wanted to see them and experience having a nun as my tourguide. Oh well. I'm going to come back so I guess I'll have something to look forward to.

On the way home (slightly disappointing after missing the catacomb experience), David and I picked up some pastries for the sisters and then ate a cheap meal (more souvenier money!) at the kebab place across the street from the hostel. The owner was pretty nice, and when I asked him if the sandwich I ordered had a lot of meat, he laughed and put more in.



Stuffed, we walked back to that Pinnochio store, picked up some things, and then went to the spray paint lady to pick up some more art. She remembered me, which was pretty nice, and let me order before some of the other people who were waiting (a little tip goes a long way). I told her I wanted a night time nature scene and asked her what she could do. She gave me a couple options, but I couldn't decide between a mountain scene or a starry night scene so she combined them both for me. It turned out awesome (right):



We just got back to the hostel, and I'm kind of sad. It's the last night in Rome. This is an understatement, but it's a pretty great city.

Silver lining: We fly out to Athens tomorrow!