Backpacking (Western) Europe

April 10, 2004

Legend has it that if you toss a coin into the Fontana di Trevi, you will ensure a return visit to Rome...

...so far, four times and counting...

After the Trevi fountain, we head into the ancient ruins of Rome to see Capitoline Hill, the Colosseum and of all places, we run into my old co-worker-- Jatinder and her family-- at the top of Palazzo Venezia. Small, small world indeed.

After our sight-seeing, we run into Jill and Tomaso as we head back towards the Roma Termini station. We all decide to book a place together for the night.

During the evening, Jene and I had dinner across from our hotel. So far, she hasn't found anything she likes to her fancy. We were too tired to go clubbing with Jill and her cousin, so we sneak into M&J Hostel for some free internet and get a good night's rest for tomorrow's Easter mass at the Vatican.

April 11, 2004: Easter Sunday

We celebrated Easter Sunday with Pope John Paul II bright and early in Vatican City. It was cool to see him in person all decked out in gold wrapping and his Papal hat. He delivered a lengthy sermon in Latin to the crowd and as he gave a 'shout out' to all the different people of the world, the crowd would cheer in response to their country called out by the Pope. We were amazed that so many people from all parts of the world flew in to Rome just to celebrate Easter mass with the Papa. Lucky for us, we happened to be celebrating with him out of dumb sheer luck. It started as a chilly morning but we withstood the sermon until the very end. After mass, the Pope was driven around in a float, waving hello and blessing the masses. I was glad to see him in person though as one year later, he passed away.

That night, Jene and I are surprised we didn't get arrested before heading to Venice. In a span of an hour, we manage to...

1. Sneak into a hostel we weren't staying at to use their internet

2. Shower in the staff bathroom together ignoring the sign that said 'Do not shower'

3. Piss off one of the hostel workers as he pounds on the door, yelling at us, tells us to stay put as he makes a phone call, to which Jene obediently stays put, while I on the other hand, yank her arm as we make a run for it

Nothing really happened other than that we made it to our train safely and we are clean for the upcoming 7-hour train ride into Venice.

Whew. I like to live life on the edge.