Rome and home...

I went to Rome with my dad. It was pretty stinking awesome, actually. We only went for three days, but we squeezed so much into those three days it was ridiculous. It all started about five years ago, when I first went to Canada. My sister was a bit fed up that I was jetting off around the world (even though I paid for it myself), so my mom took her to New York for the weekend to keep her happy. My dad promised to take me away for a few days ever since then, to make up for it. I wasn't bothered about not getting the same thing as my sister, but neither was I going to pass up the chance of a boys weekend away.
We've been talking about going to Rome for some time, because we went when I was ten, but only for a day, which is never long enough. Plus, my dad couldn't get into St. Peter's basilica on the day we were there because he was wearing shorts, and at the time you had to cover up your legs to go in.

So, in half term week, we boarded a plane in Nottingham, and flew to the Campino airport on the outskirts of Rome. We arrived late, took a bus to the centre of Rome, and then a taxi to our hotel. From there, it was three days of walking in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The eternal city, as they say.

We started off on the first day with the Vatican. We wandered past the Pantheon on our way (built 1700 years ago, still in use today as a church). It took us about two hours to walk across the city; mainly because we kept stopping to look at things. It certainly wasn't built in a day. Everywhere you look, there's something else to see.
When we finally crossed the Tiber, and headed towards St. Peter's Square, the crowds thickened. We walked up the road towards Vatican City, taking in familiar sights as we went. When we finally reached the square, we realised why the crowds were so large. Il Papa himself was out on the steps in front of the church, doing his thing! Yep, we went to Rome, and we saw the Pope. He was a good way off, but, as you can see from the picture, we were provided with video screens around the square that allowed us to see what was going on up there. That was pretty funny. We watched him for a while, then went to the Vatican museum.

I could bore you for weeks talking about all the amazing things that we saw. It's such an incredible place. The Colleseum, the vast collection of fori, the columns and statues and fountains and churches. We think that we're so clever in the 21st century; that we have everything. When we were in Rome, we saw Traijan's markets. This is an 1800 year old five-storey shopping mall. Entirely true. We saw a temple that had been turned into a burial place for a loved friend of an emperor. The 1700 year old bronze doors were still fully intact. And the archeologists had found the key. And it still worked. Ridiculous.

Since I've been back, things have been a little bit mixed. Things have not been going so well at work, and I have a lot of work to do in order to get up to speed really. There were a number of contributing factors; nobody is without blame. My Nana is very seriously ill in hospital, and things don't look good there. That's quite emotional, really.


There's been ups too, though. Extra days at college to learn about how to teach PE are pretty good. My class at college is pretty competitive, which has led to some fairly amusing situations. And, of course, we played a show on Friday night. It went pretty well, and, although there was a smaller crowd than we're used to, we still rocked it out. We showcased a couple of new songs, and bust out our good friend Sarah Tee on the saxamophone. We have a recording of the show, and a couple of tracks might find their way onto our myspace soon enough. You should really check it out.

So, Bethany arrives in less than two weeks. I have a bunch of work to do; we have more gigs to play, and more to organise; I have a book to write (which Bethany has illustrated fantastically), and some assignments too; we still have a wedding to plan; I have someone to visit in hospital; I have a car to fix... the list goes on. And so, my motto for the summer of 2006:

When in Rome, do as the Romans do; when at home, realise that your vacation's over.

Love...