Gulliver's Travels part 8 (The End): Almost becoming a hobo in Rome

In the summer of 2006, I worked in Munich and hungered to see the world. I was able to get 8 days off my summer internship and decided to go to Austria (Vienna) and Italy (Rome, Pisa and Sicily). After that chaotic trip, I wrote an email to my family and friends chronicling my adventures and these are the tales I have shared with you over the past few weeks - ending with this post today. 

****

My plans once I got to Rome was to spend the day at the Vatican . My train would arrive at 0611 and I would begin my great trek to the Vatican (1 hour walk.) I would be there by 0711 and hopefully get in line for two or more hours and be in the Vatican hopefully at 1011. The lines at the Vatican are legendary, and people get there before 6am . Someone told me the line is soooo long that you can’t see the Vatican when in line. The line stretches for miles. Hmmm then it dawned on me that finances were dangerously low…..That is an understatement. I had exactly 5 euros and 13 cents to my name in Rome if I didn't count the 6euros Salvadore owed me. There are  four trains leaving Rome for Munich daily, and I realized pretty late that the only ones that weren't speed trains ie sort of cheaper and would cost me 5 euros instead of 15 euros (which I didn't have anyway…) were the ones leaving at 0742 and the one leaving at 2100. Unfortunately the one leaving at 2100 was leaving from a different station, and I would have to take the subway to get there. I was pretty sure there was no subway that would cost me only 13 cents. So financially it only made sense to take the 0742 train to Munich . Besides I was now too broke to buy water which I would definitely need lots of for my pilgrimage to the Vatican . I was also really exhausted after two nights of sleeping on  the train. I just wanted my nice bed in Munich , my inextinguishable water supply and food in Munich and a nice long long long hot shower.  My little energy would not be enough to stand in the line under these scorching heat. The Vatican also has a dress code that restricts showing shoulders, thighs etc and these would mean I would have to sauna in my jacket. Common sense prevailed and I decided to go home. So yes I did not get to see the 16th chapel and Michaelangelo’s famous mural, but at least I got to sleep on a bed that evening.

*****NOT WITHOUT MY CHILDREN/BAGS ******

            My train got to Rome late ie 0630 and my Munich train was to leave at 0742. I had 1 hour and 12 minutes to reserve a ticket and get my bags and be back. I went to reserve my ticket, and luckily the line wasn't too long due to the early hour. I got my ticket i.e. parted with my 5euros, and ran to get my bags. I got to the hostel, and rang the bell. No answer!! I rang  the bell more frantically!!!!! Still no answer!!! This just could not happen to me. I was absolutely broke now, and absolutely needed to catch that train I had just paid for. It was past 7am right now. I banged on the door!!! I banged on the window!! No answer!! I was now really beginning to panic. I started screaming out “SALVADORE!!!! SALVADORE!!!!!” in the middle of the street. Then I decided to scale the wall, and scream his name through the window. There I am looking like a real criminal and screaming “SALVADORE!!!!! SALVADORE!!!!!! While hanging from a window pane. I was just thinking “my bags!!!! my bags!!!! I need my bags!!” Finally I hear someone come and open the door. I was sooooooo soooooo happy. He had red eyes and looked like he wanted to kill me. I apologized, but told him I really had to catch my train. I got my bags, and my money from him. I ran to the train station and jumped into my train. I put my bags in the luggage storage overhead, and sat down. I breathed a sigh of relief having made it just by a hair’s breath.

The train starts to move and I am dreamily staring out of the window saying goodbye to Rome, goodbye to Venice, goodbye to Sicily, goodbye to Italy and having the feeling that this is not really ‘goodbye” but “till we meet again.’ The announcer starts to speak in Italian……blah blah blah…..welcome to this Trenitalia train……blah blah blah…..destination Monaco!!!!! Monaco !!!!! What!!!!!! Monaco !!!!! I jump up not really sure what I am going to do now that we are already in motion! Jump out the window with my bags and run across the train tracks to catch my train to Munich.!! I frantically ask the guy next to me who luckily speaks English “Is this train going to Monaco ?” He tells me “yes.” I start looking for the train official or something now really believing I must have the strangest luck. The guy asks me where I want to go. I tell him Munich , and he tells me the train is going to Monaco , Germany .  Can you imagine that!!!! In Italian Munich is called Monaco and Monaco is also called Monaco ….only with a different emphasis on the “o.” I actually had to laugh at myself. I laughed and laughed till I was in tears. My cabin mates looked at me like I am insane. I really didn’t mind anyway. Maybe I am indeed insane.

Gulliver's Travels part 7: Sicily

In the summer of 2006, I worked in Munich and hungered to see the world. I was able to get 8 days off my summer internship and decided to go to Austria (Vienna) and Italy (Rome, Pisa and Sicily). After that chaotic trip, I wrote an email to my family and friends chronicling my adventures and these are the tales I will share with you for the next few weeks. 

****

 I got to my assigned seat, and there was these creepy old Sicilian dude sitting there who was the carbon copy of  Al Pacino. He was not smiling, not talking. Just sitting there and watching my every move really intently with furrowed brows. Watching thekenyanexplorer pretend to look for something in her bag. Watching thekenyanexplorer apply lipbalm. Watching thekenyanexplorer look out of the window. Watching thekenyanexplorer pretend to read. I was so happy when my other cabin mates arrived. They were two guys and one girl- all Sicilians and really friendly….all around my age. Creepy dude was still watching me, but atleast I didn’t mind so much now that we had company. Our train was due to arrive in Sicily around 11am (12 hour journey), and I really wanted to sleep. My nice cabin mates agreed for us to all slide our seats down and therefore have each two seats join up to make a long bed. So we ended up with two really long beds next to each other. The seat next to creepy dude was unoccupied, but no one was willing to move there. So the four of us had two “beds.” We were all stretched out really well, and dozing off when I inquired about the light. In all the other night trains I had taken we would switch off our light. They gave me a funny look and told me “If we do that we will arrive with no luggage in Sicily . The South is a dangerous place.” Fear filled my heart, and I started wondering if it was really a good idea for me to travel alone to Sicily . Anyway finally we slept with the lights on. However my suite mates were really active people and kept on waking up and walking in and out of the cabin. Everytime they would leave the cabin I would be unable to sleep for fear of having our bags stolen as I slept. Every time they left I would wake up feeling watched, and quite true I would find creepy dude sitting on his seat, dark eyes boring into me…still watching me in these wee hours of the morning. Man…there are some creepy people in this world, and I happen to meet most of them. So on and off I slept. At some point I woke up to find my suitemates leaving yet again. Then they told me we were on a ferry. I thought I was dreaming. I looked out of the window and we were moving though the train wasn’t moving. I could actually see people standing next to the train, and unable to understand the complexity of the scene I went back to bed. When I awoke we were passing some lovely landscapes, and I noticed that the people in these parts were much darker and taller than in Northern Italy . They actually looked like North Africans which shouldn’t be surprising since Sicily is an island and South of Sicily is the island Malta , and to the West of Malta is North Africa . On the journey back to Rome from Sicily was when I realized that the whole train got on a ferry to get to Sicily - yep, believe that! A train on a ferry. Dunia ina mambo! 
 
We arrived in Sicily at 1113. It was unbelievably hot. It must have been in the high 40s. The first thing I saw in the train station was a dog that had passed out due to the heat, and was just lying there on the ground looking dead. It was alive though, just dog tired. Later on in the day I would see doves that had also passed out. It was the strangest scene….four or five doves lying on the ground looking dead, and only slowly walking away when some naughty kid started stamping on the ground. Honestly when was the last time you saw doves passed out on the ground. My arrival in Sicily was marred by uncertainties. Though I have an eurail pass that allows me to hop on trains in Germany , Italy , France and Austria , some of the trains require a reservation. I had reserved my ticket to Sicily for 3 euros, but when trying to get one back, the ticket officer had told me all reservations were sold, and I would just have to hop on a train and hope for the best. I felt very unstable being in Sicily , and unsure of how I would get back to Rome . The train I was to take needed a compulsory reservation, and I did not have one. Reservations usually cost around 3 to 4 euros, and sometimes for night trains can be as high as 7euros. The most I had paid for a reservation had been a shocking 15 euros from Venice to Rome, but that had been because the only train from Venice to Rome is a high speed train and therefore really costly. I decided to get into the long line in Sicily at the ticket office, just to make sure I could make a reservation. I finally got to the counter, and the counter guy only spoke Italian. I wrote down what I was looking for and he told me all seats were full. I panicked. I had no room reservations here in Palermo , and yet he was telling me I couldn’t leave tonight! I went to the information office to see what I could do. As I was there I heard these three girls behind me speaking in German. They also had the same predicament. They needed reservations for the night. We instantly bonded since we had the same predicament. The guy at the info. Office told us that our best bet would be to take the train at 1800 since this would be the only train that wouldn’t fine us for traveling without reservations. Ps-fines can be up to 40 euros which to me at this moment sounded like 1 million dollars. The girls and me got maps of Palermo and instantly went off to explore the city.