.: 29th March 2003

Today we headed off for the renaissance city of Florence. But firstly, we had to stop in at Pisa to see some big tower that got built wrong. Coach buses are not allowed in the town so we had to park the bus in this huge tourist car park nearby. When we arrived we were accosted by all these hawkers trying to sell their tourism crap. It became kind of creepy when they started flicking out souvenir knives with this sinister look in their eyes. We made it through unscathed but as we were walking up one of the streets Dave suddenly started shouting “Watch your bags!!!, Watch your bags!!!!!” A group of Gypsies had started approaching some of us begging for money. They were really trying to pickpocket us or steal our bags, but Dave's warnings saved us.  The rest of the walk was uneventful and we soon made our way into the Campo dei Miracoli. The place looked exactly like it looks in the postcards except for the rows of souvenir stalls and hawkers patrolling the road next to it. We got the cliché photos of us trying to hold up the Leaning Tower. Ben decided he wanted his taken on the grass but he was soon told to get off by some Police guy who was blowing his whistle at him.

From Pisa it was only a short drive to our final destination for the day. Florence. We were in for a big surprise. The cabins had only been put in 2 years ago and they were like mini apartments. They had couches, a patio, benches, a nice bathroom and best of all real pillows!!! And and and washing machines and dryers!!! I could now do some washing as I had not done any since leaving Australia. My clothes were starting to walk by themselves.

That night we had the option of going to a local pub called the Red Garter. Phillipa and I decided to stay back. We were both sick as dogs     and we wanted to get our washing done while no one else was around. It was quite good to just do nothing, and also just catch up on the little things. After washing we went and had a chat with Calista and then had an early night and a good sleep which we really needed. I didn’t get my clothes dry though as people kept on using the dryer (the other one was buggered).

.: 30th March 2003

I was feeling so sick this morning that I skipped breakfast preferring to just lie in bed and get some extra sleep. I did get up earlier though to try and get my clothes dried but someone else was already using it. I ran up there in my PJ’s and Dave, who was outside the Contiki tent asked what I was doing. I told him that I probably had to go to Florence today wearing my PJ’s as I have no dry clothes because there is only one stoopid dryer working! I bargained with Jenny to let me go before her if she could put a few of her clothes in with mine. So I finally had dry clean clothes!!! I don’t need this hassle when I’m feeling like crap.

Today was basically a free day with an optional tour and leather demonstration. We were dropped off next to the Arno River and left to trudge into the city centre. We walked past the Santa Croce Church. There was hardly anyone in the square at that time of the morning which would have made a great photo but the lighting was not so good. All about priorities. Our leather demonstration was held just around the corner. We packed ourselves into a tiny room to watch the demo. The girl giving the talk, I swear she was Aussie, but she looked Italian. She spoke English perfectly in what sounded like an Italian/Aussie accent and even used Aussie vocab. She also put Ben and Jon in their place everytime they asked a silly question like “Can you make leather out of dog?” to which she replied “yes, of course”.

After that we had 2 hours free time before the tour. I started out wandering with a group but they took too long in the jewellery shop so I went up to Piazza di Signoria by myself. There was a copy of the David statue there. I figured that would do as I couldn’t be bothered walking all the way to the Accamdemia to see the real thing. I spotted Kylie after a while who was also sick. Her plan was to sit there all day. I sat with her for a while doing some people watching. I then went and dropped off my digital camera’s memory stick at a photo shop to get the pics burnt onto a CD.

Across the road I spotted a statue of a boar. It looked familiar so I went over for a look. It’s now shiny nose reminded me that it was lucky to rub its snout and put money into its mouth which then fell into a trough below.

There was a small market behind it so I went and had a look through there but all they had were Florentine leather pieces and soccer merchandise.

It was then time to head back to the Piazza for the tour. I met up with the others and we sat in the middle of the square for awhile soaking up the sun while we waited. All throughout Italy we had spotted these rainbow flags with the word “Pace” on it. We figured it meant Peace and it was a protest against the war. Some guy was selling them now to the tourists. Only €3 I should have got one.

The tour guide finally rocked up. We all gathered around but you could not hear anything she said. I was the first to wander off by myself, but I heard a lot of others did as well. Meanwhile, I had my photos to pick up!

After I got them, I went back to exploring by myself. I went down past the Uffizi gallery, unfortunately I did not go in. I really wanted to see the painting “The Birth of Venus” but that would have to wait for another time. Outside were a group of live statues giving a performance (if that’s what you call it). They did a good job though. There was even a guy playing Tutankhamen. There were also lots of guys selling ‘artwork’ on the pavement, although each guy had the same paintings. That road took me down to the Arno River which I wandered along until I got to the Ponte Vecchio which is only 1 of 3 bridges in Europe to still have shops on it. From there I headed back into town. On the way I bumped into Kate at a café. We were waiting to order when we could hear this American couple yap on “Oh were they here first? Don’t let them order first!” Then they asked us if we knew what we were ordering as they already knew what they wanted. In the end we just gave them a “God, you’re a dickhead” look. Finally when the guy served us Kate jumped in first, the couple were about to do it to me when I gave them the look and the girl was like “Oh are you ordering too?” Idiots.

So I got my Iced Tea and went on my way, this time up to the Duomo. I had seen it earlier but from this new angle I could take much better pics. I then sat on the sidewalk for a while to sort out some stuff. This Italian guy came over and started talking away in Italian. He wanted to take me for coffee. Well that’s what I made of it anyway. He did not speak much English and it took him a while to finally figure out that it wasn’t going to happen. He finally went away. By then I really didn’t have much to do so I went back to the Piazza. I saw Dave there and he told me that Kylie was up at Santa Croce so with nothing else to do I headed up there. We sat on the steps and waited for the others. It was so nice laying in the sun. I was still feeling like crap too. Earlier I went into a chemist and put my hands around my neck said Ow and coughed lots. She got the point and gave me some tablets. I’m assuming they were Cold and Flu tablets even though the instructions were in Italian. I took 2 and figured that combined with the pills Martin had given me earlier it should do the trick......or I'd overdose.

In front of the Santa Croce church was a big square. Another chance for people watching. Some guys were playing soccer in the middle and another group of young Italians were sitting on the stairs. Everytime a jogger went past they would start clapping and cheering. When that got boring two guys went and sat on opposite sides of the road and pretended to hold a piece of string. Then one of their friends would walk in front of a stranger heading their way and when they got to the ‘string’ he would pretend to fall on it which would then make the person behind him instinctively jump over it. I thought it was a great joke. Glad to see that even people on the other side of the world have the same sense of humour as me.

The rest of the people from the tour came back and we all headed back to the bus. We had to go back to the cabins to get ready for our group photo and dinner that night.

Again after a big day my health was not too good and as soon as I got back to the cabins I headed straight for bed and did not wake up until 15 minutes before we were due to leave. I quickly got ready and ran for the bus just in time.

Our group photo was taken on a hill overlooking Florence with the Duomo in the background at sunset. We were then dropped back in Flo for an even longer walk to the restaurant and in heels this time. I think I was hallucinating from the pills because I kept on thinking I was in Spain. I could have sworn I was.

At the restaurant I sat with Jaime, Matt B, Matt W and Greg. The waiters first brought out a platter of antipasto and then this huge tray of assorted pastas. Main course was chicken in some sauce with salad and then for desert this icecream cake stuff. All washed down with some Chianti. I had one swig of it and nearly retched. It was evil!! Evil I tell you!!! I stuck to my water. Towards the end, the lights were dimmed , a little cupcake or something was brought out with a candle in it and placed in front of Kerry and everyone sang Happy Birthday. The guys had taken a running joke to a new level. I don’t know how it started but in an effort to embarrass Kerry they would start singing Happy Birthday to her at regular intervals. I think it worked.

We finished dinner early so we went to the Red Garter Pub. The same place the others had gone to last night. Inside the walls were covered in Contiki photos. We were treated like gods, well actually the just plied us with really strong drinks. At least we were getting our monies worth.

We did not have much time there as we had to meet the others who had not gone to the dinner. Most still had not finished their drinks so we were provided with plastic cups for some impromtu street drinking. Gotta love Europe.

It was then another very long walk in which I got even more sick which then got me in a really foul mood. As soon as I saw the bus I jumped on. There went my €10 for Space Electronica but I did not care.  I was quite pissed off that I could not go there as I had really been looking forward to it, especially as it had karaoke!

Back at the campsite I had the cabin to myself which was great. I was feeling like absolute shit. I wanted to have a shower but the scariest thing happened. The skin on my arms got weird pins and needles. Like nothing I had ever felt before. Instead of pins if felt like knives but just in the skin. I could not even touch my arms it hurt like hell. I had never felt or heard of anything like it before and I got a bit freaked out. I finally got into the shower and just sat there for at least an hour with the hot water on me. I felt a bit better after that and went to sleep. About 2.30am the others came back. I was woken up by what sounded like someone running straight into the cabin.  Actually it probably was. They all seemed pissed as. I then heard Phillipa having a conversation with the toilet bowl.  Sounded like they had a great night!

Afterwards the story I heard was that everyone got completely trashed and Adam had to keep on going and saving the girls who were being harassed by some very eager Italian guys. Seems like I missed out.

.: 1st April 2003

Today all roads lead to Rome. We were dropped off by Garreth at a train station so we could catch the train into the city. Dave warned us again of the Gypsies but there were no dramas. We got off at Colosseo station (wonder what we will see!) and upon stepping outside we were greeted with one of the worlds most historic buildings – the Colosseum.

If we were going on the guided tour – which I wasn’t – we had to meet back at the Metro in an hour and if not to meet at the Piazza Venezia later on. Katie, Narelle, Shaughn and I were not doing the tour so we went in search of a Net Café. We found one around the corner that was quite cheap, about €2 an hour. We stayed for 2 hours and I finally got to see the photos on the CD from my digital camera. At first they weren’t working on my computer so I sent them to Kirsty who was on MSN (along with Brett and Gary) who then sized them down and sent them back to me. That worked though the quality was bad. At least I got to send some with an email.

After that we went in search of a toilet which should have been a big task considering the rumours I had heard about Roman toilets. But we just popped into a video game place which luckily had a normal one.

By this time we had to go meet the group up at Piazza Venezia which is overshadowed by a huge monument dedicated to Vittorio Emanuele III. It is often referred to as the macchina da scrivere (the typewriter) because it resembles one.  

We walked up there past some Roman Ruins on the way which looked out of place right next to a major busy road.

Dave then started ‘his’ tour. The Government actually made a rule that only locals could give tours. So if asked, well, let's just say Dave had a lot of friends! First stop, Trevi Fountain. This was one of the tourism attractions I had really been looking forward to. Iit was very impressive and one of the best sites in Rome but it was not as big as I thought it would be. I wish commercial photographers would stop using wide angle lens so that everything would look a normal size. I forgot to throw a coin in the fountain though to secure my return to Rome, but I doubt that will jinx me. Next we went to the Piazza della Rotonda to the see the Pantheon. This impressed me. Beautiful architecture and an awesome interior that even had Raphaels grave. From here we went to the Piazza Navona for dinner. Honestly this was the biggest let down. Maybe because it was a crappy day but it looked nothing like the photos I had seen of it. Even the Fountain of the Rivers by Bernini was comparatively dull. Or maybe I was just in a bad mood because I was sick and everything looked crap to me. I spent a lot of time in Italy in a bad mood, heh.

Anyway, the others went off for dinner and I just sat on a bollard on a corner, in the rain, watching people. I like watching people, its fun. Matt W came along and dragged me into a restaurant where some of the others were. I figured I had better eat something as I had not eaten in 2 days, so I ordered some spaghetti.

The waiters there thought we were great and stood around us tending to our every need. Really they knew we were from Contiki and couldn’t wait to cash in.

After dinner we walked to the Spanish Steps and then on to the Metro. On the first train we lost half the group when the doors closed too quick. Matt W got caught between them and suffered a few injuries. Sarah’s bag also got caught in the doors and had to be pushed through. We all got back together at the next station in one piece, minus the few injuries.

We then caught a regional train to Gimmel Station where GT picked us up and took us to 7 Hills Camping Ground. I pretty much went straight to bed again. Damn SARS!!!!

.: 2nd April 2003

Today we had to get up early so that we could wait in line to get into the Vatican. We caught the trains in again without incident and then walked around to the entrance of the Vatican Museum. The line had not reached the first corner yet so it wasn’t too bad. Inside everyone made a beeline for the Sistine Chapel though we passed through a lot of great halls along the way. My favourite was a hexagonal patterned roof that looked 3D because of the way it was painted and lit up.

Now I know people will gasp when I say this, but the Sistine Chapel wasn’t that great. I mean it is good but I had seen better ceilings that day. From my artistic view (hehe) the only things that made it great were that a) Michelangelo did it, 2) he did it on his back and 3) it is big so you have to appreciate that. Granted that it probably did not look as it used to because it has been done up over the years and it is old, but  I don’t think anyone understood my viewpoint.

We then sent the obligatory postcards from the Vatican Post Office and I found my Vatican staircase which I had always wanted to photograph.

That was the end of the museum so it was then off to St Peters Basilica around the corner. But firstly I needed a drink, I really really needed a drink and even paid €4.50 for one (most expensive I ever bought).

By this stage everyone had wandered off and I was left by myself. Without a city map. Without a Metro map. Oh well.

St Peters Piazza and Basilica were pretty cool. Except for the equipment being set up in the middle for the following days Pope sermon or whatever. I sat around on one of the columns for awhile, people watching again.

It was quite comfortable just sitting there.

I then headed off to explore Rome. But I passed a Net place on the way so I went in there. Kirsty and Garry were on MSN so I spoke to them for a bit.

Then I went back to the Metro station. Since I had no map, my plan was to retrace yesterdays steps. Luckily I had looked at a few maps of Rome when I was researching the trip so at least I had a basic direction. But because I decided to miss Piazza Navona and go straight to the Pantheon I got horribly lost and had to concede and buy a map. Turns out I had done pretty well, I was only around the corner. I had planned to get to the Pantheon about 1pm as I wanted to take a photo of the sunbeam coming through the hole in the ceiling. But because I got lost I was too late and the sunbeam had gone too far up the wall for any good photo to be taken. It was still a great place all the same. Not much is known about it though. It is thought that it is a reconstruction of a temple built there around 27BC which was destroyed by fire in 80AD.

I then went to Trevi Fontana again which looked a lot better bathed in sunlight. Then I walked to the Colosseum passing the Ruins on the way but this time I stopped for a better look. At the Colosseum I spotted a little cat. I wanted to take a photo so I crept up to it and crouched down low so it wouldn’t run away. I was just about to take a photo when it came over to me and wanted to play heh. He was cute. Probably had rabies or something but he was a little highlight of Rome for me. The Constantino Arco was nearby so I had a look at that too before catching the Metro back to Spagna via Termini. Another foreign subway system mastered. I had to meet the others at the Spanish Steps at 4pm. I was a bit early so I stood around for awhile, yes people watching, and then sat with the others when they came.

Back at camp I was feeling like crap again, it seems I’m not so bad during the day but I get a lot worse in the morning and at night. I skipped dinner again and went straight to bed. That night sounded like a big one, there was a lot of noise made especially since another Contiki group had arrived.

.: 3rd April 2003