Arrivederci & Buongiorno!

The scene at Dulles International in Washngton, DC was one of pure excitement and nervousness. As Spiro, Eleni and I stepped through the security gates, waving goodbye to our loved ones and family, I knew it would hit me on the plane. Well, that didn't happen. I was assigned to the 23rd row, while Spiro and Eleni enjoyed each other's company in the emergency aisle. They looked so comfortable! I didn't mind, though. When you put the map in front of me with our location, and put me in a window seat I become a five year old at a carnaval! I saw Long Island, Maine, Canada, England, and my favorite sight: Dublin. All at night from the air! (Okay, maybe I am into urban design, but it was still cool as shit!)

We landed as the sun was rising above the clouds in Frankfurt, Germany. Although the skies were overcast, I was still disappointed that I didn't see any castles....do they even have them? Well, it may be Europe, which is different from the US in some regards, but apparently they got the memo to have their airport under major renovation. Hand-written signs and some sketchy dead-ends later, we finally exited the stairwell-of-death (named after Eleni's almost tradgic slip and fall) through a door which I was sure to send the K9s and AK47s our way with a violent alarm. I am happy to report: nothing happened! I made my first purchase in Euros at the airport drugstore for a warm bottle of water. No, it wasn't cold, and no, they don't believe in ice. We boarded our next plane and were soon flying over the Alps....and absolutely breathtaking sight! White jagged edges peirced the clouds below as we cruised into Italian air-space. After flying on a large 767, the Lufthansa Airbus was a little shakey in the landing. Wine vinyards: here we come!! We landed safely, all body parts intact, and headed to baggage. With little wait we had all our 10 bags and passed through customs. Literally, we just walked through the door. Nice. Well the wait was eternity for our reserved driver who never showed. Spiro used his persuasive Greek smile to hitch us a ride. Only problem: this, ladies and gentlemen, was Mission Impossible. 10 bags, 4 people, 1 Mercedes sedan. Want a visual? How the Grinch Stole Christmas! That's all I have to say! No, it probably wasn't legal, and yes Eleni's legs were falling asleep, but we were in Rome! ROME!

Well the taxi driver was excited that we were here to study architecture, so he gave us a breif city tour while grazing pedestrians at unmanagable speeds! He pulled right into the busy market in Campo di Fiori, parked and said "OKAY! We're here!" ....right....we almost crashed on the highway five times over, made hair-pin turns which left luggage falling on my head, took the TRAM LANE in the city and ran over about 7 people including 2 children. Thank God we're here!!

So 12 hours and two plane rides later, we finally made it to our apartment which overlooks the hottest night-life area in Rome. As well as an open-air market during the day, Piazza Campo di Fiori ("Field of Flowers") offers bars, restaurants, panini shops and cafes which I visit everyday! This is going to be awesome......