Europe on a shoestring - Day 16 (Paris) [October 9, 2005]

Next morning Samir left around 10:30am while Anil and I first walked to Place de la Bastille - in modern day nothing but a roundabout with a marker in the center, and the large Opera Bastille occupying one prominent corner. We then walked back picking up some raisins from the local market and sat in the Place des Vosges - the first planned community in Europe with famous residents including Victor Hugo.

Place des Vosges

Then - it was time for us to leave, our trip had come to its end... an end of a dream which I had thought about for so many years was finally fulfilled - and it left a beautiful impression in my mind - in words I could not describe, and I hope and dream that i will be able to continue on my sojourns for many years more.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 15 (Paris) [October 8, 2005]

Next day morning we booked a ticket to see the palace of Versailles - and after a nice journey through the Parisian suburbs (high rises, townhouses etc) arrived at Versailles. Hmmm... nice or not I do not really know... since I was fast asleep, and duly snapped up by Samir.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..... thats me

The train gouged out a gaggle of tourists (us among them) all headed for the palaces. The palace symbolized the opulance of the French kings and there are rows and rows of bedrooms all decorated from top to bottom in French art. Oddly enough apart from a few paintings, I did not think that the paintings had that great a sense of finesse as those in Italy. Among the sculptures that stood out were Louis XV potrayal as a Roman Emperor - I guess similar to Cosimo I in Florence all the rulers wanted to model themselves as Caesar. Sadly the hall of mirrors was under restoration so we did not get a chance to see it in its full grandeur. But by then the splendid gardens were beckoning and thats exactly what we did - and enjoyed every bit of it. i think we may have spent equal time in the park as the museums. We had fun talking autumn pictures of falling leaves and the swans squabbling for scraps in the lakes.

The gardens surrounding the palace were far more enjoyable than the palace itself... and lots of sun made different creatures come alive :-)

We returned back to the city hoping to get another excellent 'plat de jour' at another recommended diner - however it was way past 15:00 and we were not that lucky this time. We indulged in a simple baguette at a fast food place - practical and simple. The sun was by now shining brightly - the first after two days of relative gloom which made our way to the Eiffel Tower all that better.

Napolean's tomb

On the way we stopped to admire the Jesuit church and the tomb of Napolean - though both were given the 'exterior' look as we were drawn by the ever imposing Eiffel Tower.

ouch.... that is definitely pointed!!!

First views - well the names of many of the great French scientists Dirac, Focault etc were etched on the first level of the tower... guess the engineer in me got those words first. Stand beneath it and you realise the montrosity of the whole thing - which at first was meant to be a temporary exhibit and was ridiculed when built. However if there is anything that puts you off it is the lines - like a serpent whose tail never seems to end. You have one line to buy tickets - then another to go up, either by elevator or steps. The line itself seemed that it would take a good two hours to even go up so after some debate we gave up and just 'chilled' on the lawns reminiscing about the day until sunset. Heading back by metro we picked up a good bottle of vin and some cheese and arrived at hostel. Since drinking was forbidden at the hostel (given that they encouraged student groups to stay) we strolled until we reached the Seine and sat on a bench there - sipping wine and toasting to a fine trip, waving to the tour boats passing by us. This would be the classic end to our trip.

Samir's favorite car - a Citroen 2CV
Relaxing in the Left Bank
Samir's last masterpiece.... with the sayings of the day

Finally as a last hurrah, we headed back to the Left bank and 'chilled' out at a local bar there.... taking videos of ourselves and laughing silly.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 14 (Paris) [October 7, 2005]

The next day we got up early and after a simple (but free) breakfast of croissants, juice and coffee we headed off to our first stop - the Arc de Triomphe. Again it was a labyrinth of walkways and two changes - but finally we emerged at our destination, which was bathed in fog. It stood in the middle of a roundabout with a tunnel connecting the periphery to the monument. And rightfully so given that there were no traffic lanes and God help the person who tries to cross the cobbled street on foot.

On the other side the monument rises high above the ground with the striking Amazonian female warrior Marseillaise leading the way in a rallying war cry on one side, and the names of different generals and officers who died in battle etched all over the structure. The tomb of the unknown soldier also rests at this place. We then trudged up the many steps to look at the view from the top - but before spent some time in the small museum on the top dedicated to the memory of Napolean and his victories. It detailed the hardships his men had to endure and his tactical methodologies which granted him victories at Austerlitz and other places against great odds. Napolean, although eventually defeated does still serve as France's greatest hero.
Interestingly though the panoramic view was nothing like I had thought - with a heavy fog reducing visibility to a few hundred meters - and sights like the Eiffel tower barely visible through the fog. Returning back down we took a walk along the Champs Elysees - which is full of designer wear and.. McDonalds. But what interested us the most were the car showrooms with Renaults Concept car and Mercedes - yes the Mclaren SLR on display.

McLaren SLR - definitely worth a visit

By then it was nearing 13:00 and we looked for a place to eat - and Champs Elysees didnt quite seem like the place to find food to fit our budget. So it was again back to the guide book - and we chose a historical gastronomic landmark - Chartier which opened is 1896 to provide affordable meals to ordinary people. Another train ride and a short walk brought us to the joint which resembled Bombay's Irani restraunts in certain ways. For lunch we had an appetizer of snail (escargots - which were served in what looked and tasted like green chutney), baked fish as main course (always fresh and lovely) and washed down with a glass of table wine. Awesome meal - costing only around $13 - and considering it was a sit down place - terrific value for money in Paris. About the snails - the only thing that i can say that they felt a bit like mussels - although the chutney masked any odd taste that one may experience.

a must see and eat while in Paris

From there it was all the way to the Louvre - with the passes helping skip all the long lines, have no clue why the others also do not do something similar... Now the Louvre is HUUUGE...and covers a hug number of ancient civilizations right till the modern age. Its nearly impossible (no i take that back - its IMPOSSIBLE) to see the museum in a day. I saw two large type of people in the Louvre - who i would take pity on (these types were at other museums we went to too). 1. The tour group - I guess the operators try to cram as much in one day as possible, so you tend to run through museums at the rapid pace. Its interesting to watch peoples interest levels especially if its their 4th or 5th museum of the day - with special mention reserved to the hangers-on (teh people who walk along the periphery of the group). Disinterest is the word for it... 2.The others are the 'I've been there, done that types' who come equipped with a camcorder and camera - at each painting there is an obligatory photograph or quick scan with the camcorder and then move on... what one gains from this - is anyones guess.

We chose to be selective and took upon the task of looking at just 40 odd sculptures and paintings - this took an entire 6 hours, but at the end of it we had got time to read, understand and appreciate the art. Samir was at his creative best and joined fellow artists at the base of the Samothrace and produced his second masterpiece....

The Samothrace of Samir

while i experimented with some trick photography of my own... some education, some fun - makes for a great time.

There was Tutenkhamen... and then was Samiramen :-)

In between we took a break and took a walk toward the Tuilerese gardens to take a breather before resuming our stroll through the museum. Before we left it was time for some more 'night in Paris' photography and then we walked right back to the Latin quarter to another restaurant for some fare - this time Italian.

Hotel de Ville - office of the mayor

The owner a gregarious Italiano - was delighted at our rudimentary Italian-speak and made for a nice culinary experience. At night we were greeted by our friendly Indian guard who indicated areas where we should visit to eat Indian food - little did he know that it was Indian and American food that we wanted to escape.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 13 (Paris) [October 6, 2005]

This was going to be the last segment of our trip - in a way there was a sense of sadness among us, that our amazing adventure was on its final lap... in a way it was a sense of relief since by now we (at least I for sure) were sight weary travellers - having seen more than our adequate share of art, architecture and nature in two weeks than most others may have seen in a lifetime. I guess in a way I should consider myself blessed that I had been given the opportunity and the resources to undertake this venture.

Anywho we arrived at Gare Austerlitz (Gare == station) early in the morning from Nice. It was an overcast day, not too cold but definitely nothing like the Cote d'Zur. Although the Russian travelling with us had indicated that the MIJE hostel Le Faconnier was not too far away and we could walk the distance we decided to take it easy and use the metro.
Now the Paris metro (pronounced as ma-eee-th-ro in a la Francais) is an underground maze with snakes its way and different lines are connected by a subterranean maze of walkways. What we did'nt realize was that the walkways were not short distances, but could possible be a hundreds of meters. In fact, come to think of it we may have walked half the distance and taken a train for half the distance. After picking up the billets (tickets) we went to St. Paul.
Again following our policy of street walking we had chosen a place right in the middle of the city - in the Marais (formerly a swamp) area. We first stopped at a boulangerie for a cup of cappucino along with some kiesche.. the food was Samir's idea - and yeah it was quite filling. Yeah there places are all around these areas and are absolutely fabulous. Then we continued our march towards La Faconnier through some narrow alleys/roads. It was just as I imagined it - a large old aristocratic mansion covered from top to bottom in ivy.

Our room - spartan but just fine.... with a sweet view outside

Inside there were a lot of teenagers having a breakfast. Sadly for us the checking time was 15:00 but the lady at the front desk (Fatima) allowed us to keep our backpacks in a secure storage and to freshen up. So after an hour or so we moved on to begin our exploration of Paris.
We began by moving to the Il de la Cite - the island between the left and right banks which housed the Cathedral Notre Dame. We first walked about the gardens surrounding it - spending time reading about the Cathedral itself (given that it would be common courtesy to keep quiet within) and admiring its exterior facade - with its towering turrets and grutesque gargoyles. We moved on to see the interiors - but not before enjoying the front door arch with its comical potrayal of the good and the bad with the devils looking quite like naughty children and the facade filled with the sculptures of the altar boys adorning it.
Inside it was dark with a magnificant altar and several side altars dedicated to different saints. Moving on we went past the Palais de Justice to the Sant Chapelle. We had to wait a bit, security being tight since it also housed the French supreme court - but once inside had a quick look at the lower chapel - housing the commoners chapel - and then through a winding narrow staircase to the upperchapel. This I would say is the most spectacular chapel I have ever seen. the entire walls are made up of panels upon panels of stained glass. The panels (more than 1000 in number) capture details of both old and new testament as vivid picture potraits on glass. It begins from the story of Adam and Eve and ends with the Revelations. Using the handout (our guides were too simplistic for these kind of descriptions) we sat, looked and read about the history and stories embodied in the panels. By then time had passed quickly but there was one more stop I wanted to take before lunch - this was the Conciergerie - the prison where the prisoners, including Marie Antoinette were held during the french revolution. Luckily we had bought our French Carte-pass at Sante Chapelle so from now it was all paid for. Inside it was a huge cavernous structure with segments partitioned off for the kitchen, the FINAL preparations and guard quarters. Moving on there are vivid representations of the jail cells (both the poor or the rich) and finally the cell of marie antoinette... with a mannequin with its back to the viewer as a poignant reminder of how someone must have felt spending ones last days before facing the guillotine.
By now it was nearing 15:00 and we went in a hunt for perfect eating place. Of course i wanted a proper sit down meal - and after a bit of searching I found what I was looking for - a hole in the wall called 'Les Degres de Notre-Dame'. For sure it was off the main street and we would not have discovered it if not for a guide book. Now we had to hope that we were in time for the 'plat de jour'.. and although it was closer to 15:30 than 15:00 they agreed - and what followed was a fantastic three course meal with me having some beef thingie with veggies and followed by some good dessert. I do not remember what exactly we tried by did remember that one of Samir's french choices turned out to be yoghurt .... so much for trying something too outlandish, which may give us something ordinary. On our way back on interesting thing did happen .. we saw two beautiful lamborghini's making their way one behind the other through the crowded Paris streets - one Murceliago and one Gallardo.

this is also art.... at least the way I see it!!

Obviously I gave chase - and I was not alone with a couple other tourists running behind the cars clicking away furiously. Wonder what the drivers may have been thinking - stupid, pathetic Americans...? maybe..
We then returned back to the hostel and were given our room - a fully contained three bed room with included shower, but with a common toilet for each floor. The building itself was all wood panelled - with the rooms themselves a bit more modern in appearance. The windows opened to a quiet courtyard which shows off the ivy covered buildings. Ideal environment to enjoy a good nights sleep after walking through the city.
After a refreshing shower (our first in 36 hours since we didnt have the luxury of a 'douche' in Nice) we decided to head off again - this time along the Seine towards the Musee de Orsay. Since Paris is inundated (yes literally inundated) with museums and other historical sites it was a big deal to sort through the whole list to figure out which ones we could (or wanted) to see in three days. Musee de Orsay has one of the biggest collections of modern art - think Van Gogh, Rembrant, Monet which were post Renaissance art, which is different from what we had seen in Italy. In addition it is ensonsced in an old railway station, and if location was not a priority - well it offered extended visiting hours till 21:30 on wednesday. Walking along the Seine gives you an idea of the 'Romance' what people associate with Paris. All along on one side you can see places like the Hotel de Ville, Notre Dame, Louvre (yes, you walk right by it), the sedentary Seine flowing along, with the spot beam from the Eiffel Tower sweeping great swaths at regular intervals.
Anyways once we were in - totally side stepping the huge queues which would normally flood this place we spent around 2 hours inside. There were interesting art - especially from Monet and Van Gogh - but tragically we ran out of time before the museum shut down for the night.
By now it was close to 22:00 and we were wondering where we could go to grab something to eat. After some debate we selected the area in the Latin Quarter where the Sorbonne was situated - in the hope that the presence of a student population would possibly serve 'value for money' meals. In this we were not disappointed and dug into a gargantuan double pizza topping it off with ice-cream. I think the place was a kind of sports bar with flags of Paris St.Germain, Juventus and others adorning the place... would be interesting to come and see a game here - the atmosphere would certainly be electrifying! The ice-cream though (even giving the fact that you could have as many flavors as one wanted if it fit into the cup) didnt cut it as good as the ones in Italy - perhaps it felt a tad too artificially flavored - i dont know... On our way back we were treated to spectacular nighttime Parisian scenery which we duly captured through our lens for eternity before retiring for the night. That said I must add one another interesting titbit - the nightguard was an Indian, a Goan named Wilfred who had come here around 15 years ago. It was at that time I realised that throughout Paris we had seen this - although the facade was french, a lot of the housework, cooks in the restraunt, security staff - were all from the Indian subcontinent (India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and possibly Bangladesh). Felt a tad bet sheepish at that time, here I was in Paris, wandering far and near for a taste of traditional Parisian cuisine which was duly dished out by a fellow countryman - or maybe its just that the world is a smaller place these days.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 12 (Nice) [October 5, 2005]

We arrived at Nice via the Trenitalia – which was a comfortable journey. We would need the rest for our whirlwind tour through the Cote d’Azur. As the train rambled along the coast we got our first glimpses of the clear azure waters and the coast stretching as far as the eye could see.

this was truly a place to kick back and relax

However once we got to the more glamorous resorts of Monaco the scene changed – to huge mansions, apartment blocks dotting the hillsides and glitzy signs… for some reason not a very pleasant sight for my eyes. Thankfully Samir had taken some of that into consideration and we headed straight for Nice Ville. It was to be our ‘break-day’, when we would take it a bit easy before heading on to Paris. Hence, apart from a loosely formed plan we did not incorporate a killer schedule. After some breakfast at the station we moved on via the bus towards the old town. Ah, a point of note, unlike in other places where the ATM’s allowed a maximum cash limit of around Euro 400 – here you could easily withdraw amounts of Euro 1000… in line with the Casino industry entrenched here. Taking a local bus we moved along boulevard Jean Jaures (the latter word unpronounceable in English) and then moved into the old town.

The charming and colorful old town

I somehow like these old towns – with narrow cobbled streets, open air cafes and a feel to kill for. The one in Nice Ville was also adorned with brightly painted buildings which shone in the abundant sunlight. Moving on we progressed to the causeway that lined the beach – a lot like marine drive of Bombay with a broad walkway and tree lined road.

Nice from a vantage point

Walking along we climbed up 100m of staircase to reach the gardens which were part of an old fortress. This gave us a panoramic view of the entire city. Exploring the gardens we saw the harbor at a distance filled with the million dollar yacht’s idling in the still, clear water.

Nice harbor

By now it was lunchtime and we hurried down the steps on the other side back into the old town and indulged in some local Plat de jour – mine was some beef stew with pan and washed down with vin.

'Plat de jour'.... if the hand shook - then blame the wine

Wanting to get out of the city we picked up some goodies from the local patisserie and caught a bus to Roquebrune – Cap Martin (pronounced as if you would be coughing when speaking the same). Although it is a three tiered road the bus kept to the lower tier (the upper levels apparently reserved for cars – we had none). It also gave us a ‘bus-tour’ of Monaco with few sightings of the palace and – the Monaco Grand Prix circuit of course!!
Leaving Monaco the bus weaved its away along the hills, with Samir valiantly trying to figure out when we had to get off – it didn’t help that the place was impossible to pronounce for us low level English folk, and the kindly lady who was trying to help us didn’t speak any English. Through some wild hand-gesturing, some apparent French-speak we got down at the right place.
At this time the rain-clouds were beginning to form overhead and we knew that we had a limited time to work with. But it was a nice stroll through quiet French countryside, with time to pause and admire the flora around us. After some assistance we clambered down to reach the walkway cut alongside the rocky seashore. This was a beautiful walk – with the hills above us, with cars on three levels of roadways and the trains a further level below them. Walking a bit we reached Cap Martin railway station and after checking the train timings moved to a beach at the base. If you could call it a private beach – then this was it. No sand, only pebbles but as isolated as one could get. At one end stood a huge mansion, with steps leading to the beach. A luxury cruise liner was docked far off in the bay. Apart from that it was only us – brilliant!! This in my mind was the best – chill time.

A private beach for a pretty private and most definitely wealthy individual

We reluctantly got up after 45 minutes or so due to reducing light and ominous clouds overhead – only just catching the train back into Nice (we saw a super speedboat on our way back). We had a quick dinner at a Chinese place – the second time we had strayed since Lausanne before moving back to the station. We had not been able to locate a easy to use tetapack or non-cork bottle based vino so we had to pretty much just idly wait until our train arrived – the Cote d’Azur leg was over.

In a new country - another day, another place

Europe on a shoestring - Day 11 (Roma) [October 4, 2005]

This was to be our last day in Rome, and after one day spent in Ancient Rome and the other at Vatican city - this was supposed to be about everything within... sounds ambitious? it certainly was. I had duly suggested that it be dedicated to discover 'centro storico' or the heart of the city. We had certainly got a glimpse of it on our way back from the Vatican and it was time to do justice to the same.

Piazza Republica

We started the day going west toward the Piazza Republica and after a stand up breakfast of cappuccino and croissants (the food at the hostel was anyways totally unappealing) decided to pop in and see Santa Maria degli Angeli - whos call to fame I guess is that it was built on the site of the Bath's of Diocletian - the baths are actually visible from the sides. We then walked onwards towards the Spanish Steps with the under repair Trinita dei Monti church on top. When we reached there after a steady slow upward climb we were sorely disappointed. The Spanish Steps - were... well steps, and nothing too great about them in terms of architecture or art, although what graced the steps could definitely be defined as art forms :-). Since we not really interested in Keats or any of the long dead poets after glancing towards the Villa Medici in the foreground continued trudging towards Piazza del Popolo. In this great pedestrian circle we rested our now tired legs watching kids feed pigeons and do what I realized was a national pastime, or disease - smoke. It had slowly started to drizzle and we made our way into the Santa Maria del Popolo church which I must say had a wonderful collection of Renaissance art. I think there I finally fixated on my favorite Renaissance artist - that of Caravaggio whos paintings literally seem to leap out of the canvas to you. In addition the church does house the Chigi chapel whom as the guide seemed to illustrate were one of the biggest rivals to the power of the Medici's. The chapel though is pretty bare, which may have been wrought on by the Medici's themselves once their ascent to papal power was complete.
Walking south now we first came across the Mausoleo di Augusto - now a derelict closed chamber with a moat and walkway alongside it. Just went to show how the ascent of the church brought an abrupt end to all Roman adventures. Again as usual the hunger pangs started to creep in but we had to make one last halt via the Trevi fountain - at the Pantheon. This huge Roman edifice like all things Roman had been consecrated as a church, but just to look at the structure was impressive with the huge stone columns holding up a massive dome. I had selected Piazza de Campo dei Fiori for lunch hoping for a market on the likes of Florence but were disappointed by what we saw - all raw meat and vegetables, much smaller than Mercato Centrale. But then Samir came up with a winner - I do not remember the name but it was located off the main street in a little alley.

What a feast.... of freshly caught pesce

The owners spoke no English, but i had the best pesce (fish) caught fresh that day, and baked just right with a good sprinkling of olive oils and italian herbs and spice. It was good to sit out and watch time go by, eating Italian style. One thing to note - if you do not ask for the bill, it will NEVER come. The Italians believe in taking ones time to eat, and no one will force you out and you can continue at a slow unhurried pace. After a hearty meal - where could we go but continue our indulgences but for some dessert. And to help in the digestion we meandered through numerous alleyways to arrive at the Jewish Ghetto which was supposed to contain a famous Jewish Patisserie. But as luck would have it - apart from some old Jewish buildings, a Roman ruin alongside a synagogue we did not find what we were looking for. All our queries resulted was in a few rounds of the Jewish Ghetto and we finally gave up - not dessert time, but the search for the patisserie. Instead we followed our scents (ok not smell but a guidebook) to Trastavere, crossing an old crossing over the Tiber to the mainly residential, middle class area. There beside Santa Maria della Scala (Mary of the staircase - built where a woman had a vision of Mary near a staircase nonetheless) was an excellent gelato place, simple but fulfilling and we duly pigged in.
Now it was all the way back, with a stop at two churches Gesu and Sant Ignazio. For Samir and me it did hold a special significance since there were the center of the Jesuit order and both of us were products of a Jesuit education. The former had the embalmed body of St.Ignatius none the less - but a look into both the churches was truly wonderful. Both had excellent examples of Tromphe Loyal painting techniques and were beautifully adorned. I should say they came near the top of my list for my 'favorite churches in Rome'. By now it was getting dark and we decided to move back to the railway station (where we had put our bags in lockers for fear of having stuff taken away by Joshua and company). But to end the day - like all young Roman's do we stopped by the Spanish steps, 3 guys among a million other young boys and girls.

Back at the Spanish Steps

Dinner was a take out - but from Formula 1 none the less, one of the busiest pizzerias that I have seen, with an interest in - well F1 not less, and great pizzas at fantastic rock bottom prices... i really hope we had the luxury of sitting down and eating there.
Sitting back in Termini I looked back at Rome, a bustling busy city - maybe our accomodation may not have been all that pleasant but the attractions that Rome provided sure compensated for the same.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 10 (Roma) [October 3, 2005]

This was the day for Vatican City, and I thought we should make an early start. Using the train system (very crowded but quite convenient) we arrived an hour and half before opening time, to be jostling for the 300^th odd position in the queue. Before long it had started drizzling, and looking at the ‘blockbuster’ queue I was quite happy that we were 300^th at least.If anything would bother me this day and I will admit it upfront, were the crowds. I am not saying that I am claustrophobic, and will readily admit that I was just like the rest of the tourists. But there is something to be said about being pushed and bumped around all along. We first moved through the hall of tapestries and into the hall of maps.

The ceiling adorning the Hall of Tapestries

A Cartographers paradise

This turned out to be quite interesting as we tried to figure out what region of Europe (or Asia) the maps indicated. Given that it was in Italian (or Latin) it was quite intriguing and good pastime to evaluate the accuracy of the maps, which improved in geographical correctness as time passed. We then moved (no – were herded) into the Raphael’s rooms – which had some exquisite artwork. I think one of the paintings which impressed me the most was the one in which most of the great thinkers of the age (Aristotle, da Vinci etc) were represented, and how the paintings seamlessly merged facts (such as background architecture etc) from diverse eras i.e. a wedding feast of Cana would have Ancient Rome as a backdrop with people wearing contemporary clothing – certainly a unique aspect of the art. Finally we moved onto the Sistine Chapel. No words can quite describe the art which adorns every inch of this hall, with nearly all the ‘5-star’ painters having something to do with it. Would certainly be really cool to be able to sit in quiet contemplation here – I guess as a commoner and not the pope this was not going to be. After some time our aching necks indicated it was time to leave – and we moved to the cafeteria for some hot slices of pizza (at a acceptable price) for lunch. When we got out – it was pouring, and it was something to see the devotion, or stupidity of the 3000+ people who were still standing in line which extended several blocks. We took refuge in Vatican City and waited it out – spending time to write my last set of postcards. Apparently the Vatican City postal service is different from Italia post – which also means that it is far more efficient – so that’s exactly what I did.

well.... I am at least dry!!!!

Finally the waiting got frustrating, and if this was going to be my pilgrimage then it had to be done. Anil grudgingly agreed – and rigged one of my garbage bags as a raincoat, much to the amusement of those around us. But I guess God did take pity and as we got into the queue the rain died down. But Samir was not going to let an empty canvas away – not after all the art seen in the previous hours. So he deftly look out his brush – and began his Samirus Touches Anilius masterpiece right there – with the garbage bag adorning Anil serving as the canvas. The results are for all to see.

Original 'artwork' by Samirus Gindus - 'Last judgement between Samirus and Anilus'

Another interesting aspect was the stylish Roman carabinieri – driving Lamborghini… golf carts around the place. I guess its all about the Italian machismo. Anyways – once we got through all the security we realized we were in the wrong line, and instead of going into the church we were led into the crypt. But it was not all in vain. Among the grand tombs of the popes of yore was a simple marble marker – that of one of my heroes: Pope John Paul II. His tomb lay there – nothing spectacular in architecture yet attracting this huge line. Couple of other ‘attractions’ were the supposed tomb of St. Petrus and the colorful Swiss guards. In our next attempt we entered the basilica – which was well – just as I had seen and imagined it from television. It had all the trappings of power, style and pomp – although I may have hoped if there could also have been some quiet and piece. Due to this, in someway, ended up preferring the other churches we had, and would end up seeing – it gave me the opportunity for some quiet reflection which is what I would have loved to do.

After our Vatican Tour

After we exited at sunset – we decided to walk along the Tiber to grab some delicious gelato.

Along Castel San Angelo

It ended up as a long but lovely meander through the streets of Rome – with glances at some of the sights we would move through the next day – the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon etc. The gelato was good, the Trevi fountain crowded – and full of obnoxious Americans… who were playing around with a simple Bangladeshi trying to sell them some flowers and whose behavior was downright disgusting.

Trevi Fountain

Samir realized our dinner at a hole in the wall which had the reputation of providing Rome’s finest pizza – and they certainly did not disappoint. We washed it down with some ‘aqua potable’ – with the ‘vino’ restricted for the hotel. It was the end of my pilgrimage.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 9 (Roma) [October 2, 2005]

We arrived at Rome using the express train which was very comfortable by around 22:00 hrs on October 1. The rail system I must say throughout our journey was excellent – with the trains running on time, and pretty comfortable.
The sleeper coaches are similar to that found in the trains in India – with bed/blanket and a simple breakfast thrown in for good measure. Given that you have paid $32 for it I would think it’s a wee bit expensive, but if it gets you across a country through the night – I would not have it any other way.
Rome – first impressions… it is like Bombay railway station, Loud, Noisy, an air of confusion around the same and many surly characters all around. In some way the description provided by other travelers in guide books matched perfectly. Obviously we were accosted by more than one shady individuals regarding accommodation – but given our success in this aspect till now we marched along to find ‘Friendship place’… if only we had known better.
We walked along the road – and couldn’t see any sign of it, no neon sign, info desk – nothing. For some reason this wasn’t too good a sign. We then came upon a Laundromat where we met a sleazy looking character (a Bangladeshi) who for some reason was expecting us – and guided us to a big door – with a small, non-lit, grimy sign indicating ‘Friendship place’. It was on the 4th floor of a building with an elevator that could fit – none… at least not with our backpacks. After trudging up we were met by another Bangladeshi named Joshua who invited us in.
First impressions – horrible. 3 big rooms stuffed with 5-7 bunk beds in each. One small reception desk, with a fridge on one side, and three teeny-weeny toilets nearby. Joshua (I would think he had changed his name from something Muslim to make it more ‘tourist friendly’) seemed to be sickeningly nice in nature and for some reason his mannerism unsettled me. Anyways in a nutshell the place seemed to be a sham.
But we were tired so pretty much decided to hit the bed soon... after taking a bath which involved standing below a shower which dribbled water – felt more like Chinese torture than a bath, and took at least half an hour per person. The only saving grace were decent roommates in the form of a couple of Australians and a Japanese guy who were pretty friendly.
Next day we started a bit late – the breakfast of stale bread and coffee did not appeal to me and we stopped by the local store for a cappuccino.
Well this was Rome – and Rome meant the Catholic Church. We first stopped by Santa Maria Maggiore, one of the biggest basilicas in Rome. Each church had something distinct and in this case it was the gilded ceiling from gold obtained as repayment for Marco Polo’s voyage to India. From there we proceeded to the Vittorio Emmanuel Monument – a gargantuan building built in memory of a monarch who was simple as the building was pompous. It housed the tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Vittorio Emmanuel Monument - being the simple man he way... he may have been ashamed at this monument

The building however provided us a birds-eye view of ancient Rome stretching right to the Colosseum on one side and Catholic Rome with St.Peter’s basilica in the distance. That was one of the hallmarks of all of Italy. From atop a high vantage point all you will ever see is a maze of houses and small building with scattered domes of churches sprouting from among them.
From there it was onto Ancient Rome – starting at Trajan’s column.

Temple to Mars - but Augustus Caesar in honor of his uncle Julius Caesar

Now what you can see of the entire place including Caesars Palace, and Trajans’ markets are only ruins but you cannot help but imagine how it must have been during the time of the Roman Empire.

Rumor has it that Nero watched Rome burning from the top of the tower in the background

Moving on to the Forum you come across a vast expanse of ruins with several temples, arches and ruins of halls.

Temple to Augustus and Faustina - the best preserved of all the forums

We could only imagine what it must have been 2000 years ago. Interesting bits were that of Julius Caesar who lived in the temple of the Gods and built another temple for people to worship – him… small wonder the republicans were crying hell and high water.

Caesar's residence

Another is the arches of Septus Severus, Constantine which were used as models for arches down the centuries.

Arch of Septus Severus
and of Titus

After a casual walk through the ruins (with interesting stops at the Meeting hall, the tomb of Julius Caesar and the stupid soldier who threw himself into an abyss in order to ‘protect’ Rome) we picked up tickets for the Colosseum and Palatine Hill before moving on under the triumphant arch of Titus for lunch. By then the sky was pretty overcast and the Bangladesh boys were moving in on the people offering them umbrellas. In someway it was a bit irritating – similar to the beggars back home. In others – I wondering what made scores of them (seemingly illegal given the way they ran when the police were around) come down and settle in Rome. Maybe I was just being prejudiced – but they did seem a bit out of place there. It then began to pour – which was not a good thing since a) we were hungry and b) the great marcus Anilius had not brought along a raincoat. Adding to the misery was the fact that around the Colosseum there did not seem to exist any value-for-money restaurant, and finally the sandwich what we took was cold, stale and did not adequately serve towards filling our stomachs.

The Colosseum

Our passes gave us quick entry to the Colosseum (again would say it was simply kudos to all our research into just these miniscule details) and we wandered around – admiring the piece of architecture – built for the sole purpose of torture – of man and beast. Just served to indicate that man was capable of great things – though he did many of those for destructive purposes.

Photography practice with the Vittorio Emmanuel Monument in the background

Trudging back we climbed towards the Palatine hills which housed the nobility during the Roman era. Augustus et al all lived in pomp and splendor here – in huge houses, with adjoining baths, fountains, and gymnasiums. Although this is all now in ruins – one cannot help but wonder the grandeur that was Rome.

St Peters - as viewed from the Palatine Hills

On our way down we passed alongside Circus Maximus – the racetrack which is pretty much non-existent and under a huge aqueduct spanning a road – meant to carry water for the Roman populace.
Lastly we moved a bit south, fed on a gelato towards the church of St. John the Lateran – a previous papal residence. I guess I can say it is one of the many huge churches – and I think serves as one of the primary churches of my faith too. Walking back home alongside the railway station we snacked on some Italian pasta and pizza from a local store – nothing special about the food, although the bakers and cashier were all – Bangladeshi. Guess one day I just will have to ask as to how they all converged to this country.
Bath was once again a very tedious affair – with the droplet system just serving to get me irritated, but with a little ‘vino’ it was all very good. Had been a tiring day and I promptly fell asleep.

Europe on a shoestring - Day 8 (Florence) [October 1, 2005]

A room with a view

After another hearty breakfast we managed to make an early exit and headed (yes walking – we always walked) to the Barghello gallery. The gallery is the preserve of most of Michelangelo works along with others of Bruneleschi and Donatello. It’s primarily a museum of sculpture. As with all other buildings the Barghello has its own unique history being used as civic building and a prison. There are some stunning terracotta sculptures and marbles ones of Mercury, Hercules and other Roman and Greek heroes from mythology. Just seeing the sculptures makes one marvel at the heightened level of artistic excellence during the Renaissance period. The busts of the emperors – the Italian rulers (especially Cosimo I) were obsessed in portraying themselves as Roman Emperors – by distinguished artists were pretty good. I though the ones of Cellini were one of the best – especially those of Persues and Medusa. However the ‘Adam and Eve’ resembled a stroll in the park… a site of mediocrity in a hall of excellence.
It was then on to the church of Santa Croce (Cross) – a façade of green and white marble which was similar to the one found at Santa Maria Novella, and apparently built in the 18th century (a few centuries after the church was consecrated). It is like all the churches we saw spectacular insides – with several chapels and tombs dedicated to different saints and bishops along the recesses. One of the most visited tombs is of course that of Michelangelo – which was designed by… himself.

Here lies the grand master...

By then it was lunch time – and following our gastronomic adventures went to the San Ambroglio market for another helping of good native food, washed down with a swig of the local vino. We happened to meet a British woman who chatted up with us sitting at the table – yeah here you just about grabbed the closest empty bench near you and sat down. Made interesting conversation with the people next to you for sure. Hmmm, apart from the bread and vino and some kind of cutlets and pork I do not remember the third dish that we ordered. Anyways whatever it was – as like yesterday it was good – great value for money. At the end of it all – we all staggered out into the warm Italian sun – awash with wine, a good hearty meal and some nice company. Aaaaah now for a nice siesta… one interesting titbit about the way things are carried out in places like these – you get a huge pitcher of wine with markers indicating levels on it. At the end of the meal – you pay for the amount you have drunk… which like a credit card you end up drinking more than you think you need. I don’t think we were tipsy, but lethargic most certainly. However there was no time to waste, and with help from Rivoli Gelato (the BEST I have eaten – I think I had scaggitella, cappuccino and pistachio combo) we meandered through the narrow streets of the centro storico (city center) to reach the square housing the gallery Uffizi (Offices). All along the square were interspersed sculptures of Neptune, a copy of the David, the original 'rape of the sabines' among others.

at Palazzo Vecchio - with Neptune in the background

Although you may think we did just that eat-see-walk-eat (well we did do a lot of that!) we did take time to read about the history of the place.

The Vasari passageway ... everything here has its own fascinating story to tell...

From the secret Vasari passageway which enabled the duke to escape when he was under siege to the historical events that shaped the Florentine past.

Looking out from the Uffizi

The Uffizi (yes you most DEFINITELY need advance tickets for this one) is the one of the largest painting galleries I have ever seen. More than 60 odd rooms which are impossible – yes impossible to see in a day. We had actually marked what we wanted to see, and pretty much stuck to that. It’s a choice we made – either cursorily walk aimlessly from room to room (listening to lectures from guides along the way), or just concentrate and appreciate a few selected works of art. This approach suited us just fine. Of course there are a few must sees like Botticelli’s ‘Birth of Venus’ and others like Giotto, Simone Martini, Piero della Francesca, Fra Angelico, Filippo Lippi, Botticelli, Mantegna, Correggio, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo and Caravaggio.

Looking over the ArnoThe 'atypical snap' - Anil just starting to smile... Sam looking constipated and me peering in the background

By the time we got out it was way past 19:00 hours and we reluctantly moved out picking up our bags on our way to the railway station stopping by a park alongside the river to enjoy the last remnants of the day. It had been a long day, and in some ways Firenze had clung to us in a way no other place had done. It had a bit of everything great food, fantastic heritage and museums to show off, the best girls I had ever seen in Europe (no doubt of that) and oooh yes – the best Gelato. This is one place I will most definitely return to… someday.