(June 2016) It was primarily a budgetary issue that caused us to take
the night train from Palermo to Rome. The airfare was too expensive for our
group, especially with all of our luggage. Besides sleeping on the train would
also save on one night’s lodging, and it would be an adventure. We had no idea
what a great adventure it would be, or how much fun. Many people said it was
one of the more memorable events of the trip.
So we took the bus from Cefalu to the Palermo train station,
about a 40 minute drive. As we passed through Palermo, we were a little
disappointed, because we had heard great things about the city, but all we saw
were dirty buildings, graffiti and crowds.
I’m sure there must be some nice sections, but we did not see them.
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Relaxing on the Night Train from Palermo to Rome |
Sharing Food and Wine on the Train |
However, we had been warned to bring our own food, and soon
there were multiple parties occurring within different cabins, as everyone
brought out pizza, wine, fruit, sandwiches, candies, and many other items to
share. We ended up party-hopping between cabins and had a great time. A few
other people in our train car who we didn’t know joined us, and we ended up
sharing many bottles of wine.
Impromptu Parties on the Train |
But, despite being warned multiple times by Lorenzo, our
guide, that we should never leave our cabin or items unattended, one person
left their iPhone on his bed and thieves slipped in and stole it. The police
were called, the train was stopped, and the thieves caught and questioned, but
the iPhone was not retrieved.
After all of the excitement, people started pulling their
beds from the walls and going to sleep. I fell asleep around midnight and woke
at 6:30am. The rocking of the train helped me sleep, though other people
complained it was difficult. In fact I slept so well that I missed the train
being placed upon the ferry to cross the Straits of Messina. During this time
you can get off the train and go upstairs to watch the sea from the ferry
crossing.
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Sunset on the Train Tracks |
Despite all of the delays, the train actually arrived in
Rome only 10 minutes late, so many of us were scrambling to get ready and jump
off the train with all of our luggage at 7:15am. Since our hotel, the Gioberti, was less than a block from the train
station, we all dragged our luggage there to drop it off and then go search for
coffee. Amazingly about half of our
rooms were ready, so I was able to check in and take a shower.
Visiting the Vatican and St. Peter's in Rome |
Last Day in Rome - Visiting the Vatican & Colosseum
At 11:20 we met our Rome guide, Giuseppe, in the lobby and
he led us to the subway and then to the Vatican for a tour of the Sistine
Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica and the Square. It was raining lightly, but that
didn’t stop the crowds. You had to push through masses of people, but the La
Pieta, Michelangelo’s statue of Jesus and Mary, was just as mesmerizing as the last
time I had seen at in the 1980’s – even though it was under glass now.
La Pieta by Michelangelo in St. Peter's Basilica |
After a quick pizza lunch in the square, we caught the
subway to the Colosseum, and toured that from 4 to 6pm. The sun came out and
the light on the ancient walls of the stadium, as well as the Palatino &
Roman Forum was beautiful. Later we had dinner at the rooftop restaurant of Mecenate
Palace Hotel and watched the sun set behind the Basilica of Santa Maria
Maggiore. It was a beautiful magical last
evening in Rome.
The Grandeur of the Roman Colosseum |
Flight Home to San Francisco Via Istanbul
The alarm went off far too early, around 3:30am, and we left the hotel at 4:30am to arrive at the airport at 5am to catch our 7am flight to Istanbul. After a short layover, we connected to a nonstop flight back home to San Francisco, where amazingly enough, no one sat on either side of me, so I was able to stretch out on 3 economy seats and sleep most of the 10 hour flight.
We arrived back home just in time for rush hour traffic, and watched in horror a week later when the Istanbul airport was bombed. Our prayers to Turkey, another country with an amazing wine history, that I hope to visit some day when it is at peace.
Sunset Over Santa Maria Maggiore and Hopes of Peace in the World |
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