Italy (Rome, Florence, Pisa) / San Marino - February 2015

This trip was rather unusual for an over-organized person like I am whereby:

- Everything is only decided and planned 10 days before the departure.

- Some accommodations and train services are booked only few days ahead of the trip.

- Not everything was clearly outlined when I arrived in Italy.

- First full vacation planned for my own (excluding those previous extended business traveling).

- To accomplish a dream that I have many years ago (backpacking alone + visiting San Marino)

Figuring out the best way to conquer procrastination, I booked everything before I have the chance to think of any excuses. Being spontaneous is also another stage of learning in life and this took more courage for me to step alone onto an unknown land creating more excitements and challenges.

Started getting used to spending my nights at the airport, once again I arrived at London Gatwick around 12.00am to be on time for my early departure at 6.50am. I get to notice that the South Terminal is actually much better compared to the North having a few 24 hours café and facilities, and it is definitely warmer with more resting areas available. 

26th February 2015 - Thursday

* Rome

After arriving at the Fiumicino airport at 10.15am local time, the sign leads me all the way to the main train terminal. I came to a counter with a “Train Ticket” indication and asked for a single way transfer to the Termini Station in central Rome. But to my surprise, it turns out to be a private MPV service sharing the journey with few other travellers. And since the price of €15.00 is not far too expensive compared to the train, I would hence relax and enjoy my arrival on this historical land of Rome.

Since it is yet the time for check-in, I entrust my luggage to the hostel and headed straight to the meeting point at Colloseum to join the pre-booked guided tour starting at 1.30pm. This tour costing €30.00 allows the participants to visit the Colosseum Third Tier, Hypogeum and Porta Libitinaria which is only available upon special booking (something extraordinary is always what I am looking for). Standing on the third tier gives you the view and feel of a gladiator being at the central of concentration in the amphitheatre. I guess I should have taken the time to study in details the Roman history prior to this visit in order to comprehend and appreciate more on what I have in sight at this instant. Nevertheless, this tour has again driven my interest towards the history of Europe even though this has never been my favourite subject during my studies.

The Roman Forum took me another hour and a half to walk between the ruins of several ancient buildings. Walking randomly in town, I came to the Basilica di Santa Maria in Aracoeli which is situated at the highest point of the Capitoline Hill. The large stairway that leads up the hill might sounds challenging and tiring, but the panoramic city view you will get is certainly worth all the efforts.

Fontana di Trevi is one of the main reasons that I have come all the way to Rome, however to my absolute disappointment, it is closed for renovation! Nonetheless I still threw a coin to the empty pond hoping to gurantee my return to Rome as according to the legend.

The shops around is filled with my favourite Venetian Masks and delicate items made of Murano Glass. I needed to stop myself from being a shopaholic to prevent overspending and overweighting my baggage. Italy is entirely worthy of the famous reputation of art as it can almost be seen everywhere the talents of water painting around the city. I randomly stood in front of one of the water-colourist admiring his art work and decided to spend €30.00 for three medium sized paintings without bargaining on the price merely as an appreciation and encouragement for his great work and sincerity.

27th February 2015 - Friday

* Vatican City

With a 4.8km distance from the hostel, I still decided to travel by foot to the Vatican City. It was a shock to witness the long queue at the Vatican Museum and I was extremely glad to have paid that extra €4.00 in advance for the reservation thus having the privilege to skip the queue. This is a huge complex having 54 galleries including some of the most renowned classical sculptures and most important masterpieces of Renaissance art in the world. The first section - Gregorian Egyptian Museum (Museo Gregoriano Egizio) is the most interesting of all (at least to me) with the exhibition of Egyptians mummies and antiques from ancient Egypt. I have not consider the audio guide in the beginning of the visit but after entering the first room and looking at few of the displays, I regretted my decision and returned immediately to the entrance for the renting of audio device at €7.00 to fully enjoy my time in this scarce and abundant museum. With just a superficial admiration in the museum, it still took me 4 hours to complete a full tour.

 

Getting back to the St Peter Basilica, I was again stunned by the 1km queue and hence given up immediately the intension to stopover. For those who plan to visit the Vatican City in one day, my personal suggestion would be to queue for the St Peter Basilica early in the morning before 8.30am, and book an afternoon session for the Vatican Museum.

Since I have still plenty of time, I took a 3km walk to The Spanish Steps (Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti) beholding a seething mass of people even during weekday. Blending into their culture, I bought a cup of ice-cream and sat with the crowd on the staircase to enjoy the evening. There were so many alleys with hidden treasures which are worth exploring.

After enjoying the spaghetti as my lunch, I would now go for a pizza instead. Their anchovy is rather similar to the Malaysian style of salted fish and therefore I have had the salted-fish version of pizza for dinner. My 2 nights were spent in Alessandro Downtown Hostel with a shared dorm of 6 having private bathroom at £11.47 per night, I get to chat with these 2 friendly Iranian girls discussing what is worth visiting during my last day in Rome. 

28th February 2015 - Saturday

* Rome + San Marino

McDonalds seems to be the most economic meal around the area hence I sat in and enjoy my breakfast while packing along another burger for my lunch. While enjoying my meal, I saw a young lady driving a small truck collecting garbage packs on the street and this is definitely not something we can see in Malaysia hence the more I am thankful for the kind of life I have now without going through the hardship these people are bearing.

The Pantheon and Piazza Navona were my last few stops in Rome and these sites are definitely worth visiting. The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and the Martyrs (Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri) is another surprise as the entrance and outward appearance wasn’t too striking, but the interior was worth a “wow” after all.

 

After collecting my suitcase from the hostel, I proceeded earlier to the train station to catch the 1.20pm train to Rimini (half-way transit in Bologna). The attitude at the servicing counter was not excellent as the operative staff was rather reluctant to assist in answering any question. After waiting for some moments, my train to Rimini was announced to be at Platform 9. However to my surprise, the passage way to the platform was shut and there is no official attendant around that I could approach for assistance. Here comes this gypsy lady who is “kind” enough offering to lead my way. But suspecting her intension, I already expected that she would be asking for money in return of her kindness because this happens too often in this townhship, however I would not want to miss my train which I bought at €64.50 hence I would just accepts the “offer”. Not to my surprises, she requested for some profits but ridiculously at €10.00 and I immediately answer her with a big “No” as it was just only a few steps that she has brought me to the platform so far. But due to the fact that she did help me somehow and therefore I gave her €2.00 in return of the “service”. 

This outing is supposed to be a semi-economical backpacking trip but I only get to realized that I actually bought the Business Class seat from Rome to Bologna and therefore I get to enjoy the first class travel with Trenitalia. The journey from Roma Termini to Bologna Centrale took 2 hours 15 minutes, and a transit from Bologna to Remini took 1 hour 8 minutes.

The republic of San Marino, one of the smallest countries in Europe hasn’t been a famous touristic destination to most of the Asians. I was being introduced to this microstate years ago through a famous traveling journal written by Ailing and could possibly be fascinated by this less travelled country due to the various challenges labelled by the author in getting there. Indeed the journey was not as convenient as compared to most other famous tourist-friendly destinations whereby this country is only accessible either by car or by bus. The journey took around 1 hour at €5.00 to reach at the final stop in the city. While searching my way to the hotel, I needed some guidance from the passer-by but due to the horrible experience I have had in Rome, I am becoming sceptical when a guy kindly walked me to gate of the city showing me the direction. But this time I was ashamed by my distrustful sensitivity, because after all he is really trying to be kind and helpful unlike those I have encountered previously.

Considering that this is my dreamed destination, I pre-booked a single private room with a slightly higher price without wanting to spoil any bit of my excitement for the 2 days. Hotel Joli never let me down by offering a comfortable room at an affordable price of £35.55 per night.

I entered a simple restaurant adjacent to the hostel and notice that the owner is not fluent in English and again with the international sign language, I successfully ordered Ravioli al Pomodoro and a super thick cup of hot chocolate (in fact I wouldn’t even describe it as “drinking” but rather “eating” the cup of hot chocolate…lol). Even though most of the shops were closed in the city after 7.00pm, I am still overly excited and can’t wait to walk around under the dim light. On my way returning to the hostel, I went back again to that same restaurant and ordered a pizza as my breakfast the next morning. While enjoying part of the pizza as my supper and watching one of my favourite cartoons – Shrek, I feel so contented and life had suddenly became so wonderful. Every effort taken to reach this country is worthwhile.

1st March 2015 - Sunday

* San Marino

I woke up early this morning eagerly waiting to greet my dream land and awaiting to unveil the mystery that this country offers. This city is filled with slopes and stairs everywhere and wandering around the town is exactly like hill-walking (this makes me think of my hiking mates back in those days and I miss them). A 1.1km walk from the First Tower (La Rocca o Guaita) to the Third Tower (Il Montale) was wonderful even though I appear to be walking alone in the bush. The people in San Marino are much friendlier and nicer and they greeted me with a welcoming smile whenever we brush pass each other. The assistant in the castle chatted with me sociably and was so kind to draw on the map showing to me some of the places to visit.

 

With a fee of €10.00, I am entitled to enter La Rocca o Guaita, La Cesta o Fratta and few of the museums. The small Museum of Archaic Arms in the second tower reminds me of the scenes in the movies where all the armours and swords are exactly displayed there. The castles are absolutely interesting where I have to climb some very steep stairs to get to the top of the towers. I am glad that I am not stricken by acrophobia which enables me to move around freely and even walked on the narrow path on the side of the fortress which is few meters high without any handrail. 

It might be due to the size and history of the country, there isn’t much to explore in the St. Francis Church & Art Gallery and the State Museum. Museum of Torture Instruments (Museo della Tortura) was rather small with the entrance fee of €8.50 is not quite worth a visit, but this museum presents some less-known instruments such as a skinning device (“Gatta da Scorticamento”) and the heretics fork (“Forcella dell’Eretico”) as part of the medieval torture tool.

Here comes the shopaholic spending almost €100 just for liquor miniatures, key chains, fridge magnets, coins and post cards which are mostly for souvenirs. I have had the best ice-cream here with the flavour of walnut, pineapple, coffee and caramel, and enjoying them while shivering in the cold.

Taking my late lunch + dinner at Bar Piadineria La Capanna, I enjoyed overseeing the city from the mountain while enjoying my Tomato Spaghetti + Mushroom Pizza + Pear Juice under the cold wind of 3°C. I guess the waiter would be surprised by this small sized Asian finishing such amount of food alone.

Despite the cold and dusky nightfall, I still choose to walk alone through the valley enjoying my final night in San Marino. Passing by Il Montale once more, I am deeply in the spirit of liberty and wishes to shout aloud towards the open field on top of the high mountain “I have made it!”.

2nd March 2015 - Monday

* Florence

It was drizzling when I arrived at Firenze S.M. Novella and the hostel was quite a distance away from the station. But immediately after check-in, I got myself ready for the next sightseeing walk down town. Florence was rather small and not to my utmost interest, and this might be due to my previous visits to many basilicas and churches during the same week, but I still enjoy walking around curiously looking at the street markets and buildings.

Without realizing that I still have €50.00 in my jacket, I thought I have run out of cash and hence exchanging another €100.00 against £ at the losing rate of 0.76. Without having a good appetite, I simply purchased a bowl of salad from Carrefour Express and a waffle before calling it a day.

3rd March 2015 - Tuesday

* Pisa

The last destination in my itinerary, I bought the ticket from Florence to Pisa at the self-service machine (€8.00) without even knowing if this is the right one, but providentially I got there smoothly despite some possible misleading by a passer-by. The leaning tower of Pisa is definitely the main attraction, along with the Cathedral di Pisa, Baptistery of St John, Camposanto Monumentale and Museo Delle Sinopie. With the fee of €7.00, I get to pick 2 of the attractions for a visit but not including getting to the top of the leaning tower which is at an extra cost of €18.00.

 

After enjoying my last lunch in Italy (a pot of steam mussels and mushroom pizza), I walked to the train station to collect my suitcase and took a bus service at €2.00 to the Pisa (Tuscany) Airport and drawing a wonderful end to my vacation. I am glad that everything was safe and smooth throughout the journey, without experiencing the common misfortune of pickpockets and flight delays.

One thing I love about Europe is the street performances which actually brighten up the day of the passer-by. So do generously contribute some money if the music touches your heart and makes your day, just as I did in cheering up theirs as well.

This is indeed a relaxing trip with my own preferences at my own pace, even though it could be much merrier if having someone around traveling together. With all the beautiful items I have sighted in different countries, I think I’m gonna get myself a house in order to be able to decorate it with all the stuffs I loved. So now I am back to the reality of working life and I’m gonna work hard towards my next dream and challenge myself for the next target.

England (Stonehenge, Bath) - February 2015

Week 8 - This is another exciting weekend planned for a visit to one of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World – the Stonehenge; nonetheless surprises came just a day before the trip where we get to realized that our purchased for the tour tickets were duplicated thus paying an addition of £31.00 in total. Failing to contact the sales office at such odd hour, nonetheless both of us positively take this as a lesson learnt from a miscommunication and did not really want this incident to spoils any bit our mood for this trip. With the common way of our meet-up having no mobile phone connections, we agreed to meet each other in the front 3 coaches on a specific train service towards Salisbury at a specific time. Again we are fated to bounce into each other effortlessly and here begins our exciting weekend.

Arriving at the Salisbury station on time at 9.42am, we managed to catch the 10.00am bus and coincidently, the driver clearly divided those with e-ticket and those without into different lines hence enable us to easily sell off our additional ticket to those who are without a reservation. Unexpectedly a lady from US instantly agrees to buy over the ticket without any question and she even trusted us with the calculation of change since she is not familiar in recognizing the currencies in UK.

The bus took about 30 minutes to arrive at our first stop - the Stonehenge. We have our brunch in one of the restaurant having the delicious pasty in the hope that this simple meal could help us withstand somehow the cold weather out there. We have always the opinion that winter is not a good time to travel hence did not expect the site to be crowded but this proof us wrong. We decided to leave the monument as soon due to the cold winds that numb our senses but the delayed bus service continues to afflict us by more than 15 minutes having us standing in the cold wilderness.

Our next stopover is the Old Sarum - the mighty Iron Age hill fort where the first cathedral of Salisbury once stood and the Romans, Normans and Saxons have all left their mark. We can only see the slight remains of both the castle and the second cathedral in the plain. Subsequent to the visit, we were so fortunate to jump onto the bus that is passing by exactly on time when we arrived at the station. Passing through the city centre, the local market caught our attention and we get to buy some berries and tried a real damn spicy pork scratchings before moving on to visit the magnificent Salisbury Cathedral.

Another hour’s journey to Bath Spa, all we have in mind was nothing but our dinner! Since this is exactly the time of Chinese New Year, we intentionally search for a Chinese restaurant in Bath to be able to feel the season in this foreign land. Unfortunately the shark-fin soup (imitation) was not available on that day. (Meal of the day: Chinese Tea £3.60, 白饭 £2.95, 烧鸭 £9.95, 酸辣汤 £2.95, 叉烧 £8.95, 蚝油时菜 £7.95)

This was the very first time for me to stay in a shared dorm of six with a shared bathroom, and the experience was incredibly horrible and this gonna be my first and my last try. The hostel has had the water saving control where the water in the shower will only last for a few seconds where you will need to repress on the button before the water turned-off automatically. The temperature was not adjustable and I am almost scalded under the hot water. Knowing that it was a shared bathroom, some guys just didn’t know the function of the door and couldn't be more considerate to shut the door when they are on their business. We weren't able to rest until late night due to the noises from the street and early the next morning, we were both awakened by loud sounds as our roommates are preparing themselves for the day. Well acknowledging that we were both spoilt by the current luxury lifestyles we had, we no longer been able to tolerate the harsh condition of the stay. Guess age is also a main factor for backpacking and this is certainly no longer something for us at this stage of life. But I am still glad that at least l has tried and gets to experienced something new in my life before growing too old for all these.

Since we were both awakened before the pre-set time, we as well wash up and get ready for the day. We first attended the church service at 9.30am witnessing the spectacular internal architecture of the cathedral, where we were warmly welcomed by the church attendances. Dismissing ourselves earlier from then congregation at 10.00am, we continue to walk around the square and having our coffee while waiting for the walking tour to start at 10.30am. We have had a great guide (on his birthday) who leaded us to every important spots in the city accompanied by his detailed illustration of the past. It started to rain heavily half way during the tour but all of us continued with the journey and a kind lady even offered her umbrella to the guide. Luckily the simple complimentary breakfast in the hostel was sufficient to hold us until the end of the walking tour despite that the tour ran overtime.

The entrance to the Roman Bath was just in front of the Bath Abbey where we were actually sitting on a bench at that plaza for some relaxing talks the night before without realising it! The entrance fee of £14.00 allows us to visit the Terrace, Temple Pediment, Heated Room & Plunge Pools, the Great Bath and etc. Savouring the spa water which contains 43 minerals at one of the fountain was a great experience as the taste of it was so special but certainly not pleasant.

 

Exploring the city on our own is nothing but to stroll around the streets stopping at few of the shops. As there isn't much left for us to explore in this tiny town of Bath hence we were glad we booked the 5.40pm train and proceeded back to our respective area.

This mark another meaningful and wonderful weekend for me to spent with a great friend :)