And when Rome falls, falls the world..
Yes indeed, shortly after arriving in Roma
I was taken hostage by a particularly nasty strain
of influenza which reduced me to a heaving, snotty mess
on the bathroom floor for about 24 hours..
The Italian dottore was summoned,
with his threats of inyecktions and suppositories..eek!
By morning, the vomiting had finally ceased and I woke to
Grampa flicking on and off all the lights in the room,
none of which were functional..
I knew before I heard the maid’s broken english rumor through the walls:
Massive blackout for all of Italy..
Being sick, and it also being rainy and gray outside,
I really didn’t mind being laid up for a day..
I recovered somewhat and got enough days in for Rome to
charm me completely, or at least bowl me over in the best way..
The sense of history literally seeping up from every corner is mindblowing-
layers upon layers of time, stacked like the bricks of the ancient wall
I walked along, the Via Campania..
At the Colloseum, an Egyptian man gave me the evil eye
for strenuously objecting to his insistent pawning of
faux chanel scarves depicting the vatican and cheap plastic headdresses.
I gave it right back to him, quick as a wink and he disappeared..
The Vatican was..hum. Beautiful, and kind of disconcerting..
I felt like I was in an immense catholic shopping mall-
everyone pushing and shoving in a psychotic tourist frenzy,
it’s all been here for 3000 years or so, I doubt it’s going anywhere
in the next three minutes, could you please not kick my grandfather’s
wheelchair, you herd-minded, slavering tourist lemming? ergh.
Alas, if only I’d had the fortitude to get to the Sistine Chapel
early enough to avoid the massive crush of bodies..
It’s hard to take in that kind of beauty when you’re
smelling and being smushed by 200 other people..
I realize the above doesn’t make our time in Rome sound
so smashing, but truly, aside from the sickness it was lovely..
I have so many other things I want to write right now
but I’m in Amsterdam and nervous about getting back to the gate in time
so I think I’ll run. In fifteen hours or so, I’ll be home.
Alas.