Today I met up with some old friends here in Alaska at the Cadillac Cafe for some pesto chicken pizza! I showed them my trip pics! The Fray(s) are their last name! And Ha! Old friends I've know for what 8 months, that's funny they're old already.

Casey and I have been lounging like never before as we defy the thoughts of school :) Tomorrow though we shall face the calendar facts, gets some specific beach groceries for health, start workouts, and see a Talladega Nights matinee.


Rome Part 2:

As I mentioned previously we stayed at a hostel called Hotel Colors close to the Vatican. There were cubes of "color" decorating the windows and colorfully painted rooms to reiterate the name. It had a cute kitchen with a terrace out back, off the 4th floor mind you.


We had a few elaborate salads prepared by Tracey and some odd encounters and discussions. First we met 2 college girls from India who were on "the trip of their lifetime....so far (they hope to travel more)" and they were silly, friendly, and happy to talk with us. In their youthfulness, I don't know about Tracey, but I felt old..er.

For instance, one girl said her Indian name really fast, and immediately blurted out "BUT EVERYBODY JUST CALLS ME PIXIE, heeheeheehee..hehehehehheheheeeee". Alrighty!


Saint Peter's actual tomb at the Vatican.

Then we talked with an older couple that had been in Rome for 6 months as the husband taught Biblical studies at a college. He liked to cuss oddly, but they were both super friendly, were interested in us, and helpful about sight seeing. We learned how to bypass a huge line at the coliseum by buying tickets elsewhere and prior to entering the coliseum.

Unfortunately, the coliseum day fell inline with the camera mishap and pictures are only mental for Tracey and I. Picture a bigger fountain, only on the ground, perfect for dropping personal belongings into.


But we learned interesting facts that I shall share in words. Like the wild animals for the coliseum fights were kept in cages down below the floor, as were the prisoners. Sometimes the animals would get loose and the Roman guards would leave the prisoners to die by animal......or by fire. The coliseum was lit by torch, as you might picture, and these torches would often fall down into the prisoner/animal area - and sometimes burn them all alive. GRUESOME!

But you'll be happy to know that none of the spectators were ever killed by bears at the coliseum!

Apparently there were other little coliseums, less organized and perhaps for more of the common people, and the wild animals often got loose. At least one spectator was killed daily by some wild animal that got loose. Not at the coliseum though! Ever in its history! What a stat!

Most of the "real" collesium spectators were noble people, political leaders, higher-ups in society who indulged in the killings. People who put money into having their names engraved in the coliseum stone blocks, because they were so proud to be associated with this gruesome display

Leaving Rome we planned a day of exploring Pompeii's ancient ruins. It required us to find our way back to our first Rome subway experience, about 10 blocks from Hotel colors. I shall quote my travel journal at this time about Naples and Pompeii:

"Stepping into Naples' main station was a shady, crowded, and hot experience. We were bustling to get to the Pompeii transition/metro situation and did so with ease, not much to foreshadowing. Our train to Pompeii was about 35 minutes and took us through tons of graffitied, dirty, inner city high rises. In retrospect description, Naples was undesirably very industrial with large smoke stacks, cranes, warehouses unbecoming to our eyes.

As we hoped, the Pompeii station was free of graffiti and debris. The foliage was quite abundant and inviting, setting a a pleasant garden-like atmosphere. To our surprise the cute red train depot had a huge sign alerting us to the Pompeii Park Entrance being hardly 50 meters away.

"No need to take a bus" said the sign.

This side trip was a neat historical part of our time in Italy. We really enjoyed it despite the treacherous heat, blazing sun, and length of exploration (approx.6 hours). The city itself was humongously stretched out over an entire mountain top, as Mt. Vesuvius (its killer) panned throughout the background of every *mental picture we took. Pompeii was famous for being preserved in volcanic ash, you see....

Rock structures mostly in ruins, accompanied by a telephone audio tour, led our imagination to fill in the blanks. We saw mansion to common house layouts with fountains and gardens in design. And some of the most interesting buildings were the multiple gyms, pools, spas, and athletic fields. The people of Pompeii are also credited with some of the first fast food restaurants. The proof was in round dish like counters at the front of some main street shops."

And still I wonder what sports they played....

Dress code for the Vatican! p.s. sorry no pics on Pompeii!