Buon Natale from Italia!

Buon Natale (Merry Christmas) - our first Italian phrase.

We made it safely to our hotel after taking every single form of transportation possible. 9 hours on a plane, 1 hour on a bus, 4 hours on a train and 20 minutes in a taxi and we are finally in Roma.

We landed early in Milan, went quickly through customs and caught the shuttle bus to the Milano Centraal Train Station. Our first observations of Milan were that it looked just like Yokuska Japan - which was trippy to say the least. There were lots of smart cars on the road, tall apartment buildings with every imaginable object hanging from the balcony or out on display. Jonathan did take notice of the large amount of graffiti; no stone wall is left unmarked.

Signs saying "Buon Natale," Christmas Decorations and Santa signs were everywhere. The most intriguing of these is the Santa climbing a ladder up to the apartments. I can only guess that because of the number of apartments (and subsequently no fireplaces) that Santa (in Italy anyway) takes a ladder to get into their homes. See picture :)

After arriving at the Milano Centraal Train Station, we figured out which platform our train left from and grabbed a sandwich. It was delicious! Fresh mozzarella, produce and deli meat on ciabatta bread... wrapped in paper to be eaten at the counter with, of course, a "Coca-Cola Light" (which tastes exactly like Coke, but not Diet Coke.) The train was super comfy; we were fortunate enough to get discounted tickets in first class through Eurail. Train is set up with 2 sets of chairs facing each other, sharing a table in very large chairs that recline. Too bad the 9 hour Delta flight couldn't be that comfortable.

We slept for a good portion of the train ride - but the views from Florence to Rome in particular were incredible. Large hills with vineyards, green pastures (despite being winter) and classic homes and farms - it looked straight out of the movie Gladiator.

Arrive at the hotel, we give our last name - and Jonathan (in true fashion) wearing his University of Texas hat - the desk clerk says "Do you drive a horse?" It took us a second to make sure we heard him correctly and he said "Your hat - you are a cowboy? yes? Do you drive a horse? I have an American horse - a quarter one outside of Roma." These are the stereotypes we can expect over the next few weeks!

Hotel room is small but cute and comfy. The bed is not long enough for the 6'2 Texan :(

Dinner was at a small Pizzeria - we had Traditional Roma pizza and crochettes? Mine was rice, tomato, ham and cheese rolled in a ball and breaded. Jonathan had a Potato/Ham croquette. They were tasty! More Coca Cola Light.

Jonathan is napping at the moment and then we're going to head out for some Gelato. We have lots to see tomorrow (Colosseum, Vatican, Spanish Steps) so it will be an early night!

Arrivederci!