Afternoon tea at the Australian Embassy and finally "Farewell!"

Please note to view all of the entries from January, go to archives and click on January.
Still January 23rd: We didn't have time to go back to Torra Rossa Park Hotel to get changed for the embassy so we tidied ourselves on the bus. Rosemary was very composed after fighting off a young thief who had unzipped her bag and sneaked his hand in like a spider. The afternoon tea they had laid out for us at the embassy was fabulous, savouries, pasteries, and a selection of champagnes and wines. We all took lots of group photos in front of the Australian Coat-of-arms.

We finished off the day at the restaurant with a five course farewell tea. Francesca and Paula ran a quiz which was closely contested by Belinda, Goretti and Cecilia(who was most impressed by her spoon). This was followed by some witty awards presented by Cecilia and Belinda. Everyone said a little something about what they learned or enjoyed during the trip. Back at the hotel a few of us had some dancing lessons with Domenica in the foyer whilst enjoying a drink...probably the liveliest that foyer has ever been!

January 24th: The following day it was a nine o'clock start. Goretti gathered up left over presents and gave them to Flavio (the bus driver) for his two children. He had been most helpfuland and excellent company over the last few days. Then we headed for the airport in Rome. After long queues to get our tickets and check in luggage we managed to get through security with only a little time to spend before boarding the flight to Singapore. The luggage which had been an ongoing topic of conversation for the whole group weighed in at between 21 and 33 kilos. Well done Liz... prize for the lightest luggage. Well done Adriana, yours actually wasn't the heaviest! Twelve hours and many plastic cups of water and "on demand" movies later we all arrived in Singapore and said our last farewells and took our respective flights home to some of the hottest weather Australia has experienced for a while. Thank you to all members of the group, I really had a fantastic time full of many memorable moments and lots of laughter. I will always be able to relive this fantastic time as I leaf through my many photos and look at my fellowship friends. I hope we can stay in touch. Thank you also to Sophie and Kate and the Endeavour Language Fellowship Foundation for giving me the chance to have this amazing adventure in Italy. Here endeth the blog.

An appointment with the Pope, Pinocchio and a chance meeting with Russell Crowe

January 22nd:

Today was another big walking day jammed-packed with explanations. It was also the coldest day I spent in Italy, about zero degrees. Meanwhile it was a humid 38 degrees in my beloved Blackmans Bay back home where everyone was sweating it out. We visited many of the sites we had seen the night before. We passed a little toyshop and met Pinocchio where all the soft toys enjoying the trip had the mandatory photo. Then we checked out the Pantheon. We stopped at the Trevi Fountain once again to get a group photograph. The above group photo one is courtesy of Fiona. A few members flipped coins towards Neptune and the Tritons following the famous custom of throwing it over their shoulder while facing away to ensure a return to Rome. A second coin entitles you to a wish. I wonder what the Latin Lover wished for! A guy with some kind of magnet attatched to the end of a stick was having the time of his life collecting coins from the fountain until he vanished as quickly as he appeared when the police made their presence felt.

We also saw an interesting system of penalties imposed on those who knowingly or unwittingly park in the pedestrian zones. A apparatus is placed around on wheel of the car which is then only removed once the fines are paid. The highlight of the day was listening to the Pope in Piazza San Pietro giving a speech and welcoming the crowd in Italian, English, German, Spanish and Polish. Goretti and I stood among the crowd and whooped as loudly as anyone. The Swiss Guard added a welcome splash of colour.

Whilst we were waiting for our guide, Stafano, Goretti spotted a gladiator and said she wanted a photo with this Russell Crowe. Most of my friends reckon he looks more like Shrek! The Roman Forum was also a highlight for me with its patchwork of ruined temples arches and basilicas. We viewed it from the Capitoline hill where we could make out the Sacred Way. Some of the ruins are now under restoration. We again viewed the colosseum but unfortunately not the interior as it was closed. You could still imagine how the mammoth structure could seat 55 000 people cheering for the blood of some poor gladiator.

The guided tour finished and quite a few members of the group stayed on shopping in the city centre whilst some of us returned to the hotel. I spent a bit of time layering the luggage and had a beer with Goretti.

Tutte le strade portano a Roma...and we went via Assisi.

January 21st:
Onward to Roma for three nights. After breakfast we departed from Florence and drove through the beautiful regions of Tuscany and Umbria. We stopped at Assisi for a guided tour with Ruggiero who gave an informative but concise summary of the main happenings of Assisi's history. It was one of the guided tours I enjoyed best. Anyway this tranquil medieval town perched halfway up Monte Subasio is heir to the legacy of St Francis(1181-1226). The bus driver drove to the top car park and then we took two escalators to reach the main starting point of the tour.

San Francesco was born here in 1182 and his spirit hovers over every aspect of the city's life. In his late teens he decided there was more to the world than material possessions and chose to pursue a life of chastity and poverty. He founded an order known as the Franciscans and this group attracted a huge following after his death. It was the usual story of one having to die before receiving the recognition they deserve, not that he really wanted any of this attention I am sure. Santa Chiara, a disciple of his, was not to be outdone and founded the Franciscans' female order. We also got to see Basilica di Santa Chiara her burial place. We looked around Piazza del Comune and later entered the Basilica di San Francesco which was very serene. This basilica dominates the city and receives huge numbers of pilgrims throughout the year. One would never know that the town had suffered serious damage when it was hit by an earthqake in September 1997. Side chapels had been created in the lower church to accommodate the growing number of pilgrims in the thirteenth century. In a small chapel we feasted our eyes on various momentos of San Francesco's life including his very modest dress and also a few presents including a horn that he received from a great Muslim king during his travels.

Whilst we were in this general vicinity some people were setting up for some kind of charity concert and there was a large film crew... from Thailand I think, not sure. I enjoyed looking at the frescoes on the Life of St Francis. We then had thirty minutes to do a quick bit of shopping and looking around by ourselves. At one-thirty we had lunch at Caratteristico Ristorante in Via E.Brizi.

It was then back on the bus travelling for Rome. We arrived in Rome at hotel Torra Rossa and then had dinner at Al Moro. After this met up with Stefano, our new guide for the next few days, to do a night tour of the great city from the comfort of the coach and a little on foot. After a number of red wines and an oversight to using certain facilities in the restaurant Cecilia found herself in a predicament all of her own. However, due to lucky circumstances and a very resourceful bus driver she was able to park her seat on the white enamel of the very posh Baglioni Hotel. The majestic buildings of Rome at night are certainly worth the look. We gazed upon many beautiful sights in the ancient centre including: the Colosseum, the Fountain of Trevi, Santa Maria Maggiore, the Victor Emmanuel Monument(more commonly known as the birthday cake), and the Vatican walls, looking at sites which ranged from the renaissance to the baroque. In the third photo you can see Goretti strutting her stuff in front of Rome's largest fountain, the Trevi. Goretti kept me in high spirits the whole trip. I never ceased to be amazed by her humour or by the driving skills of the bus drivers. They can expertly manoeuver their large tour buses through the narrowest of streets. We were all back at the hotel by midnight.