My flight left Philadelphia about an hour late, something about the baggage not being loaded on time. Considering my two checked in bags had the "we searched these" papers in them (as well as having my tiny manicure scissors confiscated from my carry-on), I hope my things were not part of causing the delay. I got up early on Tuesday so I would be tired enough to sleep on the plane, unfortunately the ride was more than bumpy enough to prevent me from getting any good sleep. The older gentleman next to me on the plane, who told me all about his world travels, said it was the worst flight he had ever been on. Although I will admit having some fear of flying, I think I handled it well by not freaking out at any point. Seeing France and Germany from the air was somewhat surreal to me. I spent a good amount of time staring out of a rear window when the clouds cleared. The sights on the second leg of the flight (Frankfurt to Rome) were by far the best. Seeing the mountains in Austria was spectacular.

Once we landed at Fumincino, I had to find the train into Rome. It was about a 30-minute ride and was not very eventful. Fortunately my hotel was less than a block from Termini Station... unfortunately the airport train stops at the edge of Termini and the walk to the actual station from the train was probably equal to five or six good city blocks. My room was rather small, but the hotel owner - Antonio - was a very nice man. We had some language difficulties, but things worked out well enough. Once in my room, I began to realize just how tired I was after two plane fights and having not slept in over 24 hours. I took a shower, felt rather homesick and alone, then passed out for four hours. Sleep helped clear my head and lift my spirits (though I still do miss the little guy). I went out and ate some lasagna and replied to some email at a local internet spot (basically a room with a bunch of computers where they charge you about 1 euro per hour). After that I went back to the hotel and played with this photo album software for a little while before zonking out once again.

Well, it seemed like a busy day to me.

- Jay.