Back in Rome

Rome Termini
Originally uploaded by Sibad.

Got into Rome Termini at 5.00pm on Wednesday and made the mistake of descending with our luggage to the Metro line A for just one stop to get to the Absolute B & B in Via Principe Eugenio 60, which we could have walked in 10 minutes. A high 1880s arched portico led us into a broad well between high apartments, some with small beflowered balconies. We entered one of the apartments through a wrought iron porch rising through marble stairways in a finely crafted wooden lift in an open shaft to a spacious 4th floor apartment where we found a room with a view to the other buildings and a glimpse of the Roman sky. 1930s wood furniture, fine art prints and some limited edition prints, magazines and books, a very clean well fitted kitchen and eating area and a young owner from Athens who seems acclimatised to Italy. A delightful shower after our voyage from Igoumenitsa and train from Ancona. Ano Korakiana seems already distant because of the time that’s passed but the large suitcase, abruptly opened gives a waft of onion and lemon and the interior of the house where it had sat for a few weeks.

Via Marghera, Rome

Via Marghera, Rome
Originally uploaded by Sibad.

Linda and I are sitting in limbo outside the Beehive Hotel, Via Marghera. The sun's trying to come out. The traffic is grumbling round the Termini station and we are thinking all seats are taken on all trains and coaches to Bari tomorrow and we'll probably have to sit on our luggage for 8 hours, or could we play 'silly old foreigners' and hope someone will take pity on us like they do in England where everyone is so civil. Yeah, well. The cat is called Ingmar. The other one is called Lin's handbag