Rome — Unplanned
A travel adventure to be remembered.
My first trip to Rome was in January of 1976. My wife and I planned to spend time in London before flying home to Kuala Lumpur via Delhi. However, while in London, we decided to add Rome to our trip home. In those days, if you flew with an “around-the-world” air ticket, you could change your flight dates and layovers, without charge, as long as they were along the same route.
We landed in Rome from London on New Year’s Day without any plans or hotel reservations. At the airport, a short stocky Italian asked if we needed a taxi. Not knowing what to expect, we said yes and he quickly lugged our suitcases onto his back and proceeded to run ahead of us to an unknown destination. We desperately ran after him, thinking he was taking off with our bags. He came to a stop at a small Fiat 500 parked some distance away from the regular and legal taxis. He strapped our bags onto the car’s roof and asked us where we were going. When I asked for an economical hotel recommendation he said, “I take you my cousin brother place — very good!” We were then driven, cramped in the back seat of the FIAT, wondering what we had gotten ourselves into. We soon arrived at a hotel which I remember as the Traiano. It was within sight and walking distance of the Roman Forum. For the sum of US$20 a night, we got a private room with bath on the first floor and full meals. Since we arrived at lunch, the person behind the desk, probably the “cousin brother,” coaxed us to a table, and asked if we would like some wine. When I ordered two glasses of wine, he laughed and plunked down a full bottle on the table. “If you cannot finish, take to room!”
Five minutes later we were served two heaping plates of delicious spagetti and pasta. We ate most of it and thought we were done. Little did we know that was only the starter, for we were soon faced with a huge platter of roast chicken, roast potatoes, gravy and vegetables. We politely struggled through the meal and were fully stuffed when we took our unfinished bottle of wine to our room for a much needed nap.
Staff at the hotel went out of their way to advise us on where we could easily walk to and what we should see. We were able to visit many sites and places on our own and the only tour we splurged on was the bus and guided tour to the Vatican museums, St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel. There were no crowds that day and we were fortunate to take a leisurely tour of the Sistine Chapel and see it in its glory, before the controversial modern restoration began in 1979.
I don’t believe we could have planned our first visit to Rome any better. The value, quality of the hotel and its central location allowed us to either walk, or take short taxi rides to some glorious sites — the Colosseum, Roman Forum, the Catacombs, the Trevi Fountain, and other less famous sites that now elude my memory.
During one of our walks we accidentally came across the Capuchin Crypt. We had never heard of it and no one we met mentioned it. We found it fascinating as it featured small chapels decorated with the skeletal remains of Capuchin monks!
We returned to Rome on two planned visits in the nineties and spent much more money then. However, we will always remember our first visit as the most enjoyable and memorable of the three.
It really goes to show that sometimes, unplanned visits can most rewarding.
