Blog | My return to Italy |
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| Written by Keith Rhoades | |
| Thursday, 01 October 2009 | |
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It is 5:30 pm here in Rome....It is hard to believe that I am actually over in Europe. I flew yesterday from LA to Atlanta where I met up with Craig. Had lunch and then got on our 9.5 hour flight to Rome. For some reason it was a long 9 hour flight. I never thought we were going to get here. We arrived this morning at 9 am, had to clear customs and get our transportation to the St. Regis in central Rome. The hotel is absolutely luxurious! After we got checked in we went for a walk and then had lunch at a little cafe on a side street. I just love Italy..Europe...sitting in an outdoor cafe, sipping espresso and chatting about all kinds of stuff. We got back to our room and Craig was tired and wanted to take a nap....but not me....go go go. I changed and took a shower and went to the Presidential palace, The Trevi Fountain, and just wandered around. It is hard to believe I was here before and I actually felt a little sad when I got here thinking of all that has happened in the 10 years since I was last hear. Plus, the 2nd time you visit a place it just doesn't seem to have the impact and awe as it does the first time. But each trip is different. Of course, it wouldn't be an adventure without a little drama. In the past, I have always been able to use my ATM card to get cash. While I was out I went to the ATM machine and it said card rejected. I went to 6 different ATM machines and they all rejected my card and said Not Valid. I went into the bank and they said I had to get prior approval to use it international before I left the states. I couldn't even get a cash advance. I came all the way back to the hotel and booted up my cell phone and called Chase...luckily they were open and they put me through to fraud protection. They authorized me to use my card so I then went back to the bank and was able to get some Euros though that cell phone call is going to cost me a pretty penny. We off to go grab dinner and hopefully gelato. Tomorrow we do the tour of the Vatican and Cistine Chapel. |
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