Rambling Jack's Laboratory

nearhotel

We paid a little extra and took the fast train from Florence to Rome, getting there in about 90 minutes. When we reached this building, we knew it was time to turn right and head to our perfect little hotel.

We decided to spend the day walking around Rome. We wanted to see the river and, if we were lucky, perhaps we'd even see the Pope at the Spanish Steps, which he visits every year on Dec. 8 for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

anotherfacetoface
This is part of the "face to face" series that Kim photographed.

anotherbridge

The Tiber River had a swift current. We crossed this bridge to an island, which houses a hospital, and then crossed another bridge to the other side.


jackwithbackpack

Looks like someone bought himself a fancy backpack in Florence.

bridgeovertiber

A pretty bridge.

bridgewithangels1

Check out the angels.

warinbabyl;on

There was lot of graffiti. I almost forgot about our invasion and occupation of Babylon.

weirdgraffiti

There was lot of graffiti like this. Who are they?

sidvicious

What about Johnny Rotten? Doesn't anybody care about him?


icerink

We came across an ice rink near the river. I imagined Steve Dozen working as a DJ here, closing each night with "Hotel Calfornia."


viewfromhilltop

We climbed some hills and enjoyed the view.

roadtomunment

Further up we went. Kim took this one of our approach to a monument.

garibaldimonument

Here's a monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi, who at one point fought against the pope.

guirbaldi

Check out Romulus and Remus suckling on the she-wolf. I bought one of those cheesy plastic statues depicting those two fellows. It's proudly displayed in our living room.

facetoface

Another one.

romeordie

Garibaldi's slogan was Rome or Die. After the battle, he went to Venice.

maryoncolumn

Our next mission was to walk to this statue near the Spanish Steps. Since 1854, the pope has visited this spot every Dec. 8 for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

streetawaitspope

The crowds were lining up. The Spanish Steps were covered with people, so we could see much.

mayormaybe

This guy in a sash walked through the gauntlet and shook people's hands. Some people seemed delighted to see him. Who was it? The mayor?

mysterycelebrity

This lady stepped out a doorway and everyone started looking at her and taking her photo. Was she a celebrity? Just in case, I took this shot.

pope.firstphoto

Here comes the Pope in his Pope Mobile! Yee-haw!

popecoming

Meet Pope Benedict XVI, aka Joseph Alois Ratzinger

pope.wave
Hello!

pope.side

He got out a short distance away and started talking. I recognized his voice. A couple minutes later, we left.

streetatnight

It was a beautiful evening.

tomboftheunknown

We rounded this corner and found a restaurant.

finalcocktails

I ordered a martini, which was made perfectly. Kim got a white Russian. We enjoyed a wonderful meal, returned to our hotel and flew out the next morning.

It was a perfect honeymoon. It was romantic, adventurous and we had a blast. Thank you to everyone who helped us out and made this trip of a lifetime possible. We love you.

The next day we took a train to Florence.

guyontrainwithbike

Check out this guy and his mustache. The folding bike is a good idea. Eventually I'll have to add one of those to my collection.

We didn't know that there were slow trains and fast trains. So a trip that we thought would take an hour and a half took four hours. Live and learn.

florence B&B

We were told that due to a holiday, it might be hard to find a room. So when I guy approached us at the train station and told us he would take us to his B&B, we jumped on it. When we needed to use the bathroom, we tip-toed past the family watching soccer in the living room.

hotelcalif


We could have stayed here. As the song says, you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave.


churchside

We walked around Florence at night.

kimbreakfast

The next morning they served us breakfast in our room. For the first time since we left home, we got eggs for breakfast. We were happy campers.

narrowstreets

We were now on a mission to see David. We wandered the streets and found an unassuming building. There was no line. We paid for our tickets and entered. David was massive and surrounded by photos by American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe. The photos of naked humans actually complimented David. We weren't allowed to snap any photos inside the museum so I don't have any pictures of David to show you.


davidhasasmallpenis

However, I did find this commentary inside a bathroom stall.

florencechurch

We then continued to wander the streets. Check out this church.


florenceceiling

Nearby was the St. Giovanni Baptistery. Here's the ceiling.

eatingdemons

A demon enjoys a tasty snack.

bicyclesoldlady

We wandered some more as I got colder and colder. Winter had arrived, and I was in need for a wool sweater.

streetperformerflorence

Here's a one-man band.

kimwithstatues

My beautiful wife. Lovely, lovely, lovely, and darn good navigator.

riverandbridgde

The Ponte Vecchio spans the Arno River.

jackandKiminFlorence

Lovers

streetsofflorence9

Shop, shop, shop.

gameover

Got that?

cicerorestaurant

This was one of the best restaurants we went to. It was pricey, but delicious.

meatdeli

The next morning we visited a giant indoor market with all sorts of interesting vendors.


balsami1

Here's another photo by Kim.

meathanging

And another one.

rabbit

How about some rabbit?

store

Check out the buckets of olives.

We then got on a train and headed back to Rome. There was only one full day left before we had to fly home.