Dip yer toes in the warm waters of the sea!

Captain’s Log: 08 June 2010

I woke up this morning to the smell of fresh rain. It rained most of the night. This was a god-send seeing as it cooled my room enough for me to sleep properly. The sun rises so early in Venice. At 5:30 it was nearly bright enough to burn ants with my glasses. Slowly I packed and thought that 3 days in Venice was a good amount of time. If I had more money it would have been perfect probably. I lugged my 50lbs bag over some bridges and eventually came to the train station. I could get on several different trains to get to the Mestre station outside of Venice. I looked around and saw one that left 40 minutes before my train in the Mestre left. I attempted to board it, but no such luck. The doors were all closed and I couldn’t see anyone on there. My stomach became slightly unsettled. I quickly looked for the next train that would depart. It left 19 minutes before my train in the Mestre left. It is a 12 minute train ride to the Mestre. I had roughly 7 minutes to get out find my train and get on it. It was a relaxing 12 minute ride to the Mestre…

I rushed off trying to find where I was headed. I located a departures board and scanned for my train number. 9403 to Terminini. I found it in seconds. Thankfully it was nearby and I rushed and rushed over there, hauling my bag with herculean strength up the stairs. I made it to the train with 2 minutes to spare. Bravo, Captain Nathan! Ye be makin’ tha train by the seat of your swashbuckling pantaloons!

The termini in Rome, though daunting at first, was marked well enough for me to figure out how to get to St. John’s University. Again, praise be to God, I found St. John’s with relative ease and it was hardly a block from the train station. I love God. I think he loves me as well. I got to St. John’s and they gave me the rundown of what to do. I made it into my room and immediately claimed the bed next to the air conditioner. My two roommates were going to arrive in an hour’s time, so I felt like these past 5 days of no air-conditioning entitle me to some luxury. Everyone arrived and much to my surprise, we were given an allowance for transportation, museum fees, and food. I am already making money off this trip! We all gathered and every talked about their travel troubles. I topped the tales with my telling of the terrible itinerary my dad and I tackled together. It is nice to be the –est at something. I am the worstest traveler in our group. JK. I am already wary of a few of my fellow students. Introductions of these people will come in my following blog. I am not going to whine or complain for the rest of this blog. I am happy that I know people now. I am happy that I have essentially three tour guides with me. I am also happy that I met a new friend today.

I can’t quite call him a new friend. I had the World of Egypt with him last semester, and got to know a little bit about him. I knew his name is Connor, he has a deep voice, and he is mildly intelligent. In the 20 minutes it took to walk to the Vatican, I learned more about him than I did all last semester. Pathetic on my part. How little time I take for others—it is wildly un-Christ like. Anyway, Connor and I talked as we walked. (hard to believe I can do both at the same time amirite?) I learned he is a lot like me in that we both have traveled all over the globe. He etched me out by a couple of countries though. He was impressed that I went to Papua New Guinea. I am a boss like that—much like Pericles (you’ll learn about him someday). I assume Connor and I will get along well enough, we were content to hang back and enjoy the rhythm of the city.

I think this is understood but many people get caught up seeing the spectacles and the ancient sites. Yes, they are marvels, for sure. But, and this goes for every place we visit with a history, you can’t neglect what is and focus on what was. You have to take them both hand in hand. Rome WAS a great city, no doubt. It has deep and rich history, but Rome today has its own history. Its own vibe and tempo. Honestly, I can see the Rome of the past very clearly in the history books. Contextualizing it by seeing the sites has already helped me tons, don’t get me wrong. The atmosphere of Rome and the people who live here, however, is an experience you can’t read or really write about.

That aside, tonight was wonderful. We walked a little ways to the Vatican and got a taste for what we will see tomorrow. We saw forts and bridges, statues and reliefs, ruins on top of ruins. Rome is magical in a sense. The past mingles so well with the present.

We then went to eat dinner. The professors were treating. It was a 4 course masterpiece. The prosciutto and mozzarella was fantastic.

Then to top it off, the tiramisu arrived. Whew, not eating for 24 hours really improves the taste of things. So does good company and new faces. Meeting my fellow classmates over a meal of this caliber was a great experience. The Mediterranean breeze cooled the evening and we walked back through the calm streets of Rome—recently vacated by the tired tourists. A great end to a long day.

Well, I thought it was the end. I have about 100 pages of reading to do by tomorrow. I am, of course, putting them off to write my blog. The Captain’s Tales are mar’ impartant than a grade! Tales of adventures and foreign food are much more enticing to write about than Livy’s histories or chronologies of times past.

I must go. I miss you all except Ben.

End Transmission.