I left you off when I said Goodbye to Hassam at the airport. Now the taxi ride was quite an experience. Not only was it my first ride in a taxi ever, but also I quickly learned how Romans drive. The taxi driver hardly used the brake and was always switching lanes haphazardly as others were also trying to switch lanes. He also loves to use his horn and to tail whom ever was in front of him. It got worse once we were in Rome. The streets are smaller and the traffic is even more chaotic then on the highway. At one point, we were stuck in a huge traffic jam with mopeds zipping between cars and horns honking loudly. The driver turned to look at me and gave me a shrug as if to say “This is Rome for you!” after 15 minutes of praying for safety of my life in that car. We arrived at the Hotel Tiziano and after paying the taxi driver (40 Euros!) I entered the hotel and explained my situation to the
Concierge. Apparently, they knew that I might try contacting them so they knew what to do. I was soon on the phone talking with Dr. Prebys and she told me to catch the first train to Assisi. So after the concierge called me another taxi. I drove to the train station bought a ticket to Assisi for 20 euro and I was on my way.
After all, of the stress from travelling and the morning panic, I was extremely exhausted but I had to fight the jetlag, and let me tell you, the jetlag was winning. Since the morning I was always worried that something else might go wrong so I was tense the whole two hours to Assisi. It was not until I saw the sign outside the train station that said “Assisi” did I allow myself to relax and enjoy the stunning countryside and city of Assisi.
I got off the train and flagged down another taxi. I showed him the name of the hotel address from the concierge and we drove up the winding mountain streets of Assisi. Assisi is a quaint and quiet town set on a side of a mountain. All the buildings have pink brick and clay rooftops. The higher we travelled up the mountain the more of the beautiful green countryside I could see behind me. After five minutes, the taxi stopped in front of a funny looking building that had stairs descending into the mountain. I met the man who ran the hotel (or as I found out later, a retreat center) and asked if the group from Saint Mary’s has arrived yet. I was surprised to hear that he was not expecting them for another half an hour. How did I manage to beat them?
Well, apparently, they were still at the airport when I had left. What is even more amazing is that they were right where I had been franticly waiting for them. On the packet, it said that the people who were picking us up would be clearly marked as a group for Saint Mary’s. They must not have been clear enough, for I heard several people say how they had not noticed them either but by a happy coincidence, they noticed someone that they knew from the group.
Anyway, back to Assisi. The four days that we spent in Assisi were incredible! From climbing up the cobblestone roads to visiting churches to nightly gelatos, I felt that nowhere else could be a more relaxing place to recuperate from a stressful travelling schedule. Every meal, except breakfast of course, is served with a bottle of wine and they served us one delicious course at a time ending with a bowl of fresh fruit for dessert.
I seem to be followed, very closely, by my guardian angel during this trip because of not only what happened in the airport, but also when I lost my sweater. I had dropped it while we were walking down to visit a smaller chapel at the bottom of Assisi. After we went through the chapel, it had started raining. I reached in my purse to look for my sweater, thankful that I had something dry to put on, when I realized it was not there. I backtracked all the way back to our hotel and gave my sweater up for lost. The next day, we were sitting in the lobby before dinner, when a man came up to us and asked in Italian if we spoke English. He asked us if one of us had lost a sweater that looked like Meghan’s sweater. (Meghan was sitting right next to me wearing a similar sweater that I had just lost, and, obviously, he pointed to her.) I told him that I lost it yesterday and he went to get it. He said he found it before it was raining. I was so happy, so as he walked away, I blew him a kiss in thanks. Ok, so before you get any ideas, this man was dad’s age so it was harmless. Moreover, I was excited about my sweater. So anyway, he saw me blow him a kiss and he goes “No, no! You give me a real kiss on the cheek.” I thought this was a little strange so I stand up and walked over to him. He grabbed my arms and we kissed cheek to cheek as Italian friends do. I was blushing when I sat back down with my friends, but I guess it is normal for the Italians. After dinner, I saw him again and he asked where we were from and was being friendly asking questions about studies. He was a nice guy and I was happy to have met him. It seems as if there is many people in Italy willing to help as many people as they can.
On Saturday, were given the whole afternoon off. So, me, Meghan, and Bethany, decided to walk down to the little neighboring town at the bottom of the hill to see the San Maria de Grazie Basilica. It took us about 40 minutes to reach our destination. I was surprised how huge the church was. In a gift shop that was connected to the church, I bought a cheap wooden bracelet rosary. I took the bracelet and had it made a relic by both Saint Frances and Saint Claire. The next day, we had mass in the chapel, one last lunch and then we gathered on the bus and headed towards Rome.
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