Goodbye Italy!
Ciao Italia!
Γεια σας Ελλάδα
Geia sas, Greece!
Hello Greece!
Today we finally part ways with Jude after two weeks of traveling together.
It seems much longer as our quarters have been tight and hunger has been persistent.
We departed the hotel with last looks and subversive insults
from the proprietor of the Residenza Camilla Apartments.
One more free bus ride to Tiburtina train station,
and from there to Roma Termini station, the main hub of the city.
Jude waits to purchase a ticket to Austria while
we arrange for a flight to Athens, Greece.
The enormous station has even bigger lines so we tag-team:
Jude sits with the bags while we take at least an hour to purchase the next transport.
Then it’s his turn in a different queue.
His time is more substantial at over two hours for a ticket.
In the end, his dirty laundry was stolen by international bag thieves,
and we were all taken for a ride for tickets to our next destinations.
After a quick stop at a cyber cafe for room reservations,
we order some food and beers to enjoy our last few hours together.
Time for our departure times roll around,
and instead of goodbyes, we declare to meet again soon.
The train rolls forward through the city and into the countryside
to the Leonardo da Vinci Airport.
Check our bags and board the evening plane with duty-free chocolate and rum.
Land in Athens, the infamous ancient inspiration to Western civilization.
Too dark to see the new sights and trains into the city do not run for six hours
Too dark to see the new sights and trains into the city do not run for six hours
so we settle into the airport cafe seats for Heinekens, flask rum,
and to be bombarded by broadcast low-budget Greek MTV until morning…