June 12 - Goodbyes, San Onofrio and Riding in Trains

My last day in Rome I was leaving later than everyone else. I woke up and packed the last of my things and went down to say goodbye to all of my new friends.

Then I ate breakfast and headed up the Janiculum to meet my new German pal from the hotel, Suzanne. Since I had some time to kill before my train she took me to a small, little known church nearby, San Onofrio.

It is small and a bit run down but pretty and being at the top of the hill (next to Ospidale Bambin Gesu) had great views of the city too. She walked me through the exterior areas and explained what she knew about the church's history and the art.

She showed me a long series of frescoes that illustrate life of San Onofrio, explaining them as best as she could.

Then she introduced me to a lady who works there, who could explain more about the art and architecture inside. The lady (whose name I cannot recall at the moment) spoke almost entirely in Italian but remarkably (with a lot of fierce concentration) I was able to understand most, if not all, of what she explained. Most of the major pieces seemed to be from the renaissance period, and they have some paintings that are from the school of Leonardo Da Vinci ... so produced by his students.

After seeing so many masterful works by the likes of Caravaggio, Rubens and Raphael, nothing here struck me as being completely spectacular but it was still quite lovely.

Then I headed back to Villa Maria, where I checked the internet to waste a little more time. For some reason I had it in my head that I was leaving Rome at about 2 pm ... But that was my arrival time! My train was to leave at 12:45 ... and I thankfully realized that at about 12. The man at the desk called my a taxi and I anxiously rushed to Termini, just making it onto my train. P.S. Hauling heavy luggage onto a train full of people is less than fun.

I sat with two girls who were from Wisconsin I believe and had, like me, decided to extend a stay after a study abroad trip in Rome. About 2 hours of riding through lovely countryside ...

... and then I arrived at Firenze Santa Maria Novella station, where I bought a regional ticket to Montecatini Terme.

Then I got onto the wrong train.

But some nice people helped me get off at the next station and find the right one. I arrived in Montecatini around 3:30 or 4 and got a cab to the hotel. The nicest old man was my driver. He insisted that I sit next to him instead of in the back and gave me a card so I could call him if I need a taxi later. He even showed me an old black and white photo of his younger self. Pretty sure he was flirting!

Then checked in, unpacked and napped a bit, then headed down for a yummy dinner at Don Chisciotte.