April 28, 2012
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Getting Around Rome
Rome’s a big city. You’ve probably heard horror stories of people trying to drive in Rome. It was busy on the streets, and there were so many motorcycles and Smart Cars. But, we opted to use the bus (mostly) and subway (when it was useful). Unlike Berlin and London, there are only two lines on the Subway.
One day, there was a transportation strike. It was well publicized, and it must happen often enough that on our bus tickets to and from the airport it was printed, “This bus is not affected by transportation strikes.” (or is it “effected”??)
During strikes, some lines run and some don’t. We got right on one bus, and then waited 90 minutes for a second one.
In the rain.
When the bus came, it was a mob scene. People we so smashed on, they could not shut the doors, and people had to get off. We didn’t even try for the first bus. The next bus came a few minutes later, and we got on. It was just as packed! I sat on James’ lap (sort of), and Rachel sat on Michael’s.
But the buses weren’t always so crowded!
And it wasn’t always rainy.
We were very glad for our maps and tour books. (HIGHLY recommend Frommer’s Day by Day series for any city that you might choose to visit.)
Getting around Rome was part of the fun, and we enjoyed it.
