Much to my surprise, the tour group had nothing planned for today, either as part of the package or as an option, save for a dinner later in the evening which I decided to pass on, so instead I spent the day solo. Rain was on and off, though not nearly as hard as the day before. It's a shame that yesterday's weather made it difficult to enjoy the walking tour of the old section of town, yet at least it was warm enough that the temperature was not an issue.
I was concerned that Rome would be "locked down" on Christmas, much as London which essentially goes entirely dark for the holidays, so to my pleasant surprise I found many places were open, including restaurants and bars of all styles and sizes, gift shops, the local food shop, and the Hard Rock Cafe.
I was debating between attending the Papal Blessing or taking another tour of the city since the hop-on/hop-off buses were running. I decided to take the bus tour, since I had already received the blessing from the Pope during the audience with him on the previous Wednesday. (Surely I don't need two Papal blessing a week, do I?) The Wednesday audience was much smaller and "more personal," compared to the attached picture from the media which shows St. Peter's Plaza to be packed.
Surprisingly, the Metro was closed and the tour bus did not stop anywhere near the Hard Rock, so for my "pilgrimage" there, I had to take a taxi both ways. Normally, I eschew taking taxis as I think public transit will serve the need for a far better price, not to mention it is more rewarding to figure out than simply taking a cab, but with the Metro shut down I did not have much of a choice. The classic cheeseburger was pure heaven for me, as I have not had a "regular" meal in several days now. Yes, this was definitely better than the "special" seafood dinner I had planned and tried a couple of days prior. In some regards, Hard Rock is always that oasis in a foreign city, a place an American can go and get known food, wait staff with flair, and a predictable decor.
I was very tired in the late afternoon, I guess the weather and dampness got to me, so I took a three hour nap until 8:30 PM then went back to see my waitress with an attitude friend. Surprisingly, many places were still open, so even in the late evening on Christmas Day it was quite possible to find whatever
My waitress with the attitude: Xhefka Fernanda (Turkish); she actually read the above and insisted on typing her name in for me…and she swears that is really the way it is spelled.
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