Florentine Notebook -- On the Train

A Florentine Notebook

On the Train

Rome: Monday, 8:17 AM

ell, my train to Florence was scheduled to leave two minutes ago, and here I am riding through the outskirts of Rome on the treno that connects Da Vinci airport and Termini (Rome's main train station). There was some kind of problema and so we were a good half hour late leaving Da Vinci. I guess I'm just going to have to expect this kind of thing. And, anyway, it's not like I'm in a big hurry. Heck, I'm still trying to come to grips with the fact that I'm actually in Rome!

I haven't seen many buildings yet, so most of my impressions have focused on the passing flora:

Pinaster trees looking like giant, green umbrellas
Majestic Spanish chestnut trees
Olive groves (in Italy, it seems, any unused ground is ripe for an olive tree or two)
Even palm trees, for crying out loud!

On the train to Florence: Monday, 11:15 AM

I'm stunned by how gorgeous the Italian countryside is. It's nothing but miles and miles of beautiful, rolling hills and tall, weathered escarpments, most of which have a small village at the top. These villages are usually a fair distance away (see the picture below), but occasionally a trackside cliff will just loom up out of nowhere. In these cases, the villages are close enough to see just how old they are and to feel the crushing weight of Italian history. Cool.

The Italian countryside

Florentine Notebook Inflight Insomnia Jet Lag!