Day 14: Ciao, Finland!

Wednesday was a travel day, where we would finally depart from Finland and head to the rest of our European adventure. We bid farewell to Phil and Aaron, and got a ride to the airport from Ericko, a friend Mary Beth had made who lived in Joensuu. After an interesting discussion comparing the educational systems of the two countries on the drive, we checked in to the very small Joensuu airport and boarded the plane.

We arrived in Helsinki and had a four-hour layover until we headed for Rome. We did a little shopping, but basically just waited. I was struck (as I had been throughout the trip) how ubiquitous American culture was in this European setting. In Finland, I would regularly see American pop culture references (Cars, Darth Vader, Spider-Man), especially for children. And I would constantly hear American music. Every once in a while, I would hear an American or British song covered in Finnish—it’s going to be a while before I forget the Finnish version of “Lady Marmalade.”

Even flying over the Italian countryside and seeing the dramatic change in topography, I began to get excited. I still hadn’t quite wrapped my head around the fact that we were going to be in Rome in just a couple of hours. The plane landed and we disembarked, and the “Welcome to Rome” signs helped bring that reality home.

So did the surroundings. Even at the airport, it was pretty clear that Rome was going to be a very different experience. We were going from a small, sleepy college town in rural Finland to one of the busiest capitals in the world.

We (eventually) collected our luggage and made our way to the hotel. Mary Beth wanted to take a taxi, but I was trying to be cheap and see if we could get by with a bus to the city center then a taxi to our hotel. Unsurprisingly, we ended up taking a taxi from the airport.

Which ended up to be a better decision for two reasons. First, we were both tired and the simplicity of the taxi right to our hotel (the Della Vittoria) was likely for the best. But more importantly, the taxi ride got us a great little driving tour of Rome. You’ve seen the Coliseum in pictures, but until you actually drive by it, seeing one of the most significant historical sites on the planet, right across the street from a series of restaurants and shops, you don’t get the reality of it.

Throughout the drive, I was struck how Rome has intertwined its past and its present so completely. We drove by sites like the Coliseum and the Spanish Steps, as well as obelisks that were likely raised to military victories of Roman emperors thousands of years ago, right next to shops and businesses, and people going about their daily lives. I distinctly remember as we drove up to a large square in front of one of the four Roman cathedrals, and seeing the sign for an optician sticking out in front of the view.

And the taxi ride itself was a trip. I knew that driving in a city like Rome was an adventure, but you don’t really understand that until you experience it yourself. Lanes in Rome are more like gentle suggestions. Motorcycles and scooters regularly slide between or to the side of traffic in an attempt to get ahead. Cars bunch up at intersections, jockeying for position. At one point, we went through a roundabout at what the taxi driver said was the city center. The roundabout was huge, able to hold about five or six cars wide. There were no lanes, no markings, nothing whatsoever in terms of traffic control. You just dove in, and elbowed your way to where you wanted to go.

The Roman streets we drove through were tight, busy, and bustling with energy.  We arrived at the hotel and checked in, setting our luggage down and making our way out for dinner. After asking our less-than-friendly hotel clerk for help, we walked a little bit. While it was fun to be out in the dark (after having been in continual sunlight the entire time we were in Finland), we did realize that our hotel was a little off the beaten path. While it was nice, we did realize how spoiled we were in Joensuu to be right next door to a supermarket.

We did, however, end up trying the restaurant right next door to the hotel. And it was amazing. Mary Beth had a marinara pizza and I had a fettuccini bolognese.  The meal was one of the best we had ever had. Combine that with a bruschetta appetizer and ice cream for dessert, and we were much happier.

We got back to the hotel room and got ourselves ready for the next day. I will say that soccer in Italian is way more entertaining than soccer in Finnish, for whatever reason. Our TV has hundreds of channels, but only one in English—and that’s CNN, so I’m not sure I would even count that. But it mattered little, as we were both exhausted and slept to get ready for the next day.