One of the most thrilling trips I’ve ever embarked on was a spontaneous journey to Italy in the spring. Why was it so exciting? Because it was a secret adventure, known only to a select few, filled with unexpected twists, and my first time traveling alone to a new country.
I had promised myself that 2019 would be the year I visited Italy. No. Matter. What.
Before I dive into the details, here’s a crucial travel tip: ALWAYS VALIDATE YOUR TRAIN TICKET. Look for the little green validation “stations” at every train stop. Slide your ticket in to get it stamped, or risk a hefty 90 euro fine.
Day 1-3: Rome
My adventure began in Rome, where I stayed at the Yellow Hostel. Known as the top-rated party hostel in the city, it offered a cheap nightly rate and was just a 10-minute walk from the train station. With Google Maps offline, finding it was a breeze. The location was convenient for the train station and accessible to major sites if you’re comfortable walking a couple of miles. However, the hostel’s staff and service were less welcoming than I had hoped. Despite the comfortable beds and secure lockers (bring your own padlock), there were no breakfast options and the overall vibe felt uninviting.
As soon as I was settled in my room, I hit the streets and made my way to some sites to include the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and Palatine Hill. Despite being awake for over 24hrs and jet-lagged beyond belief, this experience alone was an incredible way to spend my first day in the city. I did almost get tourist trapped at the Colosseum, which is a huge problem in any tourist area, but I haven’t seen it quite as bad as I did that day. As a perfect target, a woman walking alone and obviously American and way too friendly, I was approached by a man trying to “give” me a bracelet. I said no thank you and wished him well, he began to tell me a story about how he came here for his daughter and even showed me a picture of a baby that was obviously photo shopped for the scam. I entertained the small talk for a couple minutes, trying to be polite and continue to the entrance. He put the bracelet on my wrist, I said thank you and tried to turn away. He stopped me and said, “No, I need something in return for my daughter”. I gave him back the bracelet that I didn’t want in the first place and told him I didn’t ask for it and that it wasn’t fair to try to get money from me.
And this might be the first time in scammer history, but he looked at me and said “you’ve been so nice to me and I can see your smile is genuine, just take the bracelet and keep being a good person”.
*Please don’t assume this could work for you in similar situations*
What I learned from that, was that I got extremely lucky, and NEVER give anyone the time of day again. Save yourself the hassle and harassment, it could put you in a much more dangerous situation than the one I was able to walk away from.
I had a combined ticket for the Colosseum and Ruins through Viator.com. I walked through Palatine Hill and the Forum first. To my amazement, lilacs were in bloom and the scent was heavenly.
While I stood in line for the Colosseum, I was grabbed by the arm of a security guard and he kept pointing at my tattoo sleeve. It was all in broken English, but I think the gist of it was he really liked my work and was *forcing* me to the front of the line. I just kept nodding and saying thank you. He took me up to the very front near the metal detector, I tried to toss my purse through and this same guard GRABBED it and handed it back to me like it wasn’t necessary to make sure I was safe before walking into a historical monument because he was too impressed with my skin art. This all happened so fast and I am still dumb-founded to this day at how that was even a real moment in my life. I’ll never forget it.
I feel like when you hear Rome, you think Colosseum. Or at least I did before visiting. I hate to say it, but…it was unremarkable for me. I think seeing it from the outside was more impressive than the inside. Now, I’m sure if I would’ve had a more in depth tour ticket through the different levels and chambers, it would have been a different experience. But, if you feel like you would be absolutely devastated if you never experience it, you’ll be just fine. Just appreciate it from outside and continue onto the ruins around the area.
Back at the hostel, I was starving. The hostel’s restaurant and bar across the street offered a free small portion of pasta for guests in the evenings. While the food was a nice perk, the staff’s cold demeanor persisted. Luckily, I met a fellow solo traveler from Chile, and we enjoyed our pasta and the sunset together. The next day, we explored major sites like Borghese Gardens, Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, Pantheon, Largo di Torre Argentina, Piazza Venezia, Altar of the Fatherland, and Spanish Steps.
After a long day, we split up and I took an Uber back to the hostel for some much needed sleep. We met up later for a late lunch and then I met up with my friend Sabrena who worked at the US Embassy in Rome (how lucky, right). She gave me a small tour of the grounds and later that evening, she took me out clubbing with her colleagues in the city. That night was equally one of the most memorable and unmemorable nights of my life, thanks to the mass consumption of alcohol. We danced, we laughed, we got crazy.
The next morning our plan was to take the train together to Florence, but she couldn’t get off work as early as I was planning to leave so we departed at different times. I was so hungover, I thought I was going to die. Not really, but kind of.
I made it half way to Florence before rushing to the train bathroom. TMI, but I had to hold my vomit in my mouth as I was frantically looking for the bathroom. Of all the people in Italy that could have helped me in that moment was a nun. When in Rome, drink as the Romans do?
I arrived in Florence and began walking to our Air BnB to meet up with Sabrena’s friend, Brent. We walked into the square to see the Duomo and get lunch, and I accidently ordered hot dog pizza.
You read that right, I wish I could say the same about my translation of the Italian menu. I think it was technically Vienna sausage.
I also ordered the most incredible smoked salmon salad.
But that hot dog pizza…never again. It had us laughing for a solid 10 minutes straight.
We met up with Sabrena a couple hours later and walked through the rest of the city, enjoying gelato and attempting to rent bicycles along the way.
There just so happened to be a bike race set up near the park we were walking through and I may or may not have trespassed and attempted to race it myself…
I stayed in the rest of the night while Sabrena and Brent went out. The next morning, Sabrena and I were on our way to Cinque Terre to stay in Vernazza which was my favorite part of the whole trip. We had the most perfect hotel overlooking the harbor of Vernazza, which in my opinion, is the best village to stay in.
We ate an incredible dinner by the water and did our best to visit every village that night.
Monterosso was very scenic with a nice little beach and a lot more shops to choose from than Vernazza.
We failed tragically at visiting Corniglia, missed the train multiple times which stopped running entirely through the villages at 8pm. We barely caught the last one back to Vernazza and were panicked the whole time, but fell into hysterics and couldn’t help but laugh at the whole situation.
The next morning on our way back to Rome, we stopped in Manarola for the iconic viewpoint, which is my second favorite village.
Sabrena was unfortunately pickpocketed at a train station at a stop back to Rome and had to head back without me. I attempted to visit Pisa, made it to the train station and even bought a bus ticket to the center, but the transportation set up was so confusing I couldn’t find my way. It was disappointing, but probably for the best. I made my way back to Rome and tried to check into my hotel, just to realize I had left my passport in the closet of the hotel in Vernazza…a 6hr train ride away. And I was supposed to fly back to America the next afternoon.
You can only imagine my panic. My hotel made an exception and the next morning I went to the US Embassy to get a temporary passport. The process was surprisingly easy and relatively quick. My hotel sent my original passport back to me a few months later. Always try to get back your original if you have the opportunity, that way when you apply for a new one, you can turn in both the original and the temporary.
I had an overnight layover in Paris on my way back to North Carolina, but didn’t want to risk the bet on figuring out public transportation in the city. I stayed in a hotel in a small commune outside the CDG airport called Mauregard. I would stay here again and again. I couldn’t see anything on my taxi ride into town considering it was late at night. But the next morning, I walked the grounds bright and early and was speechless. The grounds were luscious and green, the morning sun peeking through the fog. Birds chirping. The kind of silence that makes your soul come alive. I walked down the street and it opened up into fields of yellow flowers as far as the eye could see in every direction. I felt like I was in a dream. It shifted suddenly from French suburbia to a scene out of a movie.
