So we dressed, packed and headed out of the room all within 40 mins! Good..and started to walk out to the street along the harbor and again took a break to have some coffee & a morning snack.
Ah...that filled the "spot" and then on we went to the dock! We had already purchased our Express Bus X96 to the airport the evening before - so easy stuff...just sit & wait for the bus to arrive & the bus attendant had said that the bus would come every 20 min - nice!
Well here comes the "STORY" of the year! So we relax and enjoy the Monday morning activities and then the bus comes...we were thankful first of all to see that the bus has one step up into the bus- so you can slide the suitcases in once you lift it into the bus - so Nick instructs me to get into the bus...OK and he will pass the suitcases to me so I can roll them to the area where they will stand upright! Nick is outside busy getting the 2 suitcases and the 2 backpacks to me and then gets into the bus! He got it situated and I find a seat and he comes to sit down and we ride...possibly 4 stops ~ and then Nick counts the luggage...yes all 4 are there...but where is his smaller day backpack the black one??? OH no Nico...YES NICK says "its still sitting on the bus bench!" So he says "you go on to the airport & I am going back" He walks up to the Bus driver and the driver stops the bus & off he goes!
Oh my - I began to pray & pray and pray - asking the Father if He would keep that bag there on the bench...that He would blind the eyes of those persons that should not see it & that He would have a honest person find it and bring it back to the bus ticket booth! Oh I prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed and just continued to ask the Lord to help Nick be calm and help him find a taxi to get him back to the harbor and that it would be THERE!
In the meantime I'm on the bus, traveling onward - it was a hour ride to the airport from Piraeus harbor...and we drove along the coast & along many boulevards and it was quite a drive...always thinking of my Nico...and if he got there in time...it would surely take him at least 20 minutes to back track with walking & finding a taxi and getting back to that very busy area by the bus departure.
Well Nick said he walked 4 blocks and then flagged down a taxi and the taxi driver and also prayed all the way over there... had to go around a ways to get to that particular bus stop...because of busy traffic! His backpack was NOT THERE...and he looked around at the people there and asked a few that were sitting there...and then Nick decided to go to the booth which was about 15 steps away from the bus bench. This person mind you - sits in this Box with only a little window that opens to buy a ticket...he sits low and the the little window sits up and he is totally surrounded by 4 walls except for this little opening to buy the ticket through - so no way would he even have seen anything from his point of view...he is totally sealed off from view except for that little window! (poor guys - I thought that even last night when we bought the ticket...to sit there for 8 hrs - ugh!)
But anyway, Nick does go up to him & asks if he had a backpack and the person looks puzzled until Nick points to his back...and then looks behind on the floor and see a black pack - the man nods yes...and asks Nick for passport. Nick says that is my backpack...and Nick shows him his passport and asks the man to open up his pack so he could show him the name written on Nick's Tablet - and PRAISE THE LORD IT WAS HIS PACK!!! Wow can you believe that you guys!!!! What a blessing! We were blessed & you can imagine why!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He waited for the next Bus to come and got on!
In the meantime I arrived at the airport and the bus stop where the departures where ( I was thankful that the Bus stopped THERE!!!) and then waited & prayed & waited & prayed!!! and then I was able to sit close to the bus stop at a snack bar and waited and prayed! "Oh Lord YOU are a God of miracles..YOU are a God who moves people...You are a God that says "ask and you will receive" Lord I am asking...will YOU keep that pack out of the eyes of the wrong person and may a honest person find it and bring it to the bus booth Lord..YOU are able to do that...and I believe it & ask this by faith...I believe it - I pray Thine Will Be Done Father - I rest in YOU to do it" In Your Name we pray AMEN" and then one hour later ----Nick walks off the bus WITH HIS BACKPACK ON HIS SHOULDER!!! OH YOU CAN IMAGINE HOW DELIGHTED AND THANKFUL WE WERE...YES I GRABBED HIM AND KISSED HIM AND THEN WE TOOK A MOMENT RIGHT THERE AND THEN TO THANK OUR HEAVENLY FATHER FOR HIS GOODNESS & GRACE..AMEN" Our prayers were answered and we had had quite a morning already...BUT- we were safe and sound at the airport in Athens ready to depart to Rome and ALL WAS WELL!!!! YIPPEEEEEEE!
So we checked in our suitcases (gladly!) and went to the coffee shop to have a coffee & snack...it was 10:30 am and the flight would leave at 12 noon - all this is a MIRACLE!!! Can you imagine "if Nick's passport had been in the pack (which is wasn't thankfully) and if someone had brought it to the police station instead? Lots of maybe's but it went as it went and we THANK OUR GOD FOR IT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We walked over to the departure area and we went through the carry-on & body monitors and then waited for the plane to arrive!
We had booked with "Veuling" which (through "Tripsta.com") turned out to be a Spanish Airline - and we boarded "thankfully" and got situated for a 2.5 hours flight!
We arrived in Rome at 11:30 am (one hour earlier again~now my clock is the same as my son in Holland!) Good...we are getting closer to the family all the time!!!!!!! yeah!!!!!
Good-bye Greece - how we enjoyed your beautiful islands and Athens was so interesting...and so much to see!
My little hat...Nick said he liked it...OK with all that Sun it was good to do in Greece!
Gosh it was hard to believe - we are in Rome Italy! Oh my - still can't believe all we are doing at times!
Sometimes we see signs that are fun to read~
We had to wait for our luggage quite a long time - it was crazy busy at the airport...lots and lots of planes coming in from EVERYWHERE!!!!! Finally one hour later...it came through - others had already collected theirs...yet some from our plane had not - like us..so we stood there ...just waiting ...but in these cases we do not gripe but are just thankful that it does come on the baggage rack...for it could just as well still be in Athens or some other country all together! Right??? It came - we got it all Nick - lets go!
We gathered everything and headed to the exit...and by the way no immigration stamps in our passport in Greece - and no stamps in our passport in Italy - why you ask? Because it is all part of the Euro and so you can travel from one country to the other without check in's or out's! We don't quite understand that???? ...but how do they check who is and who isn't in the Euro countries...don't they check these things? We find this strange..we'll have to ask someone next time why not?
Yet I recall when I traveled to Holland in 2012 to see my little Skyler & family - I did go through customs & did get a stamp in my passport entering & departing from Holland. Maybe each country has its own procedures? Anyway - we are curious about that!
We asked directions to get to our BnB -it was in the "Trastevere" area of Rome...we had an address and street & our host had said we could go either by bus or train from the airport. OK Nico let's do it~ I asked the train attendant at the train station and he kindly "googled" the street we were on and said Train 3 is what you have to take - OK - so we purchased 2 tickets 8.00 Euro a piece and the Train #3 had just arrived in the Station......let's go for it Nico...and off we went and jammed into the train that would take us to Trastevere!
We found a elevator (thankfully!) and went down to the street - the map that I had purchased at the airport was not as clear & understanding as we had hoped! It was more a map for a tourist who wanted to come into the immediate Rome City but the surrounding areas outside of the center of town...was not on it!
 |
| Our taxi driver was a 'old hippie'! |
Because he drove quite a ways still at least 6-8 blocks and then zipped in & out of these little streets and then...THERE WE WERE the "white gate entry" our host had mentioned on the email!
We followed the entry code directions and walked in & walked to the next building where we would find a "B" on the ground....here it is Nico...this is the "B"...she had said, and here are the 3 steps to the apartment...she had mentioned! And we had one more gate & code to enter & would find her door...OK got it...and we went to the brown door - on the left...ahhhhhhhhh...we are here!
The "Red Room" was just as it showed on the pictures on the website AirBnB.com - an "IKEA" style - it was cute. It has a big red heart just above the bed! We have use of the kitchen & we shared the bathroom with the other guests in the 2nd room that was also a rented room..."The Green Room". The couple are from Czech, and Peter & Clara had already been here 2 days and was so kind to give us some tips which were very helpful & we thanked them! It was 2:30 pm - and we were situated in Rome Italy!
We rested a while and watched TV just to wind down a bit and then around 4:30 pm we freshened up & headed out to nose around in the area of Trastevere...taking a walk we found a main street on the map...yes...those maps are important to purchase right away when you enter into a new town!
Hey look Nick lets go up that direction to a plaza...and oh my you guys...we did and we saw we "were" in Italy!
The cutest streets...the most adorable old buildings and corridors and then a old
We looked around and strolled some more thankful to stretch our legs!
It felt so nice out...but noticed that it was a lot cooler...WOW Nick we must be more north - it cools down here in Italy in the evening! We have not experienced this kind of weather since leaving a year ago from the States????? Do you feel it Nick? What we didn't know was that clouds had come in and that the weather was changing too ~ we had heard that Europe was getting some rain here and there.
We got hungry and started reading the menu's outside of each resto - and this man came forward to invite us into his restaurant ...he was there to do just that!
We looked at the menu and said ....why not? So we sat down in the darling little alley way with so much character!
It was evidently early still - but as we ordered more and more people came in! (most people will have a drink somewhere and then later in the evening have dinner)
Nick ordered a lasagna and I ordered a Italian pizza - hoping they were those small 1 person pizza's that you get in Europe...well one person plate it was ...but not for 1 person...really NOT! But it was a prosciutto
pizza and it was delicious and Nicks lasagna 
was delicious to...delicious! We ordered a glass of white wine
with it and there we sat...in Rome, Italy drinking wine and having a real Italian meal in the small streets of Trastevere area! Lovely!!!! FOR REAL! CHEERS! We enjoyed our special time together just taking it all in!
Then we decided to walk a little more and felt drops - what? Rain drops? Oh yes look at the clouds up there? We felt more drops and before you knew it - it came down (now not like Indonesia mind you~) but it did rain...and this man was walking along sellling umbrella's coming out of nowhere...ha... timing is everything! He rescued us by selling us a umbrella...and we paid a ridiculous amount and the lady in the store where we took cover in the entry way - asked us how much we paid...and she said 'oh too much!' yes Nick knew it - but he wanted a umbrella!
After a good rain - it stopped and we walked back towards our area & room! It was a great first evening in Italy and we were so ready to CRASH!
Tummies full and a nice glass of wine and yes time to sleep - and we did like babies! ah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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