First, I want to thank everyone who's been writing. It gives me a very warm fuzzy feeling to know that you're following along with me on my trip - I think it partly explains why I really haven't felt alone on this trip! As you can imagine, I'm a little behind on answering my emails, but I'll get to them all eventually :)

I know my vacation's a success when I start enjoying the simple things. All I did last night was go for a run, work out and go out for a cheap bite to eat; but I relished it. I can't exactly say why - I think it's just the mood engendered by being on vacation, having freedom, and exposing myself to new things. Part of me asks is it natural for someone to have such a good time wholly alone. I mean, man is supposed to be a social animal - is there something wrong with me that I can have such a good time by myself, I ask myself. I guess I should just tell myself to shut up and get on with enjoying myself!

I took a different route for my run last night. I was told that there was a park in Castel S. Angelo, just across the Tiber. Well, there was a park, but it was too small to give much interest for running. So after running round it once, I decided just to see where the road along the Tiber would take me. For the first time, the still, murky waters of the narrow river, set deep in its towering stone banks, looked alluring, as the sun bent low and fired up the trees and the water, and the many stone bridges.

The neighborhood on the other side of the busy road I was running along was mostly impassable - it seemed to be a large military base. Further up the hill behind the base, I could see grass, and large trees, with beautiful mansions, and even a tall column with a figure on a horse, looking important and remote on the leafy hill-top.

Soon, I was in Trastavere, a neighborhood I hadn't visited since it wasn't within easy walking distance, and hadn't sounded like it had too much to see. But the street-life looked interesting, so I branched off the road along the river, and ran along some of the cafe-lined streets. The cafes seemed to be filled with a younger, hipper, less touristic crowd than the areas I'd frequented so far. There didnt' seem to be any mind-boggling reason to come back anytime soon, but it was interesting to explore by just running through it.

After working out in my room, and a light dinner with a cheap but gutsy wine, I was ready for bed.

This morning, I decided to take it easy, and find something quiet to do. I settled on a visit to Ostia Antica, Rome's ancient sea-port, 14 miles west of the city, and only 75 cents to get there on two subway rides and a train. I thought I'd take a picnic and my travel guide, explore the ruins, and lie in the shade for a couple of hours and figure out what I wanted to do in Florence, where I'm heading next. So I stuffed the pockets of my trusty Gap cargo shorts (the best buy of my pre-trip shopping) with my maps and papers, and headed off.

As an aside, if there's one thing I'm not keen on here, apart from the blasted noisy mopeds, it's the over-dependence on tradition. For example, pretty much the only classical concerts I've seen advertised are either Italian opera, Bach or Mozart - none of the vast mix of modern, old and experimental that you find in London, for example. And then with food: check the menus of restaurant after restaurant, and you see almost identical fare, nothing like the eclectic menus of good restaurants in San Francisco or New York. Granted, Italian opera and cuisine are top of the class, and perhaps American restaurants overcompensate for the lack of a strong indiginous culture, but would it be too much to ask for a tiny, weeny, little caesar salad? :)

It's a short walk from the train station at Ostia Antica to the ruins, and it's a good job it's a short walk, as it's not sign-posted. The ruins spread out over quite a large site, probably bigger than at the Forum in Rome, but not nearly as impressive. They hit you in a different way - they're low-lying, and carefully overgrown with grass and ivy; extremely romantic in a byronesque kind of way. Walking along the main street, with ruined buildings all around you, it's easy to imagine the town as it once was, two millenia ago.

Exploring the ruins at Ostia Antica

The overgrown ruins

These ruins are even less frequented by tourists than Palatine Hill, and it's easy to find peace, and seclusion. I found a field, lined by poppies, and overlooked by ruined columns, and enjoyed my picnic while thunder rolled on the steaming, distant horizon.

Out of nowhere, I felt a large drop of water hit me - it was the first of many since the rainstorm was suddenly overhead, despite the simultaneous sunshine. I took cover under an archway. The rain seemed likely to set in, so I made the best of it, and started planning my Florence campaign, while the thunder echoed through the ancient abandoned streets.

Planning the attack on Florence and sheltering from the rain

After about an hour, the rain diminished, and I decided finally to return to Rome, the rain having driven me from seeing about half of the site, unfortunately.

Last view down the rain spattered main street of Rome's ancient sea port