Second Star to the Right: Home

I feel a bit at a loss about what to say about today. It was a very busy day in that we spent a good majority of it traveling! This morning we woke up and though I had originally planned to go out and about to see what else I could shove in to my day, I ended up hanging back in the B&B to rest a bit and clean up as everyone else went out. We had to check out by 11:00, and I found myself leaving just a few minutes before. I passed Massimo on the way out and said goodbyes! It was such a fun place to stay and I felt very well taken care of. I made my way over to a local park where I enjoyed one last cup of gelato and read from my Kindle.

Later I met up with Dallin and the girls at Termini station where we managed to get a cab to take us to Ciampino airport. Ciampino is a tiny little place, something I did not really realize on our arrival in Rome due to the late nature of our arrival. There are only a handful of gates, and they are all right on top of each other. When we went through the gate to board our flight we actually hopped on a bus that took us out to the plane that was sitting on the tarmac. Then our traveling continued. My traveling schedule looked like this:

1. Take Metro from San Giovanni to Termini station

2. Taxi ride from Termini station to Ciampino airport

3. Quick bus ride while at the airport

4. Plane ride from Rome to Stansted airport

5. Shuttle service from the gate at Stansted to customs

6. Train ride from Stansted to Liverpool Station

7. Hop on the tube at Liverpool towards Gloucester

8. Hop on a different train car as we realize we are heading in the wrong direction

9. Changing lines again

10. Jace leaves the girls to argue over the route to take home, and finds his own way back.

11. Jace arrives back before everyone else

It was quite the adventure. The Tube system is wonderful, but it has been a nightmare during the weekends due to the planned construction they always have on Saturdays and Sundays. I get that people don't have to work then, but I still feel like it's not the greatest time in the world to be doing construction as people are out and about that day.

I dropped off my stuff at the flat and by this point I was absolutely starving, so I went to Nandos and had a delicious dinner to myself. I'm still hoping that the employees there will begin to remember me and we will be best friends as I become a regular in a Cheers like fashion. It could happen.

My time in Rome was incredible and it provided quite an adventure, but I realized today that I was ready to leave and head back to London. There was an interesting moment on the plane when it landed in the UK and the flight attendant said, "If you are transferring, please have a safe journey. If you are coming back to the UK, welcome home." For a moment I just smiled to myself and thought about how London has really become a sort of home for me. When I first arrived in London again I struggled for a bit, because I knew that my experience would be different. And it has been. The people, the place I am living, and so many other things are have changed, but I still feel at home in this city. I have been thinking about this all day, but still don't know quite how to explain it. I feel that so many things here just speak to me, like the culture of art and literature that exists. I may not share my values with many of these people (smoking and alcohol abound), I still feel a connection to some of them. But as I thought all this over today, I also had the realization that this also cannot compare with my real home.

I'm grateful for my travels and all that they teach me, and I will continue travel for as long as I can. There is so much to be learned and so much to see! But one of the best parts about traveling is coming home to the people that I like an awful lot. The places sure are great, but the people are what make them home! Someday I will have to bring these two homes together by introducing my family to my city.

Now don't go thinking I am getting too homesick or anything. I've still got two weeks of adventure left, and I plan to utilize them well! Just wait and see what I am going to do!

This photos are pretty random. They are just some shots I got before leaving today. It's hard to compare them to some of the extravagant things I have been seeing lately.

I found the roof to our bed and breakfast! I love it even more now