Beware the Ides of March

Friday got off to a late start as the both of us were starting to feel the effects of constant activity for nearly a week straight. As we ambled down the stairs of our hostel and into the Roman sunlight Rachel realized that it was the Ides of March and we just so happened to be in Rome! We made our way over to the Roman forum to see if we could get a glimpse of them putting flowers on Caesar's tomb. Unfortunately we didn't get a picture of it all going down but thanks to modern technology I can still bring the image to you by stealing it from the internet!

Rachel's brother had given her money to pick up some cigars while she was out of the country so we went over to an Italian tobacco shop that may have been the classiest place we visited in our travels. Everything seemed to be made out of rich mahogany and the men running the shop were suited up. When Rachel explained what she wanted, we were lead up stairs through a couple locked doors and finally into a room where a wall to ceiling glass pane kept the cigars in a climate controlled state when they weren't being browsed. Each cigar was carefully laid out in front of us on a felt pad as Rachel inspected the quality of each one. As she was mulling over what she was going to get, I spied some leather furniture that looked like it was just the right amount of worn in to be insanely comfortable. I was not disappointed. I let the cloud that was my chair absorb me before Rachel came to her decision of what to buy all too soon. We completed our purchase and proceeded on down via del corso in search of sun glasses before heading to the crown jewel of Rome, The Perfect Bun.

The Perfect Bun may have been my favorite thing about Rome and I don't even care if you judge me as the American who just wants a burger because this place may be the peak of my burger eating experience. We got there a little before the usual Roman dinner time so it was relatively empty when we took our seats. Just the way I like it. We had a whole section to ourselves when our waitress came over to take our order. I got the Hell's Burger which is a little over half a pound of meat covered in jalapenos, hot sauce, cheese, and grilled onions. When I took my first bite of it, my taste buds were at the most ideal level of stimulation I've ever felt. It was like a symphony in my mouth! The melted cheese mixed with the hot sauce perfectly complimented the spices they had laced the burger with. Apparently those are kept secret but it would appear for good reason! If I could go back and visit one thing in Rome, it would be this burger place. Period. To think I was once skeptical about Rachel and Cammy telling me I'd have the best burger ever in Rome is almost laughable after consuming this culinary delight! Not to mention they were doing 2 for 1 rum and cokes when we finished our meal which to my delight would be more accurately named rum with a splash of coke. The only bad news there was they were still expensive so going hard to celebrate the meal would not be financially feasible. This wouldn't stop Rachel from ONCE AGAIN trying to get me drunk by taking 2 sips of her drink and proceeding to have me finish it. Somehow I managed to be ok with that.

The next day we had decided to go on a relics tour in hopes of seeing some of the actual relics. We started off at the Santa Maria Maggiore and while the church was beautiful, seeing the altar in which relics are stored is kind of like looking at the outside of a museum. Nobody really cares what the outside looks like if you can't see the inside! So we continued on in our quest and made our way over to the Lateran which is the Cathedral of the Bishop of Rome. Once again, cool, but where are the bones and pieces of clothing?! Bobby Fischer and the Lindbergh baby could be inside that altar for all I know! We started to make some progress when we went across the street to the auxiliary building for the Lateran and found the stairs Jesus had climbed to be sentenced by Pilate. St. Helen had brought them over from the Holy Land. We joined the many other pilgrims in climbing the steps on our knees. An activity which in my experience ranks as more uncomfortable than climbing a mountain made entirely of rock without any shoes or socks.

After the Holy Stairs we wandered a bit until we came to another church which turned out to be a relic jackpot. Here we were able to find the finger of St. Thomas that had poked through Jesus' wounds, pieces from the crown of thorns, some supposed pieces of the true cross (which there apparently are enough of in the world to build a battleship), a nail, and a copy of the Shroud of Turin  There was even a guy explaining Roman laws for punishment when we got to the shroud so it was interesting to hear his take on the significance for how Jesus was punished. Pictures weren't allowed in this particular church, but the next place that had pieces of the Sacred Crib did. Personally I think the crazy amounts of silver and gold plating takes away from noticing the actual pieces themselves, but its still cool to think how this stuff was recovered. The only bummer is a lot of things are under question for their authenticity due to the production and sale of relics during the medieval age.

It was starting to get late so we headed back towards our hostel to pack up Rachel's things in preparation to get to the airport. Since her flight left so early in the morning, it meant that we would both be spending the night there. We boarded the train and got to the airport around 11 and found a place to camp out in a 24 hour coffee shop. When it came time for Rachel to get ready to go, we said our good byes and I watched as she made her way through the security line and eventually disappeared in to the terminal.