Historia Romana. A reminder
that many Romans simply do not
take themselves too seriously.
There are no pictures to share with you and we will tell you why.
Our six weeks in Europe (especially the last two with the tour group) were so marvelous, we were glad we had
planned to stay a few extra days in Rome before returning to Ohio. They were fun days, walking two of Rick
Steves' "Rome walks" and joining both tourists and locals who were enjoying the unique sights and sounds of
the city. Our last stop on Saturday afternoon was Rome's huge city park. It was on a hill and offered many
views of the city of Rome.
The last thing we did there was renting a "double bicycle". It had a seat for two and a canopy over our heads.
We both peddled. Around the park we whizzed with shrieks of delight. Please know that up until this time, we
had been perfect Rick Steves' tourists and carried all our valuables in our money belts, snuggly under our
clothes. But on this ride, Jep put his money belt into his shoulder bag and placed it in the basket at the front of
the bike. As we were finishing our ride, he suddenly noticed that his bag was not in the basket. We had just
gone rather fast down a bumpy hill and we assumed it flew out without our noticing it.
Joyce stayed on the bike while Jep ran to this last hill. He franticly looked for his bag while Joyce hysterically
wondered how we would get new passports at 5:00 pm Saturday afternoon, how we would pay for our hotel,
etc., etc. To make a long story short, Jep did find his shoulder bag. He opened it and it was empty, meaning he
had lost his favorite camera and the pictures of our last two days in Rome. But miracle of miracles, in a hidden
pocket of his bag, he found his money belt with his passport, plane ticket, money and credit card.
Our grief about the camera did not last long; our relief and joy of having our valuables was huge! We walked
slowly back to our hotel, enjoying our last evening in Europe and savoring the many memories of our "best ever"
trip.
It has been a terrific ride. Thanks for the memories. Jep and Joyce Hostetler
Contact: Jhostet@columbus.rr.com
