Day 12 - 1

 Hey guys! It’s Rome time.

We arrived in Rome yesterday, and I was down with a cold. Nobody took an axe to the AC (a surprise, considering this family) but also nobody really slept. My sleep schedule was already terrible, so I wasn’t too fussed and I already know how to deal with days like that (because that is everyday in Gwenland) but my mom was a little grumpy some times during the day.

Our check-in for the tour hotel was at twelve, so we were free range on the town until then. We got some breakfast at a nice gelateria down the street from the hotel (pain au chocolat for me and mom, coffee for dad) and then went to see some piazzas. We found a nice one with a fountain and some good shade, and got gelato next to it. At twelve, we moved on to check-in, then got some pizza (mine was good, dunno about the others’) and wandered back.

Next up, we went to the reception for the tour. Our guide, Gianluca, explained the rules and safety precautions and the sent us on a quick tour. We then had supper with far too many courses. At the fourth one, I took a quick bathroom break.

Let me set the scene for you. I have just walked into a slightly-dingy bathroom with three stalls on the left and sinks with mirrors on the right. The middle stall is closed and presumably locked. I enter the one closest to the door of the three, closing the door behind me without thinking. The first thing I notice - the window is ajar. I stick my hand through - there’s no screen. It’s just open to the night.

As I turn to lock the door, I notice something. Unlike the outside of the door, the inside has no doorknob.

Slightly panicked now that I’m trapped in a bathroom with a three-storey window as my only exit, I sit down and do my business. When I reach for the toilet paper, I see something shiny on the floor.

It’s the doorknob.

It’s so far back I sort of wonder if it had been thrown. Did the previous occupant tear it off before resorting to the window?

I reach up and shove the knob onto the spot for it. It fits, and when I turn it, the door opens just fine.

Weird.