This morning we explored Athens by foot. We walked from our Hotel to the Museum and spent a couple of hours there checking out the exhibitions.

We then we headed down to Parliament and watched the changing of the guard. This is a very elaborate ceremony that takes about 15 mins in total. The 2 guards are replaced every hour on the hour. During their shift they are not allowed to move (kind of like the English guards at Buckingham Palace).

We flew out of Athens this afternoon. Our Air Italia flight only had 30 people on it so we got to pretty much choose where we wanted to sit. The Steward was giving us lots of tips for when we get to Italy. It was a most enjoyable flight. When we got to Rome airport we had to get the train into Rome. It took about 30 mins or so.

We were told our hotel was only a 10 min walk from the train station but we were a little disorientated so decided to catch a cab. First we went into the wrong Best Western and had to go around the corner to the one we were actually booked into. Then when we got there we were told that they had accidentally overbooked so they had transferred our stay to the hotel San Marco up the street.

After we got up there and checked in we were told to follow a hotel employee up the opposite end of the street. This guy did not speak a word of English and didn't even offer to help with the bags. No tip for him! The room was quite lovely though and had a nice big bathtub which after a day of travelling is a welcome reprieve.