Rome With a Wheelchair

When I first arrived in Rome with Sam, Joe and Jenna my first thoughts were “it's so calm and organized here.” I'm sure that calm and organized are not the normal words used to describe Rome. About 2 hours after we arrived at our apartment, Seth and Rich arrived too. We knew we had to to alter our sightseeing schedule for Rome to accommodate Seth's recovery. We bought a wheelchair and a little cart for his backpack. Since we couldn't see it all on this trip we choose to see the Colosseum and Vatican City.

We found that there are a few advantages of having a wheelchair along. We were able to bypass long entrance lines at both the Vatican museum and the Colosseum. Plus Seth got discounted or free admissions. Disadvantages of having a wheelchair included cobblestone streets, and getting separated when the stairs and elevators didn't meet up at the same place! Yes, that happened in the Vatican Museum, but we all found each other in the Sistine Chapel.

Sam, Joe and I also went to Trevi Fountain and threw a coin over our shoulder so we will return to Rome one day. After feeling pretty good about our Rome experience, I was arrogant enough to think I could handle mailing another package. One and a half hours after we first entered the post office we walked out successful. The Italian post office is really quite an experience, and one that I hope to never have to repeat!

Overall, we enjoyed our few days in Rome. We didn't see as much as originally planned, but we had a good experience and would love to return someday. Now we are sitting in the airport waiting to board our flight to Kuwait and then on to India. We made it through security in record time (thanks again to the wheelchair). Seth is doing well despite being tired and sore. He doesn't use the wheelchair all the time, just when lots of walking is required.  Hopefully we can find somewhere to donate it in India when he no longer needs it.