GETTING ABOUT IN ROME

Getting about Rome – Lester Talbot

Whilst in Rome, the one thing that struck me was how the driving style of the Italians differs from the British. As I have just had a British driving test, I was astonished by the reckless driving that the Italians deem to be acceptable. The thought that came into my head each time I crossed the road was that none of these drivers would pass a British driving test. When crossing the road, you have to give the drivers a reason to stop by stepping out onto the road and forcing them to brake. Then, once you have survived the traffic, you then have to negotiate your way around some of the notorious pick-pocketing sites in Rome. More than once, we have to pull one of our friends away from a man who appeared to be following them, with their eyes trained on their brand new Nikon camera. The Termini train station was the primary hunting ground for these people, which is also home to a rather unique form of underground train. Each carriage on the underground is different, mainly because of the interesting artwork that graffiti artists have painted on every square inch of the bodywork. There were some cases when we had to wait for the doors to open before we could tell what station we were at because the windows were almost completely opaque owing to the sheer mass of spray paint that covered them like a second skin.

To sum up, the roads are life threatening, the pavements are full of pick-pockets and the underground trains look like a bad exhibition at the Tate Modern. I can’t wait to go back!