Monday, May 3, 2010

Day 20

Friday, April 30, 2010. Today we left about 5:30am, enroute to Donetsk. It is about a 2 hour drive because of the road condition. Donetsk is a large, newer city that is much better taken care of than the smaller towns. According to Natalia, the richest man in Ukraine lives here.

The airport is small but everyone was very nice and efficient, and we had no problems whatsoever. We never felt uncomfortable or harassed at any time. We breezed right through customs with no questions, and even the boarding for Rome was announced in English as well as Russian. We chose to fly Ukrainian Air instead of Alitalia so that we could experience a Ukrainian airline, which was actually a very nice flight. Everyone was courteous and spoke English and Italian. Before boarding, we noticed that all of the Ukrainians lined up outside of the boarding area and were smoking as many cigarettes as quickly as they could. It was literally a huge cloud of smoke. For people not used to that, you really need to hold your breath when walking through there!

We arrived in Rome a little after noon. The line through Immigration was long, but easy. Our passports were stamped and we went to get our luggage. We had the same experience here as in Paris- people asking you if you need a taxi before you even exit the airport. Please- DO NOT do this in an airport ever! You will get scammed and pay three to four times the amount of a regular cab. Wait in the normal taxi line outside and get an actual car that says “Taxi”.

Rome!



We arrived at our hotel- the Intercontinental De La Ville, which is located directly at the top of the Spanish Steps. Beautiful location! We had dinner at the hotel, which was lovely and delicious. Everyone here is extremely helpful and accommodating. We love Rome!

Our hotel:




Spanish Steps and fountain at the bottom:





Furniture Delivery Truck. What fits in there?!


Habana (Havana)! Even spelled correctly!

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