My Sister's Keeper - Not!!!

One incident that could have marred the entire trip was when we lost Joyce and Doug and another couple in our group in Rome.  After visiting the Pantheon, our group of about 35 people headed out for our next stop which none of us were sure where it would be.  The little lady who was our guide was verrrry short, only had a small sign, and spoke very broken English.

This little tour guide, we found out, was only a person to get us to the sites.  She didn't have a license to tell us about anything, and she only held up the sign once we got where she followed her to.  As the 35 or so of us followed her along the street, we soon found it to be very crowded, and we were quickly mixed in with many other Italians and tourists.

The sidewalk suddenly turned into a huge pedestrian-only plaza called "Piazza Navona."  I recognized it as a place that George and I had been a few years ago.

 

There are three lavish fountains in this Piazza.  I couldn't figure out where Doug and Joyce were, but I figured with so many people all around, they were off taking pictures, too.

This Piazza was originally built in the 1st Century for athletic contests and chariot races, so it is in the shape of an oval.  The Piazza you see today was built on top of the original stadium in the 15th Century.    They would sometimes flood the entire area in the summer and have aquatic games and staged naval battles for the spectators to watch.

George in front of the Fountain of Four Rivers by Bernini.  These were the four rivers he knew of in his day:  Ganges, Nile, Danube, and Plate.

 

Another of the 13 obelisks which are in Rome.  This one was actually from Egypt and was originally in the Circus Maxentius, but was later moved here to Piazza Navona.

This church is called the Church of Sant'Agnese in Agone because the early Christian Saint Agnes was martyred in this original stadium area.

Today, this is one of the favorite places of the locals, as well as tourists, because there are many little cafes, entertainers, artists, and craftsmen selling their items.  With the beautiful fountains, it is a very peaceful place to go.

As we rounded the corner, we all met up with our guide at the precise time we were supposed to.  However, as we were all busily talking about what we had seen, someone said, "We are missing two couples!"  Who, I thought, could be missing and didn't listen to the time the guide had told us?  Suddenly, someone said, "It's Joyce and Doug, and Tom and Cheralyn!"  What????  How could Joyce and Doug be missing.  They always listen to instructions!  Something must have happened.

George is an extremely fast walker, so he went back with our tour director and went around the entire Piazza.  When they came back, they said they were positive that the two couples weren't there.  I felt so badly.  I really hadn't been a very good Sister's Keeper!  I hadn't kept track of my sister!

Suddenly, there were all kinds of comments, such as:

"Well, we can't wait any longer!  We spent a lot of money for this tour, so we need to move on.  They'll just have to find their own way back!"

Others were so sad, some were praying, I was in shock!  I couldn't imagine where they could be.  You see, it was about an hour and a half back to the ship.  I really hoped they would find a way to even get back and not miss the departure of the ship, which then would even prove to be more problems.  Later, we found out it would have cost them $180 to get to the ship! 
No small sum, plus they would miss the rest of the tour!

So, sadly we went on!  

After a little bus ride, we were dropped off near Vatican City.  I must say, it was difficult to concentrate on what we were seeing because I just kept thinking about Joyce and Doug.  What had happened to them?  

After taking this picture of George in front of St. Peter's Basilica, we got in a pretty long line to go inside.  We were about 10 minutes within getting inside the doors, and who should we see coming toward us . . .

 

Joyce and Cheralyn!  Doug and Tom are holding the red bag to the left behind.  I started screaming so loudly!  I was so excited!  They had spotted George--thank goodness for his dark hair!  Happily, we were all reunited!  I vowed to keep better track of her, and they all vowed to not get so caught up in their conversation that they didn't watch where the group went.  They never even made it to Piazza Navona, but instead took a taxi to the Spanish Steps because they thought we were going there, so at least they got to see them.  

Note:  The Italian guide was so bad that our tour leader put in a complaint, and we all got some of our money back.  Not only didn't she make sure everyone was with her, but she didn't explain anything.  We had to do all the learning on our own!  What a unique day that we all will never forget!

To see what Doug and Joyce did this day, go to:

http://sixgirlsoneboy.blogspot.com/2012/03/getting-lost-in-rome-literally.html