European update 7/7 PM

Here is the first update we received from the travelers! I will send all updates, no matter who wrote them, so it may not be MerryK each day, but you should be getting info about the trip regardless of who typed it in. Hope you enjoy them!

This one is from MerryK:

We finally got to our hotel, 10pm Rome time. Not only was our first flight
delayed an hour, but so was the second. And there's a story to go with that.
747s suck. They're huge, sure, but their seats are the most terrible ever.
Technically they're wide enough for people with broad hips/shoulders, but
the pattern of the curve and cushioning makes it almost impossible to fit
comfortably. Despite the individual television screens, which granted
distracted us quite a bit, that part of the trip was awful. I stayed awake
to watch a movie and a half, then dozed a couple hours and watched another
movie before we landed in Heathrow. Sadly, there was a thunderstorm over
Heathrow (rain? over England? how strange!) which caused horrific
turbulence. Our landing felt like riding a wooden rollercoaster that was a
little too old, except you couldn't see the tracks to know what was coming.
Definitely kept us awake. It was about at that point that I started to feel
the jet lag.

Then the weather delayed our flight to Rome an hour, but only after we were
loaded on the plane. This plane, though smaller, had very comfortable seats.
And oh, British Airlines serves great food, and *lots* of it. Arriving in
Rome, it was pretty hot and muggy, though I think it's about perfect
weather. The toilets here have no toilet seats, and two flush handles,
though we couldn't figure out the difference between the two. Downtown Rome
is rather frightening. Drivers behave like pedestrians here; vaguely staying
on one side of the road, but dodging in and out of lanes as they choose.
There are technically sidewalks, but a lot of time there's just jaywalking.
Graffiti is everywhere, but I'm not sure how culturally significant that is
here. Everything is old and worn down too, and all the streets are an
ankle-twisting mixture of cobblestones and asphalt at varying heights. And
people here hug and kiss *everyone*, though not us thankfully.

It's night here now, and given all the jet lag and the varying small naps I
took on our flights, I'm ready for it. I think my internal clock is entirely
messed up and grasping on to this time as just something steady. But I'm
definitely feeling drained.

Love from everyone,
MerryK

P.S. British bathrooms have portion controlled toilet paper, basically
folded like individual napkins. Odd, but not too odd.