Fiumicino Airport reminded me a lot of the one in Lisbon. First you walk. Then you walk some more. And just when you think you’re almost there, it turns out that the next leg of the journey is just beginning. Somewhere at the end of this journey, there was supposed to be a train station. I’ll tell you right away how to get from the airport to Rome, what and where Anzio is, and other interesting things. And of course, lots and lots of photos!
Fiumicino Station and the Leonardo Express. Where are we going?
I found my way to the Fiumicino train station, bought a €14 ticket to Rome’s Termini station, and the Leonardo Express took me to the heart of the capital in about half an hour. Termini station seemed to be filled with at least half of Italy’s population, all rushing off somewhere. Streams of people flowed in every direction, and I had to find a ticket machine in the middle of it all. I managed to do just that. For 3.60 euros, I got a ticket for the train to Nettuno. Nettuno is the next town after Anzio and also the point where the railway decides it’s had enough—it doesn’t go any further toward the sea. That’s why travelers heading to Anzio have a simple backup plan: if you happen to sleep through your stop, just get off at Nettuno and walk back in about fifty minutes.
So I spent another hour on the train, drifting further and further away from Rome. The city noise faded behind me, the houses grew sparser, and the air felt lighter. When I finally arrived, the sea was waiting for me. The Tyrrhenian Sea. The sea looked as if it had never been in a hurry and as if it had not the slightest interest in knowing how many trains and planes I had to change to reach it.
Why did I even need to go to Rome?
One day, I got so thoroughly chilled by the rain and wind in Tartu that I felt as if my personal battery charger had given up the ghost. I couldn’t get warm anymore, and it felt as if several tons had been added to the weight of my responsibilities. You push yourself for so long — just a little more, and then a little more — until you realize that your internal battery isn’t showing five percent anymore, but is flashing a menacing red light. And the charger, as I already mentioned, isn’t working.
Lately, I’ve noticed very clearly that when I constantly give my energy, attention, and time without receiving an equivalent return, life comments on the situation in a rather instructive way. Figuratively speaking, my power plug is simply pulled out of the wall. Creativity goes on vacation. Humor packs a suitcase. Patience sends a postcard from some distant country, announcing that it doesn’t yet know when it will return. If you spend more than you get back, then one day you’ll find yourself in the middle of a rainy Tartu and realize that the charger’s cord had quietly come loose a long time ago.
And then, since I couldn’t quite get out of bed because I was so tired, I reached for my phone to just take a quick look and see if there were any cheap flights available. Just a quick look. WizzAir had cheap flights to Rome. I’ve never wanted to go to Rome because I don’t like big cities, so I figured I didn’t have to stay in Rome — I’d surely find the sea and a sandy beach.
As soon as I bought the tickets to Fiumicino, the battery started charging again.
As soon as I dipped my toes in the Tyrrhenian Sea, the battery was fully charged.
How little it takes for a vacation…
In Anzio, I spent the night right next to Piazza Pia, in the heart of the small, charming town center. Anzio doesn’t try to impress anyone with its size. On the contrary — it seems to be a town that realized long ago that people don’t really need fifteen-story buildings, ten lanes of traffic, or a shopping mall that takes half a marathon to walk from one end to the other.
Narrow streets lined with boutiques, cafés, and restaurants led gently toward the sea. A holiday atmosphere hung over the entire town. People didn’t seem to be in a hurry to get anywhere. No one was yelling into a phone or at another person. No one looked as if they were about to save the world or fill out an Excel spreadsheet.
People in summer clothes sat on outdoor terraces, eating and drinking, chatting and watching passersby. On the beach, people walked slowly along the sand, as if they had made a pact with the sea not to rush. The sea, the sandy beach, and the sun have a better effect on the nervous system than all the self-help books put together.
Anzio has a long history of welcoming visitors
Today’s Anzio and Nettuno are situated on the site of the ancient port city of Antium. Antium was an important city even before the height of the Roman Empire and originally belonged to the Volscian tribe. The Romans later conquered the city, and as early as two thousand years ago, Rome’s wealthy and influential began coming here to breathe in the sea air. Some things in the world don’t change much. It is hard to believe, however, that on the very same beach where people sunbathe and eat gelato today, one of the bloodiest battles of World War II in Italy took place less than a century ago.
Anzio is also the birthplace of Emperor Nero. The ruins of the imperial villa stretch right down to the water’s edge. And history has shown that some famous people work better as tourist magnets than others.
Anzio isn’t just an ordinary resort; it’s also one of the most important fishing ports in the Lazio region. Because of this, there are many restaurants serving seafood.
I felt most at home by the seaside cliff shaped like a sea dragon. The wind and water had carved the dragon’s snout and eye out of the rock with remarkable precision.
And people smiled at me and spoke to me. They were simply friendly. Coming from Estonia, this was a sight all its own and a bit suspicious.
So, whether Fiumicino is the starting point for a journey to hell or paradise depends on your own choices
If Rome’s massive Termini station reminded me of an administrative department of hell — full of people rushing about in all directions, noise, grayness, chaos, very slow ticket machines, and endless corridors — then Anzio seemed to be the paradise department of the same system. There, the trees and flowers smelled sweet, birds sang, a warm southern breeze blew, and even the streetlights looked as though someone had actually cared about how the town would look at night when installing them.
Just around the corner, I also found a wonderful grocery store. There I got a fresh head of lettuce, Sicilian tomatoes that actually tasted like tomatoes, delicious peppers, olives, and all sorts of other goodies. There were also several fruit and vegetable stands in the area. All that fresh produce made for a very delicious salad.
Paradise has even more to offer…
Accommodations in Anzio were also significantly cheaper than in Rome. After all, most people prefer to stay in the capital rather than spend an hour on a train. I, however, am not much of a city person. I like places where you hear birdsong and the sea more than traffic, and where a trip to the store doesn’t feel like a survival game. Anzio was exactly that kind of place. Small, peaceful, and just beautiful enough to stay for a while.
There was a very charming bookstore in Anzio, and I decided it was time to do something about learning to read those books. The host at my lodging was also surprised that I didn’t speak Italian. Although I managed to get by with basic vocabulary like buongiorno, grazie, duecento grammi, un biglietto, un espresso, ciao, …
The next town, Nettuno, and how to get there
I reached Nettuno from Anzio on foot in about 50 minutes. Hotels and sandy beaches lined the right side of the road.
Perhaps because I had gotten so comfortable in Anzio, the vibe in Nettuno didn’t feel quite as good to me. There seemed to be more seriousness and hustle and bustle there. There were boutiques and restaurants in Nettuno, too.
The train ride back to Anzio took 4 minutes.
Although I had always thought that Fiumicino Airport would never see me, it turned out to be the starting point for some very beautiful experiences and discoveries. If you, too, can’t handle big cities in very large doses, you can go explore what the grains of sand look like when viewed through the transparent waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea.
The next post will cover Rome’s sights.
