Off to a bad start, as usual

Have you ever wondered what happens when you miss the A1-Firenze exit off the GRA around Rome? Well, first you travel another few kilometers until you see the signs saying that the highway is ending. Then you find yourself on the gritty potholed outskirts of Rome--complete with strip joints, hookers and auto salvage yards. Then you notice the big dome in front of you and realize you are driving behind St. Peter's Basilica. Then you wonder (briefly) why the Pope lives so close to strip joints. Then your chest gets tight, you fight off tears and yell FUCK a few times as the lanes mysteriously change from one to two to one again. Scooters are weaving in and out. Pedestrians with baby strollers and cell phones and cigarettes are jumping in front of you. Then you pull off the road quickly and get the GPS fired up. Signore GPS seems confused too and proceeds to take you on a magical mystery tour of Roma. We went all the way around the ancient walls, even under some crumbling 2,000 year old aqueducts. After an hour of driving in hell you finally see a green sign pointing toward the autostrada. You scream YAAAYYYY!!! and follow the signs until you get to the southernmost point in the Rome city limits and you get on the bleeping highway where you should have been 1.5 hours ago. That's what happens when you miss the A-1-Firenze exit. The end.