Rome is busy. The heart of Rome (the triangle between the Spanish steps, Vatican City, and the Colosseum) always seems to be fluttering with tourists. Which then slows down the locals, irritates the cars, clogs the buses, attracts the street venders and beggars, and generally causes some mayhem.
But we didn't stay in the heart of Rome. My generous friend Laura opened her home and gave us a set of keys to their family's flat despite a rather chaotic week for them. They fed us every morning and evening, and provided an English-speaking, family-oriented retreat in the midst of our touring. It was awesome!
So what did we do in Rome? We followed a wish-list of sorts that I'd created and approved with Gabe. It included my favorite sites/significant places for me after my study abroad year here in Roma.
Here's the list:
- Wander around Rome. The buses are a fun way to experience this city, and the metro is a great shoe-watching spot (one of our favorite activities!), but walking allows you to really experience the charm of the city. Laura and Jason's place is on the north side of the city, but not so far away that walking to the center isn't possible, so we did. And we found a Narnia-esque spot in a park along the way (so magical! Other than the smell of dog poo), managed to buy two very large and delicious melons for snacking on, stopped in for coffee at a bar (standing at the bar, it's only €0.90 for an espresso!), and got lost in the cobblestone and marble maze.
- Climb the steps to my favorite church, Santa Maria in Arecoli, located just behind the right side of the Vittorio Emmanuelle II monument when facing it from Corso. It has the most beautiful chandeliers hanging from the ornate ceiling. And because it's at the top of a very long stair case, it doesn't get as many visitors as some churches! Bonus: your quads get a good workout on the way, which is handy if you're trying to maintain Burma-mountains muscle tone!)
- See the Colosseum. It's such an icon of Rome, and although it is very tourist-clogged, it's always been one of my favorite sites. The day we went, there was a huge line, so we wandered away and decided to come back later in the afternoon. When we returned at 16:00, the line was much shorter. I sat outside (with Gabe's pocket knife - there's a metal detector to get into the site) and saved us the €10 entry ticket for me while Gabe was able to go inside and experience the movie-like history-brought-to-life feeling. Unfortunately, by the time he came out, he didn't have enough time to go wander through the Forum, which is also included in the cost of the ticket, but I think he was happy having just seen the Colosseum.
- Go to Camp di Fiori and find door 37, which is where I lived for a semester. The square is a fun mixing place of local fruit and veggie venders and bright-eyed tourists. There are some fun shops along the way to the Campo, including a beautiful leather shop. We were initially attracted by the shoes in the window display, but when we wandered in, the clever sales lady said, "Come, try things on. To look and try on is free!" Gabe put on several gorgeous leather jackets, but don't worry, we walked away without paying the €1,000.00 price on any of them!
- Visit another cool church: San Clemente, which has the current basilica, and then a basilica from the Middle Ages built underneath the current one, and then Roman street ruins underneath that basilica. It's one of the most experiential spots to visit that put into perspective the literal depth of the historic Rome. Unfortunately, although the top basilica is free, to go down into the lower depths costs €10. I sent Gabe again while I waited in the courtyard of the ground level of the church. He ended up being about the only person down there in the lowest level and got a real feel for the creepiness of the deep ruins!
- Get gelato at the gelataria in Trestevere that sealed the deal of canella (cinnamon) being the best flavor of gelato. It was worth it to break the dairy-free gelato rule I tried to apply for the sake of my skin! It's a popular spot with local students, and since it's located just around the corner and down the street from John Cabot University, it gets a lot of college student food traffic along with high school students and, of course, tourists. This stop included a wander through Trestevere, the picturesque cobblestone streets of Rome "village" life.
- Show Gabe John Cabot University, where I studied for my year in Rome. It's a small campus (although they have expanded to a second campus just doesn't the road now), but a lovely little look into everyday life for students. I was able to give my name, confirm my address, and take Gabe inside to wander around. It's finals week for the current students, so many students were sitting around studying.
- Walk through the Circo Massimo, which is the old chariot racing site of Ancient Rome. It's a huge, oval grassy spot in the middle of some busy intersections, but there's rarely a lot of people there. We sat and ate melons in the sunshine and gave our feet a rest!
- Toss a coin over our shoulders into the Trevi Fountain and marvel at the glorious carvings. This is also a tourist thronged spot! And actually, it was on my "B" list, but since we went to church on Sunday at Rome Baptist Church, the place I worshiped while I lived in Rome, we were only a few blocks away from the Trevi Fountain, so we went to participate in the Roman ritual. If I remember correctly, this is supposed to guarantee your return to Rome someday.
- Walk into St. Peter's and gape at the massiveness of the church. We decided to not swing for the €26.00 entry ticket (EACH!) to the Vatican museum, and therefore we knew we wouldn't see the Sistine Chapel, but since the church itself is free, I definitely wanted to show that to Gabe (he left his pocket knife home that day, since there's a metal detector before you can go in). As it turned out, the church was closed when we initially went by, so we wandered over to do our Trestevere to-do list before coming back about 15:45. There was a small line forming, so we queued up, passed through security, and walked into the basilica.... To find the whole thing filled with chairs, a lot of security, and someone handing out a booklet with an order of service. We sat down, browsed through the booklet, and deciphered the Italian enough to realize it was a special service commemorating Christ's suffering and tears "con il Santos Padre, Francesco" - with the holy father, Pope Frances! We decided it was worth it to head home a little later than planned, and we waited the hour and a half until the service started to see Pope Frances and be in St. Peter's during the service.
- Peruse the options of flavors (150 in total!) at Della Palma Gelateria and pick something unusual (Gabe got Basil flavored gelato and mixed fruit - both were prettying good! I got soy chocolate - which was decent - and soy coconut - which was kind of gross... However, the next day we stopped at a little shop that offered soy gelato as well, and I got an excellent coffee flavor and hazelnut flavor - it made up for Della Palma's disappointment!).
- Elbow our way into the Pantheon, which I like just for it's wide-open "Here I am!" sort of feel. Gabe found the marble work mesmerizing.
Along with all these awesome things, we munched on pizza of various types as we walked the streets (I found some fun cheese-free options I'd never branched out to explore in the past!), stopped in to a bar about once a day to get a mid-day caffeine boost of espresso at the counter (Gabe discovered he likes macchiatos for when it's past cappuccino time), chatted with fun Italians along the way (including this sweet old guy on the bus that didn't speak a lick of English, but we still learned that he'd smoked for a long time, he was a 7th generation Roman on his mother's side, his father had lived in Germany until the Second World War, and he was only going a few stops on the bus. This was pieced together by my rusty, minimal Italian and Gabe's assistance of Spanish!), and of course, enjoyed hanging out with the Smiths when our schedules aligned!
It was fun to come back and see the now-expanded Smith family. Everett, the little guy I used to babysit, is now a tall, composed conversationalist in 7th grade. Keaton, who was born after I left Rome, is a spunky, witty, board-game loving 1st grader. And Briella, who joined the family in Rome in February when her adoption was all completed, is a lively, adorable, tall 16-month old. And, of course, the cat is still around, quietly observing the doings of the family!
On Saturday, Laura and the boys took us to the catacombs (something I actually never did when I was in Rome!) near their house and then we stopped at a gelato shop on the way home. They also tremendously added to our Roman experience by cooking fabulous Italian dinners each night. Laura is an excellent cook and we will miss the fabulous smells that greeted us at the door when we came home each evening!
- Dani
But we didn't stay in the heart of Rome. My generous friend Laura opened her home and gave us a set of keys to their family's flat despite a rather chaotic week for them. They fed us every morning and evening, and provided an English-speaking, family-oriented retreat in the midst of our touring. It was awesome!
So what did we do in Rome? We followed a wish-list of sorts that I'd created and approved with Gabe. It included my favorite sites/significant places for me after my study abroad year here in Roma.
Here's the list:
- Wander around Rome. The buses are a fun way to experience this city, and the metro is a great shoe-watching spot (one of our favorite activities!), but walking allows you to really experience the charm of the city. Laura and Jason's place is on the north side of the city, but not so far away that walking to the center isn't possible, so we did. And we found a Narnia-esque spot in a park along the way (so magical! Other than the smell of dog poo), managed to buy two very large and delicious melons for snacking on, stopped in for coffee at a bar (standing at the bar, it's only €0.90 for an espresso!), and got lost in the cobblestone and marble maze.
- Climb the steps to my favorite church, Santa Maria in Arecoli, located just behind the right side of the Vittorio Emmanuelle II monument when facing it from Corso. It has the most beautiful chandeliers hanging from the ornate ceiling. And because it's at the top of a very long stair case, it doesn't get as many visitors as some churches! Bonus: your quads get a good workout on the way, which is handy if you're trying to maintain Burma-mountains muscle tone!)
- See the Colosseum. It's such an icon of Rome, and although it is very tourist-clogged, it's always been one of my favorite sites. The day we went, there was a huge line, so we wandered away and decided to come back later in the afternoon. When we returned at 16:00, the line was much shorter. I sat outside (with Gabe's pocket knife - there's a metal detector to get into the site) and saved us the €10 entry ticket for me while Gabe was able to go inside and experience the movie-like history-brought-to-life feeling. Unfortunately, by the time he came out, he didn't have enough time to go wander through the Forum, which is also included in the cost of the ticket, but I think he was happy having just seen the Colosseum.
- Go to Camp di Fiori and find door 37, which is where I lived for a semester. The square is a fun mixing place of local fruit and veggie venders and bright-eyed tourists. There are some fun shops along the way to the Campo, including a beautiful leather shop. We were initially attracted by the shoes in the window display, but when we wandered in, the clever sales lady said, "Come, try things on. To look and try on is free!" Gabe put on several gorgeous leather jackets, but don't worry, we walked away without paying the €1,000.00 price on any of them!
- Visit another cool church: San Clemente, which has the current basilica, and then a basilica from the Middle Ages built underneath the current one, and then Roman street ruins underneath that basilica. It's one of the most experiential spots to visit that put into perspective the literal depth of the historic Rome. Unfortunately, although the top basilica is free, to go down into the lower depths costs €10. I sent Gabe again while I waited in the courtyard of the ground level of the church. He ended up being about the only person down there in the lowest level and got a real feel for the creepiness of the deep ruins!
- Get gelato at the gelataria in Trestevere that sealed the deal of canella (cinnamon) being the best flavor of gelato. It was worth it to break the dairy-free gelato rule I tried to apply for the sake of my skin! It's a popular spot with local students, and since it's located just around the corner and down the street from John Cabot University, it gets a lot of college student food traffic along with high school students and, of course, tourists. This stop included a wander through Trestevere, the picturesque cobblestone streets of Rome "village" life.
- Show Gabe John Cabot University, where I studied for my year in Rome. It's a small campus (although they have expanded to a second campus just doesn't the road now), but a lovely little look into everyday life for students. I was able to give my name, confirm my address, and take Gabe inside to wander around. It's finals week for the current students, so many students were sitting around studying.
- Walk through the Circo Massimo, which is the old chariot racing site of Ancient Rome. It's a huge, oval grassy spot in the middle of some busy intersections, but there's rarely a lot of people there. We sat and ate melons in the sunshine and gave our feet a rest!
- Toss a coin over our shoulders into the Trevi Fountain and marvel at the glorious carvings. This is also a tourist thronged spot! And actually, it was on my "B" list, but since we went to church on Sunday at Rome Baptist Church, the place I worshiped while I lived in Rome, we were only a few blocks away from the Trevi Fountain, so we went to participate in the Roman ritual. If I remember correctly, this is supposed to guarantee your return to Rome someday.
- Walk into St. Peter's and gape at the massiveness of the church. We decided to not swing for the €26.00 entry ticket (EACH!) to the Vatican museum, and therefore we knew we wouldn't see the Sistine Chapel, but since the church itself is free, I definitely wanted to show that to Gabe (he left his pocket knife home that day, since there's a metal detector before you can go in). As it turned out, the church was closed when we initially went by, so we wandered over to do our Trestevere to-do list before coming back about 15:45. There was a small line forming, so we queued up, passed through security, and walked into the basilica.... To find the whole thing filled with chairs, a lot of security, and someone handing out a booklet with an order of service. We sat down, browsed through the booklet, and deciphered the Italian enough to realize it was a special service commemorating Christ's suffering and tears "con il Santos Padre, Francesco" - with the holy father, Pope Frances! We decided it was worth it to head home a little later than planned, and we waited the hour and a half until the service started to see Pope Frances and be in St. Peter's during the service.
- Peruse the options of flavors (150 in total!) at Della Palma Gelateria and pick something unusual (Gabe got Basil flavored gelato and mixed fruit - both were prettying good! I got soy chocolate - which was decent - and soy coconut - which was kind of gross... However, the next day we stopped at a little shop that offered soy gelato as well, and I got an excellent coffee flavor and hazelnut flavor - it made up for Della Palma's disappointment!).
- Elbow our way into the Pantheon, which I like just for it's wide-open "Here I am!" sort of feel. Gabe found the marble work mesmerizing.
Along with all these awesome things, we munched on pizza of various types as we walked the streets (I found some fun cheese-free options I'd never branched out to explore in the past!), stopped in to a bar about once a day to get a mid-day caffeine boost of espresso at the counter (Gabe discovered he likes macchiatos for when it's past cappuccino time), chatted with fun Italians along the way (including this sweet old guy on the bus that didn't speak a lick of English, but we still learned that he'd smoked for a long time, he was a 7th generation Roman on his mother's side, his father had lived in Germany until the Second World War, and he was only going a few stops on the bus. This was pieced together by my rusty, minimal Italian and Gabe's assistance of Spanish!), and of course, enjoyed hanging out with the Smiths when our schedules aligned!
It was fun to come back and see the now-expanded Smith family. Everett, the little guy I used to babysit, is now a tall, composed conversationalist in 7th grade. Keaton, who was born after I left Rome, is a spunky, witty, board-game loving 1st grader. And Briella, who joined the family in Rome in February when her adoption was all completed, is a lively, adorable, tall 16-month old. And, of course, the cat is still around, quietly observing the doings of the family!
On Saturday, Laura and the boys took us to the catacombs (something I actually never did when I was in Rome!) near their house and then we stopped at a gelato shop on the way home. They also tremendously added to our Roman experience by cooking fabulous Italian dinners each night. Laura is an excellent cook and we will miss the fabulous smells that greeted us at the door when we came home each evening!
- Dani
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