texasbookworm

<b>And We Came “Round by Rome”: Two Texans in Rome, February 2017</b>

Browning said, “Everyone soon or late comes round by Rome.” Well, we are glad we have now come “round by” Rome, spending a full week in February, walking over sixty miles, eating scoops and scoops of gelato, and marveling at the centuries of history laid out before our eyes and feet. And so I offer a report on our trip; it doesn’t hold any especially unusual bits, but it is our unique adventure. I begin with some prologue; the action starts with the Days 0-1 entry:

<b> Who we are: </b>We are 60ish, he a chemical engineer, I a literature/history teacher in small private school. Having traveled to Europe many times, he on dozens of business trips, we are familiar with the things necessary to plan and travel. Although age does plague us all (doesn’t it!), we are fairly fit for walking. We like to do our own planning, go at our own pace, and take lots of photos.

<b>How and why we planned this trip: </b> My school has fairly recently adopted a calendar that has a winter break in February, so in spring of 2016, we began to think about using the 2017 break for a trip to Europe. My first choice is and may always be more of the British Isles (haven’t been to Ireland yet), but we decided February wouldn’t be a good time, weather-wise. We’d enjoyed trips to Spain, France, and Germany in the last few years, too, but wanted to visit some place different. In 2010 for a training seminar provided by EFTours before I served as a group leader for a student tour in England, I’d spent a short time in Rome and had always wanted to take M back. Also, I am still teaching 9th grade Ancient History, and a trip to Rome in February would actually be right in the middle of that unit! So we began to investigate that idea.

M has so many FF miles and upgrades, he looked at all sorts of options, and I began exploring hotels somewhere near the Pantheon/Piazza Navonna areas and got some ideas of prices. At some point, M looked at <b>American Airlines Vacation packages</b> and found that their prices for flights+hotel were close to costs of just flights. Depending on the hotel chosen and actual room requests, the total cost might be less or more than just the flights, but it certainly seemed like a good option to explore. So he read all the fine print, I found that one of the hotels I’d already put on my short list was one of the AAVacation options, and in May 2016 we booked our AAVacation. We’d never done anything like this before, but the pricing was so good, we decided to take the chance. (More about our opinions about this decision as the TR goes along.) He also requested AA upgrades, which we eventually got on the four AA legs—First Class to and from DFW and Business DFW-LHR and LHR-DFW. Nice to be spoiled a bit! He’s also a Concierge Key member, so there are other perks he gets.

<b>Complications:</b> At the time we made the reservations, M’s future business travel was predicted to slow down. However, between June 2016 and the time of our trip in February 2017, he actually ended up in Germany over half a dozen times. And he even had a fairly-last-minute three-week trip there that had him returning home only 8 days before our trip. AND while in Germany, he cracked a molar. It wasn’t excruciating, but it was tender, so he ended up having oral surgery Wednesday before we left. This included extraction, implant preparation, and a bone graft—fairly major stuff from which he recuperated well, but he was on antibiotics and heavy doses of ibuprofen for swelling during our trip, and he was restricted in his diet somewhat. So he left not feeling 100% normal.

<b>When and where we traveled: </b> We left from South Texas Saturday, Feb. 18, traveling to Dallas (DFW) and then to London (LHR) on AA, then on British Airways from LHR to Rome (FCO), returning on Sunday, Feb. 26, through the same airports.

<b>Pre-trip special arrangements/plans/purchases: </b> I spent my normal many happy hours researching and planning and mapping out walking tours, preparing tentative daily agendas grouped by neighborhoods, in general. I read lots and compared all the different passes/pre-ordered tickets/tours, etc. I promised to not cram the days too full (I tend to do that) and to stay flexible. With that in mind, I still wanted to pick the days we’d go to the Coliseum and to the Vatican so I could purchase tickets/vouchers on-line. I did that just a week or so before we left, printing out the vouchers at home. We decided to not book any tours but to do it all on our own, as is M’s preference.

I also bought an under-clothing money “belt” to wear instead of my around-the-neck pouch, to see if it showed up less in pictures!

We downloaded onto our phones <b>Rick Steve’s Audio Europe walking tour guides</b> for several of the places we’d be in Rome.

<b>Reading for the trip: </b>Of course there are the “typical” guides I looked at—Fodors, National Geographic, Doris Kindersley’s Eyewitness, Rick Steves. <b>But I also read some books I highly recommend—<i>Four Seasons in Rome</i> by Anthony Duerr (his memoir of a year there on a writing fellowship); <i>City of the Soul: A Walk in Rome</i> by William Murray (another sort of loving memoir with a literary bent); and <i>SPQR</i> by Mary Beard, an easy-to-read but well-done, thorough, scholarly, engaging history of Rome from founding to the fall (as Beard would date it).</b> Reading Beard’s book before the trip and on the plane before and after the trip made her writing have quite an impact.

<b>Days 0-1—Saturday and Sunday—Travel and Arrival Days </b>

When we checked in, the AA desk said they could not issue our British Airways boarding passes from LHR to FCO, despite BA and AA being partners and this being a trip booked through AA. So we’d have to go to the BA desk in LHR. Our flight to DFW was on time and fine. The trip in business class DFW to LHR was fine; I really like the Business Class seat configuration on this 777-300ER perhaps the best. We didn’t sleep much--mild but persistent turbulence in the prime-sleeping hours. I enjoyed finally getting to see Dr. Strange, and my food was great, M’s not so much. At LHR we were going to be a bit early (we had about 90 minutes for connection time), but we got stacked up over the airport, so de-planed a bit late. We were met by a CK representative who whisked us and another gentleman to a van which drove around the maze between terminals. She was gobsmacked that we hadn’t been given BA boarding passes, but she escorted us to the BA desk quickly and then pointed us to a fast-track lane for security, and we made it through fairly quickly. The CK lady told us to go to the lounge as our gate wouldn’t be posted for almost half an hour, so we did that. We then had a bit of hustle as our gate was maybe a 15-minute walk away, but they were running a bit behind and I think we left a tad late.

At FCO about 1 pm, we got through all the arrival steps in good time, and off we went to grab a cab. I had monitored the news some the week before and seen there had been a cab strike, but it seemed to be a one-day thing. And we’d read the warnings to ignore the guys approaching you in the terminal with offers of rides, to just go get an official taxi. So we walked past a couple gentlemen offering something. Then I heard “cab strike” and noticed, hmmm, there seems to be some confusion here. A man with an ID tag around his neck approached us, M started to wave him off again, the man said I’m with the airport transportation, there’s a cab strike, we are arranging rides, here’s a driver. So, he handed us off to a young man (after making it clear to the driver that we would pay €20 each, a total of €40—so actually cheaper than the €48 we were expecting) and we and 2 ladies followed him to a van. So--welcome to Rome!—but this actually worked out great.

Off we went on in a blue and sunny, cool afternoon on a 45-ish minute ride. I noticed that once off the highways and onto the streets, there was less graffiti on all the buildings than I’d been surprised by in 2010. All week it seemed like there was less than I remembered. Which is nice, whether because I was in different places or because, as it seemed to me, there was more effort to clean it off.

The van turned off the busy Corso Vittorio Emanuele II onto a small lane, then into a smaller one-way alley, right to the door of the hotel. It was a good thing we had a ride, because we might never have found the hotel. There was only a small brass plaque—<b>Hotel Le Carrisse al Pantheon</b>--on the doorframe of the entry into the small passage leading to a private courtyard and from which two sets of steps led off. So we paid and got our luggage and headed into the passage with some trepidation. Inside a bit there was another small brass sign with an arrow pointing to ugly glass doors on the right. Inside were nice marble stairs and a tiny elevator, which we entered with our luggage (barely) and rode up a floor—and, yes, there’s the little reception area. And we were warmly received most efficiently, escorted to our room a few steps away, and given all the info we needed. This hotel has only 24 rooms and has been updated and is clean and light and lovely. The room had high ceilings with a large window which overlooked the old lane. It was roomy enough with plenty of storage, an in-room safe, free wi-fi, a mini-frig, TV, tea/coffee-making stuff, and plenty of plugs. Breakfast was included, there’s AC if we’d needed it (which we did not!), and the bathroom was modernized and had enough room to move around in (unlike a few other European hotels we’ve seen). The staff was all wonderful, with most of them speaking quite sufficient English. It was generally quiet, too, with a very few times we heard noise from the street below. (M’s negatives: The shower temp fluctuated too much; not enough room to spread out as much as he likes; the bed a bit lumpy.) (A’s counter-negs: The shower flow was great; I thought there was enough room; my bed slept fine) (Both: The room temperature was hard to control, even though there was a remote control in room; we both got hot during the nights.) And the area, for us, turned out to be superb!

After a bit of rest and settling in, we took a short walk in the early dusk to the Pantheon—two minutes away. We just popped in for M’s first cursory look, knowing we’d be back. We’d read advice to walk a block or two off the busy Piazza della Rotunda to find better food cheaper. Well, maybe we didn’t go far enough. We ate at <b>La Maddelena Trattatoria</b> and found it just ok for the price. Of course, we were both tired. But—our prosciutto and mozzarella was ok (ham great, cheese tasteless almost); my veal scaloppini was flavorful enough but not tender and barely warm; M’s veal with marsala sauce was nothing memorable. After we strolled around a bit more, we went into the jam-packed <b>Lindt,</b> right next door to the restaurant; M got the first of many dark chocolate gelatos—fantastic! And I got some famous Roman thick hot chocolate—it lived up to its reputation. It was like drinking melted chocolate truffles. Yum.

We both had an excellent sleep, and I woke up recharged; M never did feel rested all week.

WoinParis

Ok !
Nice start. Now you ahve to deliver more.
I'll digress already : I love Italy, I have never had one gelato. Or maybe as a kid.
Is gelato a US thing ? I don't suppose gelateria function only with tourists, but in my mind it is somethign for kids.
Cultural trait ? Or maybe you are cooler than I am ?

texasbookworm

Have no idea of gelato's "coolness" except in terms of actual temperature. And "coolness" in temperature was not something we sought in February. The gelataria are certainly ubiquitous where we were in Rome; I have no idea whether they are completely tourist-driven or not; most people I saw with cones and who I heard purchasing were not kids (although plenty of children were also enjoying them) and were not American or English. Whatever the cause for their popularity, I'm glad we enjoyed them. I don't usually base my choice of foods on cultural traits or coolness, but on what tastes good to me. I'm about the furthest thing from a foodie you can get. Ha!

texasbookworm

<b>Day 2—Monday—Heart of Rome Walk</b>

We had not expected breakfast to be included, so we were happy to check it out. It was cold/continental with breads and assorted pastries, cold cuts and cheese, cold cereals, some fruit, boiled eggs and yogurt, so it was plenty for me, and M made do. Tea, of course!

My day’s suggested walk was to take us into several churches, through piazzas, and to major stops like the Pantheon, Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain. We would get to what we got to; I knew it was probably too much and I’d have a chance to go back to missed spots later. It was another chilly but nice morning as we set off after 9.

(A word about navigating/plans/maps, etc. For the first time ever, I relied almost completely on Googlemaps on my phone for navigating in detail. We are good paper map readers, but M has become increasingly proficient and even reliant on GPS maps in cars or on his phone, and I found Rome’s maze-like snarl of lanes with hard-to-find-posted names difficult to navigate by only using a paper map. So I was very glad for the phone maps this time! This constant use did run my phone battery down fairly fast, but I always carried a fully charged extra phone battery.)

• A less than 5-minute leisurely stroll took us to <b>Sant Maria Sopra Minerva,</b> the only Gothic church in Rome. It’s beautiful, and a special treat was finding Michelangelo’s statue of Christ with the cross. I put a coin in to light it up. In the rest of the church, light was streaming in through the stained glass, and the colors of the frescoes and carvings were vibrant and deep. It was quiet and uncrowded this early morning. Back outside, I noted the water stains on the walls from floods before the current retaining walls on the Tiber were built and took another photo of one of the many obelisks—this one on its funny elephant.

• Next was our visit to the <b>Pantheon</b>. This is perhaps my favorite structure in Rome, and it was wonderful to be so close that I got to go in it many times this week. We used one of the RS audio guides, which we found to be a wonderful help in our appreciation of some sites. The Pantheon was full but not packed, and we spent about 30 minutes.

• In the <b>Piazza della Rotunda </b>there seemed to be a mix of tourists and also some residents or workers in the shops and restaurants walking more purposefully. The most common nationality of tourists all week seemed to be Italian; I heard very little American English. All week there was also a variety of singers performing here, mostly with guitar or keyboard; one day I strolled by to hear opera being sung by a fantastic tenor; and in the evening toward the back of the Pantheon we several times hear violins. Lovely.

• We loved walking the back streets with their multi-storied structures with earth-colored stucco walls and cobble-stone streets. Streets certainly are narrow, with very few sidewalks on almost all the streets we went on all week, and motor bikes and cars everywhere, but drivers are very cautious and mindful of pedestrians, I found. And those charming bumpy streets did take a toll on our feet and legs after a few days!

• We wound our way to the <b>Piazza Navonna</b> This was the first place I remember being at in 2010, so it was great to visit it early on our first full day together here. The fountains were flowing, the daylight was sparkling, and the people were wandering.

• Time for a coke rest, so we found a nearby <b>McDonald’s. </b>

• Then we went into <b>San Luigi dei Francesi </b>for the first of my Caravaggio-quest stops! In 2010 this was my introduction to this amazing artist, and I was glad to show M the 3 St. Matthew masterpieces. M was continually struck in churches by the abundance of textures and colors—the colors of different marbles and stones, the textures of wood and polished and rough minerals, the frescoes and lights and mosaics. You just can’t take it all in. This is a beautiful church, too.

• Next stop—<b>Trevi Fountain</b>. Wow, what else can be said? This may have been M’s favorite spot this week; we returned a couple more times. It was crowded but not impossible; I tossed my coin; we took some pics to email kids—using a dual mode on our phone, so we don’t have to use any selfie pose or stick. Urgh. If I saw one guy offering selfie sticks, I saw 1000—everywhere. And about that many people imposing themselves into others’ space by using them clue-less-ly. Ok, anti-selfie-stick rant over.

• It was about lunch time, so on our way to the <b>Spanish Steps</b>, on Via di Propoganda, we found some sandwiches, chips, and sodas. Then we sat on the “ugly boat” fountain and had a thoroughly great time in the sun eating, resting, and people watching. It was fun seeing all the kids running around here. One dad was helping his toddler tightrope around the fountain. Afterwards we went up and down the Steps and admired the views.

• There are lots of live webcams all over Rome, and I’d checked them in the weeks before our trip just for fun. Today we tried to access one of the three trained on the Spanish Steps but couldn’t get the Internet signal well enough to stream it, so we couldn’t do the screen shot we’d done in Edinburgh.

• We thought we still had stamina for some more walking, so we strolled up to the <b>Piazza del Popolo and the Porta del Popolo (northern city gate).</b> Along the way, at Duegi Srl we got some dark chocolate gelato with chocolate nibs—scrumptious! We finished our cones in the Piazza and then needed to re-group. It was before 2 and the church I’d wanted to go into was closed until 4. I had noted opened times of the churches I wanted to see, but it wasn’t always possible to time our walks to match those times. In this case, after resting on the church steps and enjoying the large Piazza’s ambience, we decided we didn’t want to wait over an hour more, so we started back to the hotel.

• On the Via di Ripetta we came upon the <b>Museo Dell’Ara Pacis</b>—a site I had on my “maybe” list and now here we were (and in need of a break). So I suggested we go in. We were overly tired and feeling the jet lag catching up, so we didn’t spend long. It’s rather minimalist and maybe a bit overpriced for what you see, but I’m glad we stopped. But you can actually see it from the outside (but can’t use the ...facilities). It’s the Alter of Augustus’ Peace from about 9 BC and was originally outside the city and lay buried for centuries; it was reassembled in its current location in 1938 and enclosed in the current building (which is opposite the mound that is Augustus’ Mausoleum, under much scaffolding and excavation) in 2006.

(A word about toilets: There aren’t many public ones in the parts of Rome we were in—or maybe I should say, none that we saw, free or pay. I read this before traveling, and I can confirm this. The ones in museums and restaurants I found to be acceptably clean. So you just have to plan around such realities.)

• We got back to the hotel about 4:30 and rested. M napped. We decided we didn’t want to walk much more for dinner and went to the restaurant right beneath our window, but they were closed on Mondays. So we tried a little place, <b>Il Lucano</b>, at the end of “our” block—combo corner store, tobacco shop, and restaurant. Ha. It was…ok. Our salads were fresh. M had lamb which, while not presented in a very attractive way, was pretty tender with good veggies. My pasta was not the dish I asked for at first and was just mediocre. When the bill came, they had charged us incorrectly for my salad, but they were apologetic and insisted we have a limoncello on the house. I’m not much for liqueurs, but we tried it, and we’re glad we had it—once!

• <b>Miles today:</b> I have an app on my phone that keeps a fairly accurate record of steps and thus miles, as long as the phone is carried on my person and is on. For this day it says we walked 5 miles, although it felt further!

bilboburgler

gelato is not just for tourists, all my Italian friends love it

still not to my taste

Anyway on the for the ride

twk

Enjoying the report. I haven't been to Rome since a post-HS graduation trip in 1985, but will get back before too long. I did, however, help my cousin locate an apartment for a five day stay in Rome, which I think was on the same street as your hotel. The apartment was built into the remains of an Roman bathhouse, and he found it to be a great location, so when I do make it back to Rome, I really would like to be in that neighborhood.

texasbookworm

twk--Maybe that's what those old walls were across the street, with residences built around them. I kept forgetting to ask someone at reception, and I didn't find any info. It was...I can't think of a word besides amazing...to see the old stuff built up around and incorporated into newer structures.

Next installment soon

cathies

Nice report, looking forward to the next instalment.

texasbookworm

<b>Day 3—Tuesday—The Colosseum and Forum</b>

M was feeling cold and/or like he had a cold coming on and not very alert, but he is a trooper; we headed out on a brisk and blue morning about 8:30 for a mile walk to the Colosseum.

• We crossed the <b>Piazza Venezia</b>, trusting the cars to stop as we walked into the crosswalks, and I decided once again that the monument/alter/birthday-cake/white monstrosity is fairly ugly in its over-done-ness. Along the way we peered into the Forum from street level and took pics. There is a lot of new-metro-line construction going on and there are also cranes in the way of a good view of the Colosseum as you approach on Via deii Fori Imperali.

• At the <b>Colosseum</b> there were several helpful agents who directed us to the correct line with our pre-printed tickets, and we were in quickly. The security line was not slow, either, so we were in by 9:15. It was already crowded but again not impossibly packed. We spent about an hour, using one of our RS audio guides as we stood amazed and awed. Others have described this ancient, marvelous place in sufficient detail; but you really have to actually stand at one end and use your imagination to even begin to get an inkling of its size and its engineering ingenuity.

• Then we crossed to the <b>Forum</b> with entry again quick with the Colosseum/Forum combo-ticket already purchased. Again we used RS’s guide which led us through in a logical and informative way. And again, others have described this better than I could. I did like getting a better understanding this trip of a few things I will be able to share with my students immediately—the rostrum from which Mark Anthony and others spoke, the site of Julius Caesar’s burial urn, the whole forum being where the legendary kings drained the swamp and began building this public space. Even if you don’t know anything about Roman history, it’s an awesome place, and if you do, it’s beyond incredible to be standing where so much took place.

• It was time for lunch, so on Via Cavour we found a little place called Wings that had all kinds of stuff; we got a couple different kinds of sandwiches which were sufficient for sustenance and some good fries. And the cokes were cold, the service friendly, the place uncrowded, and the facilities fine. Next door at Flor we got some more excellent dark chocolate gelato. Maybe you just can’t go wrong!

• We walked back, pausing for closer looks at <b>Trajan’s Forum</b>. M noted that that is a pretty big column! He asked what the slits were for; later we heard or read how it’s actually hollow with (what must be extremely narrow) winding stairs.
In our room, M fell asleep. I had a rest and then went back out for a ramble on my own.

• I went around the block that is the <b>Largo di Torre Argentino.</b> I think I figured out where, according to one school of thought, Pompey’s theater was, so where Caesar was actually stabbed. (I think there are competing claimants.) There were plenty of cats in their sanctuary, but there are more ruins than mammals.

• There are 3 churches fairly near our hotel that we hadn’t gotten to Monday—first I popped into the <b>Chiesa del Gesu, then the Chiesa de Sant Ignazio di Loyola </b>with its Baroque ceiling, <b> then Sant Agostino</b> where I found another Caravaggio. This was one of my rambles for which I was very glad to have Googlemaps to help; I don’t know if I would have found de Sant Ignazio otherwise. All lovely and quiet this late afternoon.

• I had another peek into the Pantheon, too. Still lovely.

On our way back to the hotel earlier, after the Forum visit, we’d passed <b>The Scholars Lounge Irish </b>Pub on Via del Plebiscito, and that sounded like a winner for us tonight. They had upcoming football games’ times posted, when we knew they’d be packed, but we could eat before one tonight, about 6. A less than 10-minute walk through what was becoming a familiar neighborhood took us to the pub where we had a great meal—best so far. I had roast chicken and delicious veggies; M’s Guinness stew was tender and flavorful and filling and restorative; he felt like a walk in the lovely early evening.

• We wandered toward the <b>Trevi </b> again. Along the way we went through the open passageway of a beautiful residential building with beautiful wall paintings, but I can’t figure out where we were.

• At the Fountain, we sat down close and enjoyed the atmosphere. Again, crowded but not packed. And then this guy and girl stopped in front of us, he dropped to one knee and pulled out a ring, and she acted astounded and awestruck. I think she said yes; he put the ring on and everybody clapped! (And then the photo hawkers bugged them to take their Polaroid—but I’d want a record, too, so probably a legitimate sales pitch this time!) How fun!

• On the way back, we continued loving the sights and sounds of the evening, and also there were lots of good smells of dinners. (Sometimes M noticed a lot of …other smells as there are horses, dogs, and cats [and humans] who don’t use indoor plumbing!) I think it was this night I noticed how well-lit even the smallest lanes are. I don’t know what it’s like in other parts of Rome, but in these heavily pedestrianized, very touristy, old parts of Rome, the streets are well-lit. And there are lots of police and security around, all over, we noticed. In general, I felt very safe all the time, except for one 2-minute walk by myself in some park area I didn’t mean to be in. We never rode any public transport and kept our important cards and passports secure, but we did feel safe. We walked through the Sordi mall just to see the pretty glass and lights.

• <b>Miles today</b>: My app says I walked almost 10 miles this day.

LCBoniti

Lovely report - looking forward to more!

Treesa

Coming along. Like your style. So well organized. I only wish.

texasbookworm

<b>Day 4—Wednesday—The Vatican Museums and St. Peter’s</b>

I had purchased tickets for a 10:00 entry, so we left at 9 for our bit over 1.5 mile walk in a gray and overcast morning. We crossed the Tiber for our first real look at the famous river.

• At the <b>Vatican Museum</b> we got to the entrance area about 9:45; many helpful agents were posted, and they directed us to a short line into the entrance area.

• After we passed through security, it was confusing, jam-packed, and hot. There were crowds of well-behaved kids weaving and milling and going everywhichway. Finally I found someone to ask, and he directed me to a ticket counter, where I redeemed our vouchers. Then M wanted to leave our coats and his backpack in locker—nope, can’t leave clothing. We wound our way downstairs to a café to get a coke and bathroom break and breather.

• About 11 we entered and spent over an hour, using a RS audio guide, and just trying to see the highlights without wandering distracted or wearing our senses and legs out. I most wanted to see 2 things that I teach about every year—that amazing statue of Laocoon and Raphael’s huge School of Athens. (I teach at a Classical school; that picture is on our cafeteria wall in almost the same size as original.) So I got to. I got to be close enough almost to touch. I took pictures. I was happy! (Well, the Raphael rooms were so crowded the pics aren’t from a very good perspective, but still I was there.) We also saw lots of other amazing things, of course. One brand new-to-me fact was about the purple stone—porphyry—all taken from only one quarry in Egypt. Once we’d been alerted to its existence, we began to notice it a lot. This museum is full of great stuff, but like at the Louvre and Prado and British Museum, you just can’t take it all in. I know I missed a lot, but using the RS guide and honing in on most of the main ones (and seeing my “must-see’s”) made for a successful visit.

• Then we were conveniently at a café at lunch time, so we took a break with sandwiches and a yummy chocolate thing for dessert. We beat the rush and got nice seats downstairs one floor.

• Then it was on to the <b>Sistine Chapel. </b> I’m glad I had recently re-watched <I>The Agony and the Ecstasy</I> and had RS’s guide. We got seats to perch on for most of our visit, too, so we spent about 30 very nice minutes there. Wow. And painting was what he was SECOND best at! Ha.

• Following some tips I’d read, we fell in with a group and went out the right-hand door and so were funneled very easily and quickly onto the entrance to St. Peter’s.

• <b>St. Peter’s</b> is a work of art not to be believed until seen. The size. The dome. The mosaics. The Pieta. It’s all gorgeous. I prefer Gothic over Baroque, especially in any sense of inspiring individual worship, but this is an amazing place. We used the RS guides and had an educational hour visit.

• Then we spent some time out front with lovely views. There were 2 young European men taking pictures of each other with a Japanese flag. We got into a conversation, and they said they had a Japanese friend to whom they were sending pictures from wherever they went with the flag in the picture. M had a trip to Tokyo for work planned a week after we got back from Rome, so he asked if we could borrow the flag. They said sure and M sent the pic I took of him+flag to his colleagues in Japan with St. Peter’s in the background.

• After a walk over the pedestrian bridge at <b>Castel Sant’Angelo past the Bernini angels,</b> M routed us through some back ways for a wonderful walk to the hotel. (I’m pretty sure we shared some more dark chocolate gelato from a shop near St. Peter’s square, too.)

• We went back to the <b>Le Ciambella restaurant </b>next door to the hotel; it was open tonight and we had a marvelous meal (best of the week or tied with Scholars Lounge) with most excellent service. Variety of cheeses with figs and honey. Bruschetta with different toppings. M had tender roast beef, we shared some broccoli, and I tried their Cacio e Pepe—wonderfully simple and delicious. Then we had the most wonderful tiramisu we’ve ever had—and we’ve had some good ones! But this has to be the best ever. As the waitress said, it was made by the chef like his mom would have made it. Like to pack her up in my suitcase to bring home!

• <b>Miles:</b> We walked almost 8 today.

annhig

Such a nice report, Texas - I've really enjoyed your take on Rome, which I fell in love with when I first visited when I was 50. Such a wonderful vibrant place, which DS proclaimed one day "redefined the word 'Big'".

And, WoinP - I too love the gelato; the place we went to every night opposite the apartment we rented was very popular with all sorts of folks including the local cops - though I never saw whether they paid for their giant cornetti!

ElendilPickle

I'm enjoying your lovely trip report!

Lee Ann

texasbookworm

Thanks for encouragement; it's always helpful to know if people are reading and taking anything helpful or fun away from TR's.

(and I love recognizing "old friends" from threads mostly about the UK!)

Next installment in a short bit.

texasbookworm

<b>Day 5—Thursday—Another Walk through the Heart of Rome, the Jewish Ghetto, and Trestevare</b>

For the next 3 days, I had ideas and tentative itineraries but was flexible. We had penciled in a train trip to Ostia Antica, but by this day I could tell that that was not going to happen. M woke feeling feverish and in need of a morning’s rest. In hindsight, he was probably suffering from the meds messing up his system combined with jet lag and fatigue, as he never developed other cold or flu symptoms, but he needed to sleep in. Also he needed to work on a ticket concern we had for our return; more about that below. So I re-arranged my weeks’ ideas; I did a walk I hadn’t planned in the morning along with seeing a couple things I’d missed, and we planned for maybe his feeling like going somewhere in the afternoon.

• One of the RS walks was called The Heart of Rome; while it would re-visit a few sites, I decided to use it plus some additions. (Then Friday I or we would do what I had planned, and Saturday we’d stay here and wing it and shop for souvenirs!)

• I wanted to see the Tiber again, so I used Google-maps to navigate to the <b>Ponte Sisto,</b> going through the just-setting up Campo de’Fiori market. I like wandering through neighborhoods, especially as the city awakes and people are getting their day started—dropping kids off at schools, walking dogs, grabbing coffees, greeting friends, running for buses.

• I noticed some “stumble stones” a few times this morning; these are those small brass plaques in the sidewalks in front of the last known addresses of victims of the Holocaust. There are now over 56,000 of these <b>“stolperstein”</b> in 22 countries, and it’s the largest decentralized memorial in the world. I learned about them in Frankfurt.

• Then I headed back to the <b>Campo de’Fiori</b> and plugged in the RS audio guide which took me by the <b>Palazzo Farnese</b> (where I learned about Michelangelo’s influential façade), past the <b>Piazza Pasquino</b> to see the “talking statue” (which we’d actually passed yesterday on the walk M was navigating, but I took a longer look today), and on to revisit the <b>Piazza Navonna</b>. His audio guide then goes to the Pantheon, but I bypassed that and went to the <b>Parliament building with yet another Obelisk and the Piazza Colonnna.</b> I made a quick pass through the <b>Gallaria Sordi </b>again and ended at the <b>Trevi Fountain.</b> Then the guide led across the Via del Tritone to the Via del Nazareno where behind an iron-mesh grill you can see a <b>bit of the Aqua Vergine aqueduct.</b> Next stop was the <b>Spanish Steps again </b> (I’d checked in with M and he was ok, so I continued my solo jaunt.)

• From here I walked back to the <b>Piazza del Popolo </b>where this morning the church <b>Santa Maria del Popolo</b> was open, so I got to admire its Caravaggios.

• I decided to walk back a different way, so I climbed the steps to the park area and just walked along the edge of the Villa Borghese park area, and at some point I wandered downhill and ended back at the Pantheon for my almost daily quick look in. I was going to grab lunch and do a little souvenir shopping before going to the room and figuring out what we’d do the rest of the day. I got some pizza at the place right beside the Pantheon where I’d eaten in 2010. It’s not spectacular but fine, and I liked re-visiting it, although it’s under different ownership now, they said. I sat outside with my lunch and very cold coke (yay!) and people watched, then set off down a couple lanes to explore nearby. But M texted me he was ready for some lunch, so he met me back at the same place for a sandwich.

As he ate, I heard his news. It seems that we had no tickets for our return FCO to LHR on British Airways, even though he had ticket locator and confirmation info. But British Airways had no such thing and said we’d have to talk to AA. As an AA Concierge Key member, he had tried them first, but he had to talk to AA Vacations which didn’t open until 2 pm Rome time. After lunch he’d need to do that. So I went back to the room and rested. From 2 til almost 3 he was on the phone, but by the end, he did have confirmation from AAVacation and could now “see” our info on the BA site. Why did this happen? No one wants to take blame, but AAVacation and BA didn’t communicate very well. So he’d done all he could; more about this later.

• About 4 pm, M was not feeling great but said he’d go with me; we left for the <b>Jewish Ghetto,</b> where we used a RS guide for a very short visit. It was fairly quiet and we didn’t wander far off the main street. We found (after some difficulty) the Turtle Fountain, and I enjoyed the ruins of Portica D’Octtavia that I didn’t know anything about. Also I noticed more stoplersteins.

• Then we crossed the river into <b>Trestevare.</b> We used the RS guide but in an abbreviated way as M wasn’t interested in exploring much; we went to the <b>Santa Maria in Trestevara </b>and sat for a long time. The mosaics are fine. M’s feet were really feeling the effects of the cobblestones this week. I’m sure if we’d felt fresher or if we’d been there in the daytime, we’d have had more fun looking around this neighborhood. I’m glad we went, but we didn’t see much.

• I have a student whose dad recommended a restaurant in the area, so we were going to find it by the time it opened at 7, so about 6:50 we used Googlemaps to wind our way back to <b>Da Meo Pattaca.</b> However, they don’t open until 7:30. We debated what to do and ended up just sitting outside in the almost cold dark until it opened. And it was a fine meal; I had a veal stew with mushrooms, and M had good beef with potatoes. It has an old and interesting interior, with a little trio singing for a few tables and waiters in traditional costumes.

• On the way back we got some more dark chocolate gelato to share; it was too icy and so was the least-good (can NOT say “worst” about yummy stuff!) we had all week.

• <b>Miles walked</b>: It seems I logged almost 12 miles this day. No wonder I’m ready to fall in bed!

cathies

Santa Maria in Trastevere is my favourite church in Rome. I love the contrast of the very plain facade and the beautiful interior. Last time we were there we were lucky enough to happen upon a wedding taking place and sat towards the back and watched the ceremony.

That's a shame about your DH not feeling well.

texasbookworm

Yes; you can figure on some jet lag, you can predict fatigue, you can prepare for getting a cold or a touch of stomach distress---but we never planned to have a trip after oral surgery, on top of a tiring business trip! So we are just glad he felt ok for over half the time, at least.

jelopez33

Texasbookworm:

Thanks for a great report about a great city.

And what a coincidence! I am a Chem Engr, retired and in my 60s!

More about Rome Please, a city we plan to visit this year( again).

texasbookworm

<b>Day 6--Friday—Churches and Capitoline Museums</b>

M actually felt worse today; he was probably not going to do anything except fast and sleep. He did arrange for our transport to FCO through the hotel (that car ended up being €60, as we traveled really early on a Sunday) and checked on exactly what the hotel tax bill would be on checkout so we would have the cash expected and not have surprises.

I had created a route to visit 4 churches, and I made the loop to see them all in the morning while they were open, despite a couple mis-turns and mis-reading of my Googlemap app. It was raining in spits and drizzles off and on a lot of this day with cold wind sometimes, so this was the least pleasant weather we had all week.

• The first was <b>San Clemente</b>. This was a terrific visit where I was fascinated to see the 3 major “layers.” On top is the 12th C. church, built on the foundations of a 4th C one, which lay buried until the 19th C. And under that is the 2nd C. Mithraic Temple. Maybe nowhere else in Rome did I experience the reality of the centuries lying on top of each other as in this place.

• Then on to <b>San Giovanni in Laterno,</b> the first Christian church in Rome, where I re-entered Vatican territory after going through security that took a few minutes. This massive church seems bright and white, and I liked all statues of apostles, striding out from their niches.

• I was once again on the sidewalks of the busy Via Merulana as I walked quickly to <b>Santa Maria Maggiore f</b>or a quick visit, seeing Bernini’s tomb, some very old mosaics, and beautiful dome interior.

• My main goal this morning was to make it to <b>St. Peter-in-Chains</b> before it closed at 12:30; I got turned around. I ended up walking through a park area (Parco del Colle Opio? I told you I took a wrong turn!) that was the only place I ever felt a bit uncomfortable all week. There weren’t many people, except for one or two sleeping on the ground, but I was only there less than 5 minutes. I made it to the church. I had come here in 2010 to be bowled over by Michelangelo’s Moses, and it was no less impressive the second visit. Spent 30 minutes or so just sitting and taking photos and admiring the masterpiece.

I checked in with M who was not feeling much better and so was going to stay in, but he said he didn’t need any nursing. So I soldiered on.

• I headed toward the Capitoline Hill; passing the little place we’d eaten before—Wings--I just popped in there for decent mushroom pizza and the use of the facilities.

• Then I went into the <b>Musei Capitolini </b>for about 2 ½ hours; I loved this visit. It was not crowded at all, and I liked having non-rushed time. I’d forgotten to bring some info with me I had in the hotel room listing the major things to try to see, so I had M text the list and I got them all done. I loved seeing all the hairstyles on the many busts, and there were a few pieces I’d used pictures of in my teaching, so that was fun to see the originals—of course, the “original” Wolf/Romulus/Remus statue, the dying Gaul, the boy with the thorn in his foot, and the mosaic of the drama/comedy masks.

• Afterwards, I walked around the hill a bit and found the vantage point from which I’d taken some cool pics of the Forum at night in 2010 and hadn’t been able to figure out yet where I’d been (having been taken there by a guide). On the right-hand side, as you come up the steps to the Musei, if you walk down the street a little, there’s a great view.

M didn’t feel like going to dinner, and I wasn’t that hungry, either. So I went around the corner (well, maybe a couple corners!) to a little neighborhood grocery store, Express, and got some packaged salad, fruit for us both, yogurt for M, and chocolate (which ended up being old and hard so tossed).

• <b>Miles: </b> Phone app said about 11.5 miles today; at nearing 50 miles already for the week, my joints are protesting!

<b>Day 7—Saturday—Palatine Hill and Shopping</b>

M was feeling a bit better and came to breakfast but didn’t want to push himself and be in worse shape for the trip home. So he decided to stay in awhile and not go with me; maybe he’d do something on his own or meet me.

• I went to <b>Palatine Hill</b>. This had been on my “maybe if we have time” list, and since we weren’t going on a day trip out of town, I opted to go here. I had to stand in line over 15 minutes, even though I got there before 9:30, to get a ticket. This site is included in the Colosseum/Forum ticket, but for only 2 days, so I had to get another. Buying on-line ahead definitely saves time.

• It was sprinkling a little, but I never did get really wet. I got directions to just the Palatine Hill, so had to walk a way back past the Arch and then enter on the left. Once I was going up and then on top of the Hill, I used a RS written guide and had a good ramble. There are several places for excellent views. I had hoped to “see” Romulus and Remus’ Iron Age huts up close, but there was no entrance or something. It was a good visit anyway. On my walk back to the hotel I found the areas around the Forums and the Colosseum now VERY crowded on this Saturday.

• Meanwhile, M felt recuperated enough to use part of RS’s Heart of Rome walk for a solo walk.

• We met at the hotel before lunch; he wanted something like a burger, and I wanted to try gelato from Grom near Piazza Navonna, as it had been recommended by a former student. So we went to Mc D’s and then <b>Grom</b>. And this was the best gelato all week! Of course, we didn’t try any flavors except dark chocolate, and all the gelato we had was wonderful (except the too-icy one which was still great), but this was superb, smooth, deep-flavored, and with little nibs. Ahhh. Also before lunch we tried to find an ATM; we might have had barely enough for rest of the trip, but I’d wanted to leave with €200 to have for a trip with students to Dublin in June. We started to use one, but M hesitated and talked to someone at the hotel about if there were any unsafe ATM’s. We found one soon somewhere along the Piazza Navonna.

• We walked around a bit and shopped. He went back to the room. I did some more looking around the Pantheon area at shops. I didn’t want anything expensive or big. I just wanted a few trinkets that weren’t too cheap. I found some leather earbud holders for son and daughter and some leather bracelets for my daughter. I got myself a nice tote, a lovely leather bookmark, and a little ceramic dish that will serve for a tea tidy. I wanted some nice ceramic something like a candlestick or pitcher, but I didn’t find any design/style that I especially liked, so the little dish was enough.

• M didn’t want much supper, but we knew the Scholars’ Lounge would have something he could eat. Ooops, football match. Shoulder-to-shoulder, wall-to-wall. Plan #2. We just went back to Le Ciambella, had cheeses, M had potatoes (wanted mashed, these were baked slices but good), I had another nice pasta dish but I don’t remember which. It was fresh and good, but not my favorite taste. It was just an off-night for both of us, but that’s ok.

• Afterwards I went for one last jaunt alone. I went back to the Capitoline Hill for that view, but my pics didn’t turn out very good this time; the lighting is difficult in the dark, but it was pretty anyway. Then I shopped a little more around the Pantheon and found a mug, a scarf, and a glass necklace—nothing that’s gonna last 1000 or even 100 years, but I’ll enjoy them as reminders of this visit. I got some chocolates at Venchi; when I had one of the truffles later, I decided it was one of the best in my life!

• In the room we finished packing up and got to bed early, as we had a car arranged for 5 am.

• <b>Miles</b>: 12.5!