More Gnocchi, Per Favore! Italy Solo in 2 Weeks, October 2011
Nov 6th, 2011, 05:15 PM
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More Gnocchi, Per Favore! Italy Solo in 2 Weeks, October 2011
After much help from reading this forum (and others), I planned my own solo overview trip of Italy from October 8-23, 2011. I am a 23 year old guy and wanted a bit of an adventure after a stressful but rewarding year at my job. I grew up traveling all over the US with my family and studied abroad in Australia for 4 months in 2008. My only previous European trip was Spain in 2004 with a class.
Italy was even more amazing than I could have expected – especially the food. I highly recommend it to any solo traveler or couple. It does not seem like the best vacation spot for children – focuses on pricey dining, wine, art, museums, churches – things which bore children easily. Along the way, I spent 4 nights in Venice, 5 hours in Bologna, 3 nights in Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre, 3 nights in Florence, and 5 nights in Rome. I went everywhere by train, and it was extremely easy – any tickets I had not already pre-booked with “mini” fares to save money, I was able to quickly purchase via automated machines with cash or credit card. Read on for city-specific reports.
Italy was even more amazing than I could have expected – especially the food. I highly recommend it to any solo traveler or couple. It does not seem like the best vacation spot for children – focuses on pricey dining, wine, art, museums, churches – things which bore children easily. Along the way, I spent 4 nights in Venice, 5 hours in Bologna, 3 nights in Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre, 3 nights in Florence, and 5 nights in Rome. I went everywhere by train, and it was extremely easy – any tickets I had not already pre-booked with “mini” fares to save money, I was able to quickly purchase via automated machines with cash or credit card. Read on for city-specific reports.
Nov 6th, 2011, 05:17 PM
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Venice
Flew out of Austin through Dallas and Madrid to land in Venice at 3 p.m., on-time, on Sun. Oct 8th. After realizing I had forgotten the address of my guesthouse and getting through some communication issues on the phone with the host, I happily and successfully found the lovely small lane where I would be staying for the next 4 nights. My room at Santa Margherita Guesthouse was perfect and I was thrilled to have found such a modern and inviting place to stay in a city notorious for being expensive. I wandered around Dorsoduro jetlagged for a while and unfortunately wandered into the worst meal of my entire trip – a seafood risotto that was actually more like watery rice with some frozen mini-shrimps and mussels. It definitely woke me up to the fact that I needed to be a bit more discerning to my future dining choices, which did improve.
Impressions of Venice:
Venice was my favorite destination of my entire 16 day trip. I could easily have spent a week or more there wandering around and doing all the things I didn’t get to on this trip (Jewish Ghetto, outer islands, Padova, Vicenza, etc.). I agree with everyone on this board who suggests Venice is a better place than Rome to recover from jetlag. It is just so quiet and relaxing (outside of San Marco district!).
Some of the best memories of my trip include - stumbling upon a Vivaldi and Bach concerto by Interpreti Veneziani at a church just east of the Accademia Bridge; sitting around Campo Santa Margherita w/ Il Doge gelato in hand (try their signature flavor, vanilla-orange w/ dried oranges); eating pumpkin-pistachio flan and zucchini lasagna at Osteria La Zucca and having a lovely conversation with some older folks that and happen to live 5 minutes from me; taking photos during an incredible sunset on the Zattere; grabbing a slice of pizza and sitting on the steps in one of Venice’s many squares.
I loved the Peggy Guggenheim Gallery, especially at 10 a.m. on a weekday morning. The gallery is not very spacious, so it was nice to have it mostly to myself for an hour or so before it started to get a bit stuffy. The outdoor sculpture garden is a nice reprieve, and I loved seeing the Yoko Ono “wishing tree” in the garden.
On my last night, walking back from dinner, I stumbled upon a violinist and cellist playing in a dark square next to a church that is lit up dramatically and sat next to a finely dressed lady to listen to the serenade. It was a truly Venetian moment.
St. Mark’s Square – I highly recommend getting here early in the day (by 9 – 9:30 am) and getting out before 10:30 to avoid the crush of cruise ship and day trip tourists that invade the square until about 4 p.m. I didn’t bother waiting in line to enter St. Mark’s Cathedral so I guess I have a reason to go back.
Doge’s Palace – Secret Itineraries Tour was quite enjoyable and it was fun to go “behind the scenes” and see the parts of the palace that everyone else doesn’t see. The ceilings and Tintoretto masterpiece are truly incredible, and the prisons and torture chamber a unique insight into the history of the city.
Correr Museum – I don’t remember much about this, although I think it was worth stopping in for an hour or so if you have the San Marco Museum Plus pass.
Santa Maria della Salute – My favorite church in Venice, it is truly gorgeous and you can see it from many points in the city across the water. Definitely worth a visit inside and no crowds.
Frari Church – Another “must-see” and again, not nearly as crowded during the middle of the afternoon as St. Mark’s Square. Beautiful church next to a nice sunny square.
The 90 cent cappucinos and lovely chocolate croissants made every morning easy to wake up to in Venice. I woke up early on my last morning to spend some time in Bologna before heading to Cinque Terre.
Flew out of Austin through Dallas and Madrid to land in Venice at 3 p.m., on-time, on Sun. Oct 8th. After realizing I had forgotten the address of my guesthouse and getting through some communication issues on the phone with the host, I happily and successfully found the lovely small lane where I would be staying for the next 4 nights. My room at Santa Margherita Guesthouse was perfect and I was thrilled to have found such a modern and inviting place to stay in a city notorious for being expensive. I wandered around Dorsoduro jetlagged for a while and unfortunately wandered into the worst meal of my entire trip – a seafood risotto that was actually more like watery rice with some frozen mini-shrimps and mussels. It definitely woke me up to the fact that I needed to be a bit more discerning to my future dining choices, which did improve.
Impressions of Venice:
Venice was my favorite destination of my entire 16 day trip. I could easily have spent a week or more there wandering around and doing all the things I didn’t get to on this trip (Jewish Ghetto, outer islands, Padova, Vicenza, etc.). I agree with everyone on this board who suggests Venice is a better place than Rome to recover from jetlag. It is just so quiet and relaxing (outside of San Marco district!).
Some of the best memories of my trip include - stumbling upon a Vivaldi and Bach concerto by Interpreti Veneziani at a church just east of the Accademia Bridge; sitting around Campo Santa Margherita w/ Il Doge gelato in hand (try their signature flavor, vanilla-orange w/ dried oranges); eating pumpkin-pistachio flan and zucchini lasagna at Osteria La Zucca and having a lovely conversation with some older folks that and happen to live 5 minutes from me; taking photos during an incredible sunset on the Zattere; grabbing a slice of pizza and sitting on the steps in one of Venice’s many squares.
I loved the Peggy Guggenheim Gallery, especially at 10 a.m. on a weekday morning. The gallery is not very spacious, so it was nice to have it mostly to myself for an hour or so before it started to get a bit stuffy. The outdoor sculpture garden is a nice reprieve, and I loved seeing the Yoko Ono “wishing tree” in the garden.
On my last night, walking back from dinner, I stumbled upon a violinist and cellist playing in a dark square next to a church that is lit up dramatically and sat next to a finely dressed lady to listen to the serenade. It was a truly Venetian moment.
St. Mark’s Square – I highly recommend getting here early in the day (by 9 – 9:30 am) and getting out before 10:30 to avoid the crush of cruise ship and day trip tourists that invade the square until about 4 p.m. I didn’t bother waiting in line to enter St. Mark’s Cathedral so I guess I have a reason to go back.
Doge’s Palace – Secret Itineraries Tour was quite enjoyable and it was fun to go “behind the scenes” and see the parts of the palace that everyone else doesn’t see. The ceilings and Tintoretto masterpiece are truly incredible, and the prisons and torture chamber a unique insight into the history of the city.
Correr Museum – I don’t remember much about this, although I think it was worth stopping in for an hour or so if you have the San Marco Museum Plus pass.
Santa Maria della Salute – My favorite church in Venice, it is truly gorgeous and you can see it from many points in the city across the water. Definitely worth a visit inside and no crowds.
Frari Church – Another “must-see” and again, not nearly as crowded during the middle of the afternoon as St. Mark’s Square. Beautiful church next to a nice sunny square.
The 90 cent cappucinos and lovely chocolate croissants made every morning easy to wake up to in Venice. I woke up early on my last morning to spend some time in Bologna before heading to Cinque Terre.
Nov 7th, 2011, 04:06 PM
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Hi kybourbon - I booked it through booking.com: http://www.booking.com/hotel/it/sant....en.html?dva=0
Nov 7th, 2011, 08:09 PM
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Cinque Terre
I took an 8:30 am train from Venice to Bologna, dropped my luggage off at the bag drop, and spent 4-5 hours wandering the city with my camera. I had some incredible homemade egg ravioli stuffed with ricotta and sage in a cream sauce for lunch at a small café in one of the alleys behind Piazza Maggiore. I grabbed a gelato and had a quick catnap before grabbing my stuff and heading on to Riomaggiore via Parma. This was a nice train ride with good scenery. Arriving in Riomaggiore around 6 pm, I made my way up to CinqueTerre Residence. I absolutely adored the owners of these recently purpose-built rooms with semi-private balconies and amazing views all around. It was also quite affordable (65 euro).
I ate so much good food in Cinque Terre, from the baked-in-foil spaghetti with mixed local seafood, to pesto foccacia, to cinnamon gelato in Vernazza…need I go on? This is definitely the place to skip the pizza though – go for the fish. I spent the night hanging out on my balcony and succumbed to spending 9 euro on a bottle of bug spray just so I could enjoy it in peace.
The next morning I proceeded to start my journey, via the high trail from Riomaggiore to Volastra (highly recommended if you have the stamina), Corniglia, and then back on to the main trail to finish in Vernazza. This was a full day commitment but totally worth every minute of effort. I met a warm Australian lady on the trail and we ended up spending the rest of my time in Cinque Terre with her. I even convinced her to choose Florence for her next destination, so she also accompanied me there. Traveling solo provides these kinds of amazing experiences with new people that I think you sometimes miss when you travel with others in your group.
The next day I ventured on the trail from Vernazza to Monterosso (after grabbing some snacks), which is actually a bit more strenuous than I expected. My guidebook said this would take 90 minutes, but I chose to sit and stop in a few places along the trail so it took me about 3 hours. I really enjoyed this trail and the views of Monterosso in the distance as you approach are breath-taking. After having a nice lunch at a sit-down restaurant in Monterosso on the main street, I caught a train back to Riomaggiore and made the 200 step hike up to my cottage with dinner and a bottle of wine.
Cinque Terre is a truly magical place despite the hordes of German and Asian tour groups wandering around. I did not find it “overrun” except for maybe midday in Vernazza, but keep in mind that I was there on October weekdays, so I wouldn’t want to think what it’s like on a June weekend. I was really glad to spend 3 days here out of the cities and getting a taste of Mediterranean cuisine and culture.
I took an 8:30 am train from Venice to Bologna, dropped my luggage off at the bag drop, and spent 4-5 hours wandering the city with my camera. I had some incredible homemade egg ravioli stuffed with ricotta and sage in a cream sauce for lunch at a small café in one of the alleys behind Piazza Maggiore. I grabbed a gelato and had a quick catnap before grabbing my stuff and heading on to Riomaggiore via Parma. This was a nice train ride with good scenery. Arriving in Riomaggiore around 6 pm, I made my way up to CinqueTerre Residence. I absolutely adored the owners of these recently purpose-built rooms with semi-private balconies and amazing views all around. It was also quite affordable (65 euro).
I ate so much good food in Cinque Terre, from the baked-in-foil spaghetti with mixed local seafood, to pesto foccacia, to cinnamon gelato in Vernazza…need I go on? This is definitely the place to skip the pizza though – go for the fish. I spent the night hanging out on my balcony and succumbed to spending 9 euro on a bottle of bug spray just so I could enjoy it in peace.
The next morning I proceeded to start my journey, via the high trail from Riomaggiore to Volastra (highly recommended if you have the stamina), Corniglia, and then back on to the main trail to finish in Vernazza. This was a full day commitment but totally worth every minute of effort. I met a warm Australian lady on the trail and we ended up spending the rest of my time in Cinque Terre with her. I even convinced her to choose Florence for her next destination, so she also accompanied me there. Traveling solo provides these kinds of amazing experiences with new people that I think you sometimes miss when you travel with others in your group.
The next day I ventured on the trail from Vernazza to Monterosso (after grabbing some snacks), which is actually a bit more strenuous than I expected. My guidebook said this would take 90 minutes, but I chose to sit and stop in a few places along the trail so it took me about 3 hours. I really enjoyed this trail and the views of Monterosso in the distance as you approach are breath-taking. After having a nice lunch at a sit-down restaurant in Monterosso on the main street, I caught a train back to Riomaggiore and made the 200 step hike up to my cottage with dinner and a bottle of wine.
Cinque Terre is a truly magical place despite the hordes of German and Asian tour groups wandering around. I did not find it “overrun” except for maybe midday in Vernazza, but keep in mind that I was there on October weekdays, so I wouldn’t want to think what it’s like on a June weekend. I was really glad to spend 3 days here out of the cities and getting a taste of Mediterranean cuisine and culture.
Nov 7th, 2011, 08:39 PM
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Florence
I grabbed a 10 am train to head to Florence via Pisa. I decided not to spend the time to stop in Pisa and just go on to Florence, since I would only have 3 days there and I wanted to make the most of my ‘Friends of the Uffizi’ Pass (a great deal – only 40 euro if you are 26 or under), which I am VERY glad I had. The lines at Uffizi and Accademia on Sunday and Tuesday were ridiculous – do not bother unless you have a reservation, museum card, or it’s the dead of winter unless you enjoy standing in a never-ending line.
We checked in at our hotel/hostel hybrid, Hostel Archi Rossi, another excellent budget choice. I paid 50 euro a night for a private room w/ private bathroom in the hotel annex. I never ate the free breakfast there because I wanted my daily sidewalk cappuccino and croissant. My new Australian friend Catherine and I headed to Pitti Palace before they closed, which we enjoyed seeing. Unfortunately the gardens closed before we were able to make it there, but Catherine went back the next day alone and said they were lovely. On the way to Pitti, we stopped by Il Duomo for some photo ops and were stunned by the beauty of the architecture. She also insisted on splitting a cannoli for a snack, which turned out to be a great idea, in my opinion! We had dinner that night at a restaurant on the southwest corner of Santo Spirito Square (I wish I remembered the name!) with the best dishes of my entire trip – gnocchi w/ gorgonzola cream and truffle oil (half portion 6 euro but humongous!), chilled tomato cream soup w/ feta, a prosciutto and cheese plate, and a perfectly cooked risotto. The restaurant had a great neighborhood feel and we made conversation with a British lady who just moved to Florence to design shoes. Afterward, we wandered around the Arno area for some night pics and to check out Ponte Vecchio at night. We loved seeing the shops all closed and their weathered, old doors.
The next day, I went to meet David at the Accademia. Highly recommend this as well as the Uffizi, which I visited next upon discovering the Bargello was closed on this Sunday. I grabbed some incredibly spicy Mexican chocolate gelato at Gelateria Dei Neri near Santa Croce – best Florence gelato! I stopped to listen to some musicians in the square as I had an hour to kill. Next I had a 2 p.m. guided tour up the scaffolding in Santa Croce church to see Giotto’s 500+ year old recently-restored frescoes, up-close-and-personal. This was probably my favorite experience of the entire trip; I felt spoiled being so close to these delicate and important frescoes with only about 10 people, and only cost about 12 euro. You can book by emailing [email protected] with your dates and requested times. After paying respects to Galileo and Michelangelo, I headed back to grab dinner and some rest.
Monday, I spent the morning at the Bargello, which features some amazing statues. On the way, I had stopped by the Opera di Duomo museum and found that there was a guided tour at noon, 1 hour later. So I quickly did the Bargello in 45 minutes and headed back to the Duomo Museum for the tour, led by an art history major from the USA and totally worth whatever cheap additional fee I paid for it. I grabbed lunch and oogled the food at Mercato Centrale before heading back to my hotel for a nap. Unfortunately I missed dinner with my friend Catherine on her last night because I slept too long, so I ended up eating by myself at a nearby restaurant, Pizzeria Nerone. Highly recommended pesto penne! I also had a lovely balsamic glazed duck salad here and plenty of wine. To bed, for a long day tomorrow.
Tuesday I woke up and knew I only had a few hours left in Florence before my 2 p.m. train to Rome. I spent the morning at San Marco soaking up Fra Angelico’s gorgeous frescoes in the monk cells and sitting in the courtyard and eavesdropping on an English exchange student art lecture. After stopped by Orsanmichele Church for a quick peek into a Gothic church, I grabbed a Panini and some raspberries from a street vendor and took a seat for a little bit in Piazza Signoria. My last stop was Medici Chapels, another highly recommended site. The chapel is magnificent and the Michelangelo statues superb. Headed to the train station and said goodbye to Florence’s narrow sidewalks and Renaissance classiness for some Roman grit.
I grabbed a 10 am train to head to Florence via Pisa. I decided not to spend the time to stop in Pisa and just go on to Florence, since I would only have 3 days there and I wanted to make the most of my ‘Friends of the Uffizi’ Pass (a great deal – only 40 euro if you are 26 or under), which I am VERY glad I had. The lines at Uffizi and Accademia on Sunday and Tuesday were ridiculous – do not bother unless you have a reservation, museum card, or it’s the dead of winter unless you enjoy standing in a never-ending line.
We checked in at our hotel/hostel hybrid, Hostel Archi Rossi, another excellent budget choice. I paid 50 euro a night for a private room w/ private bathroom in the hotel annex. I never ate the free breakfast there because I wanted my daily sidewalk cappuccino and croissant. My new Australian friend Catherine and I headed to Pitti Palace before they closed, which we enjoyed seeing. Unfortunately the gardens closed before we were able to make it there, but Catherine went back the next day alone and said they were lovely. On the way to Pitti, we stopped by Il Duomo for some photo ops and were stunned by the beauty of the architecture. She also insisted on splitting a cannoli for a snack, which turned out to be a great idea, in my opinion! We had dinner that night at a restaurant on the southwest corner of Santo Spirito Square (I wish I remembered the name!) with the best dishes of my entire trip – gnocchi w/ gorgonzola cream and truffle oil (half portion 6 euro but humongous!), chilled tomato cream soup w/ feta, a prosciutto and cheese plate, and a perfectly cooked risotto. The restaurant had a great neighborhood feel and we made conversation with a British lady who just moved to Florence to design shoes. Afterward, we wandered around the Arno area for some night pics and to check out Ponte Vecchio at night. We loved seeing the shops all closed and their weathered, old doors.
The next day, I went to meet David at the Accademia. Highly recommend this as well as the Uffizi, which I visited next upon discovering the Bargello was closed on this Sunday. I grabbed some incredibly spicy Mexican chocolate gelato at Gelateria Dei Neri near Santa Croce – best Florence gelato! I stopped to listen to some musicians in the square as I had an hour to kill. Next I had a 2 p.m. guided tour up the scaffolding in Santa Croce church to see Giotto’s 500+ year old recently-restored frescoes, up-close-and-personal. This was probably my favorite experience of the entire trip; I felt spoiled being so close to these delicate and important frescoes with only about 10 people, and only cost about 12 euro. You can book by emailing [email protected] with your dates and requested times. After paying respects to Galileo and Michelangelo, I headed back to grab dinner and some rest.
Monday, I spent the morning at the Bargello, which features some amazing statues. On the way, I had stopped by the Opera di Duomo museum and found that there was a guided tour at noon, 1 hour later. So I quickly did the Bargello in 45 minutes and headed back to the Duomo Museum for the tour, led by an art history major from the USA and totally worth whatever cheap additional fee I paid for it. I grabbed lunch and oogled the food at Mercato Centrale before heading back to my hotel for a nap. Unfortunately I missed dinner with my friend Catherine on her last night because I slept too long, so I ended up eating by myself at a nearby restaurant, Pizzeria Nerone. Highly recommended pesto penne! I also had a lovely balsamic glazed duck salad here and plenty of wine. To bed, for a long day tomorrow.
Tuesday I woke up and knew I only had a few hours left in Florence before my 2 p.m. train to Rome. I spent the morning at San Marco soaking up Fra Angelico’s gorgeous frescoes in the monk cells and sitting in the courtyard and eavesdropping on an English exchange student art lecture. After stopped by Orsanmichele Church for a quick peek into a Gothic church, I grabbed a Panini and some raspberries from a street vendor and took a seat for a little bit in Piazza Signoria. My last stop was Medici Chapels, another highly recommended site. The chapel is magnificent and the Michelangelo statues superb. Headed to the train station and said goodbye to Florence’s narrow sidewalks and Renaissance classiness for some Roman grit.
Nov 8th, 2011, 03:24 PM
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Great report - looking forward to more! I stayed at Archi Rossi on a backpacking trip years ago and loved it - Clean, safe and great location...couldn't have asked for more in the way of budget accomodations.
Nov 9th, 2011, 03:50 PM
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Rome
Off to my last stop in Italy! I was a bit relieved to be moving to an apartment in the Trastevere district of Rome for 5 nights so I could settle in for a while. Also, I was looking forward to seeing my friend from Germany; we met up at the apartment later that night. Thankfully, only a 2 hour train ride from Florence on the high-speed train, a short bus ride across central Rome, and a confusing walk in Trastevere stood between me and the apartment. I crammed myself into the bus and with some help from a girl who could actually reach the stamp meter, made it to Trastevere. As I rode through Rome, I wasn’t so sure I liked it. It seemed extremely hectic and not relaxing at all. My opinion would change soon, though!
After getting some assistance from an Italian man in a pharmacy, I finally found it and buzzed the landlord. Since my friend didn’t arrive for a few more hours, I went out and grabbed a cheap bowl of ricotta ravioli at a pub nearby. Once my friend arrived, we celebrated seeing one another again with some wine and beer and then went out to dinner at the “normal” Roman time of 9 p.m. I ordered clams in a white wine sauce and was shocked at the amount that were brought out – probably 50 clams, all for me! You bet I finished them. And my friend didn’t mind soaking up the remaining sauce with the table bread, either. Off to bed to rest for some exploring in the morning.
We found a great neighborhood café right around the corner from our apartment, so we had breakfast there and even an early dinner one day. I will never tire of 90 cent cappuccinos. With our stomachs full of fatty croissant and cappuccino, we headed to the Pantheon. It’s really an amazing building and fun to take pictures there. Next we saw the churches Santa Maria Sopra Minerva (gorgeous blue ceiling and Michelangelo statue) and Ignazio (another lovely church with a great ceiling scene). I highly recommend stopping in both of these free churches. Then we headed to “tourist central” i.e. Trevi Fountain. What a mad crush of people! We quickly snapped the obligatory photos and moved on to grab some paninis outside the immediate area. After wandering around north central Rome for a while and heading into the Villa Borghese, we went to pick up our 3 p.m. tickets to the Borghese Gallery. We were both blown away by the Botticelli statues - this is a huge art highlight in Rome in my opinion. We had missed the Cappuchin Crypt earlier (they close at noon and reopen later), so when we finished up at the Borghese around 4:30, we still had some time before the crypt closed at 6. My aunt recommended this site to me, and I found it interesting, if a bit overly touristy and spoiled by exposition. That evening, I had a wonderful buffalo mozzarella pizza in Trastevere. We were quickly finding that Trastevere is the place to go for affordable, tasty food in a great environment. Despite the fact that I had pizza for dinner, we stumbled upon Fior di Luna, a gelato shop that I had heard about online. Of course, I insisted we try it, and it was just as good as its reputation. Go here!
The next morning, Thursday, we encountered the only rain of my entire trip. It rained 3 inches in 90 minutes though, and unfortunately flooded some metro and tram stops. After waiting 20 minutes in the rain for a tram (and sharing one umbrella..), we finally caught a cab. We should have done this earlier because it only cost 6 euro to get from Trastevere to St. Peter’s. We made it with plenty of time for me to check my backpack before our 10:15 tour of the Scavi underground of St. Peter’s Basilica. This was truly fascinating and a great experience for both of us. The tour takes you down into the crypt where St. Peter’s bones are supposedly buried, and you can see the different brick patters in the mausoleum that show the different styles implemented across the centuries as it was built over time. After the tour, we explored the upper Basilica with the rest of the camera-hungry tourists and Catholic pilgrims. When we exited, the sun had come out, so off came the rain jackets. We walked back through north Trastevere back to our place to chill out for a while. Thursday night is “gnocchi night” in Rome, and we were pleased to find a spot in Trastevere, Pizzeria La Fraschetta, with good reviews and homemade gnocchi options. My friend chowed down on his gorgonzola speck gnocchi, and my gnocchi arrabiata burned my mouth off (in a good way, I think). The fried mozzarella wasn’t bad either…
Friday, we were in for some early morning disappointments. Due to the rain on Thursday, we weren’t able to do our 9:45 Colosseum underground tour as the entire complex was closed, and we soon found out the Forum Romanum was closed as well. This wasn’t a huge problem, though, because you can really get a good feel for the Forum from the multiple vantage points outside the gated grounds without paying anything. So we still got to soak up Ancient Rome for a little while. We spent the extra time using our Roma Pass to go to Capitoline Museum, which features a lot of great art and statues from the classical period. We continued walking through Central Rome and some of the shopping districts, passing by the Victorio Emmanuel monument (quick photo and move on), Piazza Navona (very beautiful), and Campo di Fiori (waste of time). Once again, I required a bit of rest time prior to dinner, as we had reservations for the Friday night, reservation-only “Vatican Museums Under the Stars”. This was a great find, as I found the museum felt nearly empty compared to the horror stories I have read online about the normal traffic flow - in the main corridors, especially. Also, being here at night, there were almost NO tour groups, which helps tremendously with the peace and quiet. The museums are vast and incredible. I even innocently snapped a few photos in the Sistene Chapel before I took one of the fireplace – a guard noticed and asked me to leave. I was ready to go anyway. ☺ As we walked along the Tiber back to Trastevere, we were surprised by some fireworks over a bridge in the distance, so we stopped for a few minutes to enjoy them.
Saturday was my last full day in Italy and we were bound to make the most of it. We actually chose to leave the city and hit Ostia Antica, the ancient Roman port town ruins outside the city. It was incredibly peaceful there and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in ruins or ancient culture. The fantastic, sunny weather didn’t hurt either. I brought some cheese and bread to have a small lunch at the top of the amphitheater in the park. The ruins are so large, we probably only got through about half of them before we were ready to head home about 4-5 hours later. That evening, we enjoyed another meal at Pizzeria La Fraschetta. This place gets packed fast! I had some sort of unique egg spaghetti-type pasta that I don’t remember the name of – I think this is a Roman thing? Not sure. But it was ok. As we grabbed our last gelato walking back from dinner, we found Trastevere’s main square full of students and young people dancing to a live band, composed mostly of trumpets and trombones. Some guys started fire dancing and everyone was clapping and cheering – it was the most perfect moment of the trip! I truly felt like a part of the community. My return flights were not fun, requiring running through Madrid airport to make a connection, but I didn’t miss any flights – because I didn’t check my bags. Other people were told they’d have to wait until the next day to get their bags. The jetlag was pretty brutal coming home, so get as much as sleep as possible before your return flight (I only slept about 4.5 hours, and 2 hours on the plane).
I absolutely loved Rome, even though I wasn’t so sure I would like it at first. Trastevere is the perfect neighborhood because it feels authentic, don’t listen to anyone who says they wouldn’t stay there on their first trip to Rome.
Places I want to hit on my next trip to Italy: Verona, Padua, Ravenna, Siena, Assisi, Orvieto, Amalfi
Off to my last stop in Italy! I was a bit relieved to be moving to an apartment in the Trastevere district of Rome for 5 nights so I could settle in for a while. Also, I was looking forward to seeing my friend from Germany; we met up at the apartment later that night. Thankfully, only a 2 hour train ride from Florence on the high-speed train, a short bus ride across central Rome, and a confusing walk in Trastevere stood between me and the apartment. I crammed myself into the bus and with some help from a girl who could actually reach the stamp meter, made it to Trastevere. As I rode through Rome, I wasn’t so sure I liked it. It seemed extremely hectic and not relaxing at all. My opinion would change soon, though!
After getting some assistance from an Italian man in a pharmacy, I finally found it and buzzed the landlord. Since my friend didn’t arrive for a few more hours, I went out and grabbed a cheap bowl of ricotta ravioli at a pub nearby. Once my friend arrived, we celebrated seeing one another again with some wine and beer and then went out to dinner at the “normal” Roman time of 9 p.m. I ordered clams in a white wine sauce and was shocked at the amount that were brought out – probably 50 clams, all for me! You bet I finished them. And my friend didn’t mind soaking up the remaining sauce with the table bread, either. Off to bed to rest for some exploring in the morning.
We found a great neighborhood café right around the corner from our apartment, so we had breakfast there and even an early dinner one day. I will never tire of 90 cent cappuccinos. With our stomachs full of fatty croissant and cappuccino, we headed to the Pantheon. It’s really an amazing building and fun to take pictures there. Next we saw the churches Santa Maria Sopra Minerva (gorgeous blue ceiling and Michelangelo statue) and Ignazio (another lovely church with a great ceiling scene). I highly recommend stopping in both of these free churches. Then we headed to “tourist central” i.e. Trevi Fountain. What a mad crush of people! We quickly snapped the obligatory photos and moved on to grab some paninis outside the immediate area. After wandering around north central Rome for a while and heading into the Villa Borghese, we went to pick up our 3 p.m. tickets to the Borghese Gallery. We were both blown away by the Botticelli statues - this is a huge art highlight in Rome in my opinion. We had missed the Cappuchin Crypt earlier (they close at noon and reopen later), so when we finished up at the Borghese around 4:30, we still had some time before the crypt closed at 6. My aunt recommended this site to me, and I found it interesting, if a bit overly touristy and spoiled by exposition. That evening, I had a wonderful buffalo mozzarella pizza in Trastevere. We were quickly finding that Trastevere is the place to go for affordable, tasty food in a great environment. Despite the fact that I had pizza for dinner, we stumbled upon Fior di Luna, a gelato shop that I had heard about online. Of course, I insisted we try it, and it was just as good as its reputation. Go here!
The next morning, Thursday, we encountered the only rain of my entire trip. It rained 3 inches in 90 minutes though, and unfortunately flooded some metro and tram stops. After waiting 20 minutes in the rain for a tram (and sharing one umbrella..), we finally caught a cab. We should have done this earlier because it only cost 6 euro to get from Trastevere to St. Peter’s. We made it with plenty of time for me to check my backpack before our 10:15 tour of the Scavi underground of St. Peter’s Basilica. This was truly fascinating and a great experience for both of us. The tour takes you down into the crypt where St. Peter’s bones are supposedly buried, and you can see the different brick patters in the mausoleum that show the different styles implemented across the centuries as it was built over time. After the tour, we explored the upper Basilica with the rest of the camera-hungry tourists and Catholic pilgrims. When we exited, the sun had come out, so off came the rain jackets. We walked back through north Trastevere back to our place to chill out for a while. Thursday night is “gnocchi night” in Rome, and we were pleased to find a spot in Trastevere, Pizzeria La Fraschetta, with good reviews and homemade gnocchi options. My friend chowed down on his gorgonzola speck gnocchi, and my gnocchi arrabiata burned my mouth off (in a good way, I think). The fried mozzarella wasn’t bad either…
Friday, we were in for some early morning disappointments. Due to the rain on Thursday, we weren’t able to do our 9:45 Colosseum underground tour as the entire complex was closed, and we soon found out the Forum Romanum was closed as well. This wasn’t a huge problem, though, because you can really get a good feel for the Forum from the multiple vantage points outside the gated grounds without paying anything. So we still got to soak up Ancient Rome for a little while. We spent the extra time using our Roma Pass to go to Capitoline Museum, which features a lot of great art and statues from the classical period. We continued walking through Central Rome and some of the shopping districts, passing by the Victorio Emmanuel monument (quick photo and move on), Piazza Navona (very beautiful), and Campo di Fiori (waste of time). Once again, I required a bit of rest time prior to dinner, as we had reservations for the Friday night, reservation-only “Vatican Museums Under the Stars”. This was a great find, as I found the museum felt nearly empty compared to the horror stories I have read online about the normal traffic flow - in the main corridors, especially. Also, being here at night, there were almost NO tour groups, which helps tremendously with the peace and quiet. The museums are vast and incredible. I even innocently snapped a few photos in the Sistene Chapel before I took one of the fireplace – a guard noticed and asked me to leave. I was ready to go anyway. ☺ As we walked along the Tiber back to Trastevere, we were surprised by some fireworks over a bridge in the distance, so we stopped for a few minutes to enjoy them.
Saturday was my last full day in Italy and we were bound to make the most of it. We actually chose to leave the city and hit Ostia Antica, the ancient Roman port town ruins outside the city. It was incredibly peaceful there and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in ruins or ancient culture. The fantastic, sunny weather didn’t hurt either. I brought some cheese and bread to have a small lunch at the top of the amphitheater in the park. The ruins are so large, we probably only got through about half of them before we were ready to head home about 4-5 hours later. That evening, we enjoyed another meal at Pizzeria La Fraschetta. This place gets packed fast! I had some sort of unique egg spaghetti-type pasta that I don’t remember the name of – I think this is a Roman thing? Not sure. But it was ok. As we grabbed our last gelato walking back from dinner, we found Trastevere’s main square full of students and young people dancing to a live band, composed mostly of trumpets and trombones. Some guys started fire dancing and everyone was clapping and cheering – it was the most perfect moment of the trip! I truly felt like a part of the community. My return flights were not fun, requiring running through Madrid airport to make a connection, but I didn’t miss any flights – because I didn’t check my bags. Other people were told they’d have to wait until the next day to get their bags. The jetlag was pretty brutal coming home, so get as much as sleep as possible before your return flight (I only slept about 4.5 hours, and 2 hours on the plane).
I absolutely loved Rome, even though I wasn’t so sure I would like it at first. Trastevere is the perfect neighborhood because it feels authentic, don’t listen to anyone who says they wouldn’t stay there on their first trip to Rome.
Places I want to hit on my next trip to Italy: Verona, Padua, Ravenna, Siena, Assisi, Orvieto, Amalfi
Nov 14th, 2011, 06:29 AM
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anothertravelinsong - Sounds like you had a great trip. Do you speak Italian? I'm thinking of taking a solo trip to the Amalfi Coast next spring - I'm a youthful 53-year-old female and don't speak a word of Italian. Do you think I'll be okay on my own? Thanks, KC
