Mom and Daughter Long Rome Trip Report
Jan 2nd, 2005, 05:14 PM
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Mom and Daughter Long Rome Trip Report
Happy New Year! Buon Anno! Got back on New Year's Eve from a great week in Rome with my 14 year old daughter (her second trip to Italy - my third)- visited our good friend who lives down the street from the Pantheon.
Day 1: Arrived in Rome on Dec. 24th in the AM after a very good evening flight from JFK. Weather overcast and drizzle. We settled in at our friends apartment, rested a bit, then went out for a walk around the Pantheon area (my friend made sure to take us to all her favorite shops!)- then through Piazza Navona (the Christmas stalls were a bit tacky)- then over to the Campo Fiori where they had much nicer stalls with beautiful scarves, bags, and crafts (in addition to amazing fruits and vegies). Then onto the Ghetto to buy some food (the best spicy olives and black olives with oranges mixed in). My friend was also excited to take us to a new supermarket that opened near her place. They are smaller than the American versions but new to Rome. We then needed a little nap. Since it was Christmas eve it was fairly quiet. Many restaurants were closed. We went to a very nice Chinese restaurant down the street from the Pantheon on Via Crescenzi. Since we are Jewish, Chinese food is a tradition on Christmas. We ordered quite a few dishes and the dinner came to about 20 EU. Not bad. We then walked to the Trevi Fountain, Piazza D'Spagna (it started to rain hard by this time), and then back to the Giolotti for gelati. Mmm. Then it was off to bed.
Day 2: Christmas Day. It was overcast again and raining off and on. The streets were rather quiet and it was really wonderful to walk without much traffic or crowds around. We ventured out around noon and walked to Piazza del Poppolo. My daughter wanted to see the Caravaggio's in Santa Maria Del Poppolo. The church is beautiful. There was a mass going on but they still allowed visitors. When we came out of the church it had stopped raining. We walked down Via Repetta to the Mauseleo di Augusto then we decided to venture down small streets until we made it back to the Pantheon area. We were invited to dinner at friends. It rained in the evening so after a quick gelati trip for the kids it was back indoors. The kids watched movies and I cooked a frittata for morning breakfast. (While Rome is not decorated like the USA- the lights strung across many of the small streets add a wonderful glow to the atmosphere.)
Day 3: Sunday. Woke up to pouring rain, however, it finally ended around noon. We took advantage of the respite from rain and walked to the Castel Sant Angelo by way of Via Governo Vecchio (it is a beautiful street with wonderful boutiques). The Castel is mildly interesting- but the view is really wonderful. We then went to the Vatican. It started to pour as we waited through security. After our visit in St. Peter's we headed for Trastevere. It rained off and on and we were a bit soggy when we got to Trastevere so we headed to a restaurant (Cave Canem) for a salad and bruchetta before heading back to our friend's apartment. It had stopped raining on our walk back and we had the opportunity to see a magnificent rainbow over the Isola Tiberna. Later that evening we went back to Trastevere for dinner at L'Antico Moro. We are vegetarian so we had eggplant, salad, and margherita pizza. My friend had pasta with seafood. The food and house red were great and the price reasonable. Unfortunately, it was raining when we left so we couldn't walk around. Walking over the bridge we noticed that the Tevere had overflowed onto the sidewalks along the river. So much rain- although it was never uncomfortably cold.
Day 4: Monday. Once again we awoke to thunder and rain in the morning. But, alas, by noon the sun had come out. We did the happy dance. We walked to Piazza Venezia and then ventured to Via Cavour and then back to the Ghetto to visit the Jewish Museum and Synagogue. The synagogue is very beautiful. With the stores open my daughter was itching to do some shopping so we ventured to some stores that she had eyed over the past few days. Our shopping was not too extensive due to the value of the dollar. We limited it to a few must haves. We enjoyed shopping near the Pantheon and on Via Giubbonari near the Campo Fiori. After shopping we had our afternoon gelati at Della Palma then took a rest before dinner. Our friend had plans that evening so we went to Insalata Ricca for dinner. For vegetarians it is a great place- excellent salads and fairly good pasta. Prices are relatively good, too. We took a long walk after dinner and luckily it didn't rain again until we were almost back to the apartment.
Day 5: Tuesday. Our friend left Rome back to the USA so we went to stay in a B & B in another part of Rome on Via del Boschetto. The B & B is called Il Girasole and was fairly nice. Big room, clean, comfy beds, and 80 EU per night. It included breakfast but the selection was pretty lousy. But, we loved the neigbhorhood. It reminded me of the lower east side of NYC because on Via del Boschetto there are alot of designers and crafts people with beautiful little shops and a few nice restaurants and Enotecas. It had a very "artsy feel."
Also...yeah! A sunny mild day.
After we settled in and napped we then walked to the Borghese Villa where we had reservations for a 3:00 visit. On our way we stopped on Via Veneto for lunch at Cafe Roma. We enjoyed eating outdoors by a heat post and people watching. Then we went to the Borghese gardens where we found a sunny spot before our Villa visit. We loved the Borghese Villa. The Bernini sculptures are just marvelous and the whole building is beautiful. After our visit we walked to the Pincio then down the stairs to Piazza del Poppolo. It was crowded and there were different people performing. My daughter loves Via Margutta so we walked there then did a little shopping. I bought my husband a pair of gloves at Sermonetta near the Spanish Steps- one of my favorite shops.
We headed back to our pension where we took a short rest. We ate dinner down the street at a beautiful little Enoteco, Antica Locanda (it also is a small hotel). We had grilled artichokes, salad, and penne arrabiatta. The penne was delicious (but, to our surprise it was "microwaved.) Of course, the red wine I had was excellent. We were exhausted so we walked a bit around the neighborhood then went off to bed.
Day 6: Wednesday. We had to get up early to catch a train to Firenze. We took the Eurostar 2nd Class and it was great. We'd done 1st class before and for a short trip 2nd is fine. It was overcast and blustery in Firenze but later in the day the sun made an appearance. We had been to Firenze a few years back but my daughter wanted to visit again since she felt she was a bit young to appreciate all of the art, especially the Uffizzi. I made reservations at the Uffizzi and Academia prior to our trip. We stopped first at the Duomo and then headed to the Academia to pay a visit to David. Then we walked towards il Corso to do a bit of shopping. We walked over the Ponte Vecchio and had lunch on the other side of the Arno at small cafe. We then went to the Uffizzi and spent a few hours taking in the wonderful art. We did two visits to the Botticelli room since we both love his work. After the museum we walked to the Market near the train station and my daughter bought a few items for friends. Time to head back to the train. We were exhausted. When we got back to Rome we walked back to our pension and decided that we wanted a small dinner...we actually decided to go back to the Enoteca for another bowl of the microwaved penne arrabiata- even if it was a frozen dinner we decided it was still delicious. This time I had two glasses of wine- Vino Nobile. Bedtime.
Day 7: Thursday. Our last day. Woke up to sunshine. The sky was blue, not a cloud in the sky. The air was cool but comfortable. We got out early and went to San Pietro in Vincoli to see Michealangelo's Moses. Then we walked toward the Colosseo. The sun was just beautiful shining over the Forum. We headed to San Clemente. It was very interesting and a place that I had not ever visited before. Since it was so gorgeous out we walked to Piazza Venezia and climbed up "the birthday cake"- Emmanuale II Monument-for a great view of Rome. Then headed over to the Pantheon area. Rome was really crowded for New Year's. There was a real difference with the amount of people on the street. We headed back to our pension and bought a variety of pizza slices at a pizzeria on Via del Serpenti. We stopped at Enoteca Antica Locanda to buy a few bottles of wine to take home- they were very nice and gave us a discount. We our ate the pizza in our room and then rested before venturing out for out last night in Rome.
Later we walked up Via Nazionale to look in stores in the event we needed a last minute shopping fix. Then we headed over to the Corso. It was so jammed with people. We walked down Via Frattina to the Spanish Steps and sat awhile looking at the huge crowds. Via Condotti was wall to wall people. Time to go to dinner so we headed down Via Della Croce towards the Corso. It was much quieter and lovely. We had dinner at Myosotis- a favorite of my daughter's from our last visit. We had two excellent pasta dishes and she had a side of asparagus and I had a side of grilled vegies. The balsamic was the best I had tasted...it was so thick and sweet, like syrup. My daughter ended her meal with lemon sorbet and I had a few biscotti to accompany my second glass of wine. I stuck with the house red which was delicious. Well, we walked over to the Pantheon (one of our favorite spots in Rome) and bid it goodbye and then headed to the Trevi Fountain to toss in our coins. We sat a while at the fountain and talked. Then we walked back to our pension. The evening was really topped off when we walked up to the Quirinale and an orchestra was rehearsing for the New Year's eve televised event. The music was spectacular. There was a small crowd there listening to the rehearsal. It was a perfect way to end our last night in Rome....
We had a wonderful trip and we really enjoyed our mother/daughter time.
We did learn about the disaster in Asia from watching Italian TV- we know we were fortunate to have this vacation and our prayers were and are with those who suffered in this disaster.
Day 1: Arrived in Rome on Dec. 24th in the AM after a very good evening flight from JFK. Weather overcast and drizzle. We settled in at our friends apartment, rested a bit, then went out for a walk around the Pantheon area (my friend made sure to take us to all her favorite shops!)- then through Piazza Navona (the Christmas stalls were a bit tacky)- then over to the Campo Fiori where they had much nicer stalls with beautiful scarves, bags, and crafts (in addition to amazing fruits and vegies). Then onto the Ghetto to buy some food (the best spicy olives and black olives with oranges mixed in). My friend was also excited to take us to a new supermarket that opened near her place. They are smaller than the American versions but new to Rome. We then needed a little nap. Since it was Christmas eve it was fairly quiet. Many restaurants were closed. We went to a very nice Chinese restaurant down the street from the Pantheon on Via Crescenzi. Since we are Jewish, Chinese food is a tradition on Christmas. We ordered quite a few dishes and the dinner came to about 20 EU. Not bad. We then walked to the Trevi Fountain, Piazza D'Spagna (it started to rain hard by this time), and then back to the Giolotti for gelati. Mmm. Then it was off to bed.
Day 2: Christmas Day. It was overcast again and raining off and on. The streets were rather quiet and it was really wonderful to walk without much traffic or crowds around. We ventured out around noon and walked to Piazza del Poppolo. My daughter wanted to see the Caravaggio's in Santa Maria Del Poppolo. The church is beautiful. There was a mass going on but they still allowed visitors. When we came out of the church it had stopped raining. We walked down Via Repetta to the Mauseleo di Augusto then we decided to venture down small streets until we made it back to the Pantheon area. We were invited to dinner at friends. It rained in the evening so after a quick gelati trip for the kids it was back indoors. The kids watched movies and I cooked a frittata for morning breakfast. (While Rome is not decorated like the USA- the lights strung across many of the small streets add a wonderful glow to the atmosphere.)
Day 3: Sunday. Woke up to pouring rain, however, it finally ended around noon. We took advantage of the respite from rain and walked to the Castel Sant Angelo by way of Via Governo Vecchio (it is a beautiful street with wonderful boutiques). The Castel is mildly interesting- but the view is really wonderful. We then went to the Vatican. It started to pour as we waited through security. After our visit in St. Peter's we headed for Trastevere. It rained off and on and we were a bit soggy when we got to Trastevere so we headed to a restaurant (Cave Canem) for a salad and bruchetta before heading back to our friend's apartment. It had stopped raining on our walk back and we had the opportunity to see a magnificent rainbow over the Isola Tiberna. Later that evening we went back to Trastevere for dinner at L'Antico Moro. We are vegetarian so we had eggplant, salad, and margherita pizza. My friend had pasta with seafood. The food and house red were great and the price reasonable. Unfortunately, it was raining when we left so we couldn't walk around. Walking over the bridge we noticed that the Tevere had overflowed onto the sidewalks along the river. So much rain- although it was never uncomfortably cold.
Day 4: Monday. Once again we awoke to thunder and rain in the morning. But, alas, by noon the sun had come out. We did the happy dance. We walked to Piazza Venezia and then ventured to Via Cavour and then back to the Ghetto to visit the Jewish Museum and Synagogue. The synagogue is very beautiful. With the stores open my daughter was itching to do some shopping so we ventured to some stores that she had eyed over the past few days. Our shopping was not too extensive due to the value of the dollar. We limited it to a few must haves. We enjoyed shopping near the Pantheon and on Via Giubbonari near the Campo Fiori. After shopping we had our afternoon gelati at Della Palma then took a rest before dinner. Our friend had plans that evening so we went to Insalata Ricca for dinner. For vegetarians it is a great place- excellent salads and fairly good pasta. Prices are relatively good, too. We took a long walk after dinner and luckily it didn't rain again until we were almost back to the apartment.
Day 5: Tuesday. Our friend left Rome back to the USA so we went to stay in a B & B in another part of Rome on Via del Boschetto. The B & B is called Il Girasole and was fairly nice. Big room, clean, comfy beds, and 80 EU per night. It included breakfast but the selection was pretty lousy. But, we loved the neigbhorhood. It reminded me of the lower east side of NYC because on Via del Boschetto there are alot of designers and crafts people with beautiful little shops and a few nice restaurants and Enotecas. It had a very "artsy feel."
Also...yeah! A sunny mild day.
After we settled in and napped we then walked to the Borghese Villa where we had reservations for a 3:00 visit. On our way we stopped on Via Veneto for lunch at Cafe Roma. We enjoyed eating outdoors by a heat post and people watching. Then we went to the Borghese gardens where we found a sunny spot before our Villa visit. We loved the Borghese Villa. The Bernini sculptures are just marvelous and the whole building is beautiful. After our visit we walked to the Pincio then down the stairs to Piazza del Poppolo. It was crowded and there were different people performing. My daughter loves Via Margutta so we walked there then did a little shopping. I bought my husband a pair of gloves at Sermonetta near the Spanish Steps- one of my favorite shops.
We headed back to our pension where we took a short rest. We ate dinner down the street at a beautiful little Enoteco, Antica Locanda (it also is a small hotel). We had grilled artichokes, salad, and penne arrabiatta. The penne was delicious (but, to our surprise it was "microwaved.) Of course, the red wine I had was excellent. We were exhausted so we walked a bit around the neighborhood then went off to bed.
Day 6: Wednesday. We had to get up early to catch a train to Firenze. We took the Eurostar 2nd Class and it was great. We'd done 1st class before and for a short trip 2nd is fine. It was overcast and blustery in Firenze but later in the day the sun made an appearance. We had been to Firenze a few years back but my daughter wanted to visit again since she felt she was a bit young to appreciate all of the art, especially the Uffizzi. I made reservations at the Uffizzi and Academia prior to our trip. We stopped first at the Duomo and then headed to the Academia to pay a visit to David. Then we walked towards il Corso to do a bit of shopping. We walked over the Ponte Vecchio and had lunch on the other side of the Arno at small cafe. We then went to the Uffizzi and spent a few hours taking in the wonderful art. We did two visits to the Botticelli room since we both love his work. After the museum we walked to the Market near the train station and my daughter bought a few items for friends. Time to head back to the train. We were exhausted. When we got back to Rome we walked back to our pension and decided that we wanted a small dinner...we actually decided to go back to the Enoteca for another bowl of the microwaved penne arrabiata- even if it was a frozen dinner we decided it was still delicious. This time I had two glasses of wine- Vino Nobile. Bedtime.
Day 7: Thursday. Our last day. Woke up to sunshine. The sky was blue, not a cloud in the sky. The air was cool but comfortable. We got out early and went to San Pietro in Vincoli to see Michealangelo's Moses. Then we walked toward the Colosseo. The sun was just beautiful shining over the Forum. We headed to San Clemente. It was very interesting and a place that I had not ever visited before. Since it was so gorgeous out we walked to Piazza Venezia and climbed up "the birthday cake"- Emmanuale II Monument-for a great view of Rome. Then headed over to the Pantheon area. Rome was really crowded for New Year's. There was a real difference with the amount of people on the street. We headed back to our pension and bought a variety of pizza slices at a pizzeria on Via del Serpenti. We stopped at Enoteca Antica Locanda to buy a few bottles of wine to take home- they were very nice and gave us a discount. We our ate the pizza in our room and then rested before venturing out for out last night in Rome.
Later we walked up Via Nazionale to look in stores in the event we needed a last minute shopping fix. Then we headed over to the Corso. It was so jammed with people. We walked down Via Frattina to the Spanish Steps and sat awhile looking at the huge crowds. Via Condotti was wall to wall people. Time to go to dinner so we headed down Via Della Croce towards the Corso. It was much quieter and lovely. We had dinner at Myosotis- a favorite of my daughter's from our last visit. We had two excellent pasta dishes and she had a side of asparagus and I had a side of grilled vegies. The balsamic was the best I had tasted...it was so thick and sweet, like syrup. My daughter ended her meal with lemon sorbet and I had a few biscotti to accompany my second glass of wine. I stuck with the house red which was delicious. Well, we walked over to the Pantheon (one of our favorite spots in Rome) and bid it goodbye and then headed to the Trevi Fountain to toss in our coins. We sat a while at the fountain and talked. Then we walked back to our pension. The evening was really topped off when we walked up to the Quirinale and an orchestra was rehearsing for the New Year's eve televised event. The music was spectacular. There was a small crowd there listening to the rehearsal. It was a perfect way to end our last night in Rome....
We had a wonderful trip and we really enjoyed our mother/daughter time.
We did learn about the disaster in Asia from watching Italian TV- we know we were fortunate to have this vacation and our prayers were and are with those who suffered in this disaster.
Jan 2nd, 2005, 06:48 PM
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risab, thank you for your beautiful and most interesting report. You make me feel like I have been in Rome again.
And traveling with your daughter, doesn't it make the trip extra special. Memories you both will have forever. A Happy New Years to you and yours.
And traveling with your daughter, doesn't it make the trip extra special. Memories you both will have forever. A Happy New Years to you and yours.
Jan 13th, 2005, 04:39 PM
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We love Italy so, if we could, we would! We could replay it over and over...although my next dream vacation to Italy would be a week in Tuscany and a week in the south (between Capri and the Amalfi coast)...this time with my husband.
