Paris, Rome and Florence Trip Report
Apr 14th, 2006, 12:20 PM
#21
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
This was a glorious day. One of those that makes you think you could really leave your life in St. Louis, Missouri and move to Rome for good.
We started with our daily pastry and espresso, and then we were headed on a secret “errand” that P had planned. Well, we got lost, again (he’s terrible at directions, which is part of our fun in Europe) and managed to see a good part of the city, and joked that we had managed to climb all 7 hills (which we may very well have done).
Finally, we stumbled onto the Campo de Fiori market—he had correctly assumed that I would love it! I spent over an hour taking picture after picture of the fruits, vegetables, flowers and spices…I fancy myself an amateur photographer, and these will make great decorations for my future kitchens! We picked up some arribiata spice (we’ve used it since returning home, and it was fantastic, just simmered in a bit of olive oil and served with hot pasta).
We wondered for a while, making our way to Trastevere. P had never “crossed the river”, so we made a joyful hop over the bridge, and found Villa Farnese (?). This is an old mansion that is covered in frescoes, and it was great. We spent quite a while in here…the art even kept me interested. However, I feel the need to point out that this attraction houses the SINGLE BEST ATTRACTION BATHROOMS ever, in all of Europe. They were individual rooms, each easily the size of our Paris hotel room, with hand dryers. Upon exiting, I announced to P my designation for these bathrooms, and note that I had to tell Fodorites for their files.
We found an Internet café to check email, and then follow our noses to lunch. We end up at da Otello, where they have one room for locals and one for tourists. Their pizza oven was broken, so we had the antipasti bar and bucatelli for me, and Pasta Fagioli and Tomato Gnochhi for P. ½ liter of wine and bottled water, 32 euro. When we mention P’s fish allergy, just in case, the waiter loudly announces “we have a big fish for you!!” and laughs his way to the kitchen. All in all, a great, relaxing lunch.
We make it into St. Maria in Trastevere, and it is beautiful! We have less luck with Consigliori and Cecilia, as they are both closed. We window shop our way back over the river, and I rescue a pair of earrings that are calling my name.
Finally, we make it to the Forum and it is very, very crowded, with a lot of school tours. This is the only area of Rome that was ever really “full” during our trip and it is different from my last time to the Forum, when it was just us. Also, it feels as though they have blocked off a larger portion of the ruins…which I am glad of, because I remember thinking how odd it was they weren’t protecting more my first time there.
We can hear shouting and bells whistling as we approach the Senate building…turns out there is a small, but very loud, demonstration going on, with a lot of police surrounding it. Weird, and I’m still not sure what they were protesting.
We use this opportunity to walk to the top of the “wedding cake” which we never knew was an option. It’s a hike, but the view was beautiful. And, again, free bathrooms at the top of a monument. Just a note, you have to go all the way through the museum to get outside…there are no signs.
We make a rest stop (for coffee, and ice cream) and then head onto St. Peter in Chains. The Moses statue was covered for restoration on our last trip, and it is impressive! I truly love it. I love this church, and P and I agree it is a great starting point for anyone’s first trip, as the beauty of the church is in its simplicity, which can be underwhelming after seeing some of the other churches.
We end up eating at a restaurant right below Hotel Panda, and although the food is ok, there are cover charges on the final bill, which irritates me (they weren’t printed on the menu). I decide to boycott the restaurant forever…or until I am hungry again.
We have an early trip to Florence in the morning, so we head upstairs. We spend the night listening to the clerk yell at someone on the phone in Italian.
We started with our daily pastry and espresso, and then we were headed on a secret “errand” that P had planned. Well, we got lost, again (he’s terrible at directions, which is part of our fun in Europe) and managed to see a good part of the city, and joked that we had managed to climb all 7 hills (which we may very well have done).
Finally, we stumbled onto the Campo de Fiori market—he had correctly assumed that I would love it! I spent over an hour taking picture after picture of the fruits, vegetables, flowers and spices…I fancy myself an amateur photographer, and these will make great decorations for my future kitchens! We picked up some arribiata spice (we’ve used it since returning home, and it was fantastic, just simmered in a bit of olive oil and served with hot pasta).
We wondered for a while, making our way to Trastevere. P had never “crossed the river”, so we made a joyful hop over the bridge, and found Villa Farnese (?). This is an old mansion that is covered in frescoes, and it was great. We spent quite a while in here…the art even kept me interested. However, I feel the need to point out that this attraction houses the SINGLE BEST ATTRACTION BATHROOMS ever, in all of Europe. They were individual rooms, each easily the size of our Paris hotel room, with hand dryers. Upon exiting, I announced to P my designation for these bathrooms, and note that I had to tell Fodorites for their files.
We found an Internet café to check email, and then follow our noses to lunch. We end up at da Otello, where they have one room for locals and one for tourists. Their pizza oven was broken, so we had the antipasti bar and bucatelli for me, and Pasta Fagioli and Tomato Gnochhi for P. ½ liter of wine and bottled water, 32 euro. When we mention P’s fish allergy, just in case, the waiter loudly announces “we have a big fish for you!!” and laughs his way to the kitchen. All in all, a great, relaxing lunch.
We make it into St. Maria in Trastevere, and it is beautiful! We have less luck with Consigliori and Cecilia, as they are both closed. We window shop our way back over the river, and I rescue a pair of earrings that are calling my name.
Finally, we make it to the Forum and it is very, very crowded, with a lot of school tours. This is the only area of Rome that was ever really “full” during our trip and it is different from my last time to the Forum, when it was just us. Also, it feels as though they have blocked off a larger portion of the ruins…which I am glad of, because I remember thinking how odd it was they weren’t protecting more my first time there.
We can hear shouting and bells whistling as we approach the Senate building…turns out there is a small, but very loud, demonstration going on, with a lot of police surrounding it. Weird, and I’m still not sure what they were protesting.
We use this opportunity to walk to the top of the “wedding cake” which we never knew was an option. It’s a hike, but the view was beautiful. And, again, free bathrooms at the top of a monument. Just a note, you have to go all the way through the museum to get outside…there are no signs.
We make a rest stop (for coffee, and ice cream) and then head onto St. Peter in Chains. The Moses statue was covered for restoration on our last trip, and it is impressive! I truly love it. I love this church, and P and I agree it is a great starting point for anyone’s first trip, as the beauty of the church is in its simplicity, which can be underwhelming after seeing some of the other churches.
We end up eating at a restaurant right below Hotel Panda, and although the food is ok, there are cover charges on the final bill, which irritates me (they weren’t printed on the menu). I decide to boycott the restaurant forever…or until I am hungry again.
We have an early trip to Florence in the morning, so we head upstairs. We spend the night listening to the clerk yell at someone on the phone in Italian.
Apr 14th, 2006, 01:03 PM
#22
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Day 8 – March 14 Day Trip to Florence
We opted to do a day trip to Florence, and took the train in in the morning, spent the night, and took the train back to Rome the following morning. I think this was perfect…one day was plenty for us in Florence.
Strike number umpteen against my lack of pre-planning…I left our ticket printouts at home, and have to pay another 70+ euro to purchase new ones. I’m sure their was a way to retrieve our reservation, but the ticket agent wanted nothing to do with it.
The ride to Florence was beautiful, and fast. We took the express train, and it took 1.5 hours. Exiting the train station, we hit strike number umpteen plus one…I had no idea how to get to our hotel. I just knew it was “near” the station. Some helpful Florence folk helped us find it. And, thanks to Ira for the recommendation.
It was BB Peterson. For 52 euros a night, this was a steal. Yes, it is a bit of a walk, but not any farther than we had been from attractions in Paris or Rome. The proprietor met us at the building, and was so nice! I felt like he was my best friend by the time we left. Huge room, comfy bed, great bathroom, and a free make it yourself espresso upon arrival. Big thumbs up, and I definitely recommend this for any short trips to Florence. For longer journeys, the walk into town might be a bit much.
Stop one is gelato…I get a vanilla that tastes like cake batter and P stars with raspberry. The vanilla wins this round.
To be honest, I was less than enthused about Florence for the first little while. It was terribly, terribly crowded, everywhere we went. Then we stumbled on the Duomo, and I understand why people love it. This building is beautiful on the outside! One of the more impressive feats that have been accomplished I think.
We make another gelato stop on our way to our Uffizi reservations, and try the nutellata. This quickly becomes #1, and vanilla is moved to #2.
I am going to make a disclaimer here…our Uffizi experience was less than thrilling. So, my apologies to those folks that love it.
We had made reservations ahead of time (super easy with the phone number). When you get there, go in the building across from the museum building, and into door #3. We paid our 19 euros, and were directed to museum building door #1. Here, there was a velvet rope, and an attendant was letting folks in at his mercy, as opposed to the time on the tickets. Once we made it past the rope, we encountered the same thing at the ticket entrance. We finally attached ourselves to a school group that was being let in at once, and made it through. By this time it was 20 minutes after our reservation time. The time itself was not a big deal at all, it was that we couldn’t figure out how they were deciding which people they liked enough to let them in, and it was getting annoying.
Once we got in, and ushered past the sign that says something along the lines of “don’t take the elevators, you must take the stairs” a woman directed us onto the elevator. It stopped one floor up, and she looked at us, said “stay here” and walked off the elevator. At this point, we knew we were not on a regular museum visit.
We did finally make it to the museum itself, and while the busts were enjoyable, and I did like the Birth of Venus, all in all, P and I were both museumed out. We decided to make our exit, which much like our entrance, was not an easy thing. By the time we made it through an underground space, an outdoor space, 2 gift shops and a Post Office, I was thrilled to see the great outdoors, and may have vowed never to step foot in the Uffizi again. Our experience aside, for those that enjoy pre-Renaissance and Renaissance work, and have not been to a million museums already, it was good.
We had a few hours until our appointment with David, and after the Uffizi, I was questioning whether we should show up for that one or not. P said I would regret not going, so we decided to wander until reservation time. We decided to take Mr. Steves up on his suggestion of I Fratelini, and P deemed this the best meal of the entire trip.
I Fratelini is a storefront on a side ally, a counter big enough for two men and some sandwich fillings to sit behind. You can order one of 27 sandwiches, which come with a glass of wine for 4 euros. You eat on the street, drink your wine, and return the glass. Brilliant! The bread rolls were to die for, and we shared/devoured 3 sandwiches…salami with artichokes, salami with goat cheese and tomato mozzarella. I would go back to Florence in a heartbeat just for these delights. Oh, and the wine was good too. 3 sandwiches, 2 glasses of wine, 9 euros = the best deal in Italy.
We had plenty of time, so we ventured to San Croce. This ended up being my favorite few hours of our entire 10 day trip. Michaelangelo’s tomb was amazing, and I found my favorite tomb that I’ve seen to date…a very plain tomb, marked by one statue laying a wreath on the marble casket. We headed outside to the beautiful courtyard, and wondered into what seemed to be a pre-Renaissance, very sparse museum. Here, I saw two statues that brought tears to my eyes. They were so beautiful, and are my favorite “thing” we saw during our trip. Even the photos of the statues manage to show their beauty. This church and its surroundings are outstanding, and I recommend planning for plenty of time here.
We window shopped for a while, and made our way to Academia. Again, the line guard rule was in effect. If you were early, they’d let you in, if you were on time, you may get in behind those with later reservations. We were still happy from the sandwiches, and less annoyed this time.
I will admit, I went in just to see David. And, am I glad I did. The sheer size of the statue is impressive, and the art of the piece itself is astounding. I also loved the unfinished Michaelangelo’s…no words to describe them they were so beautiful.
We decide we need some gelato to refresh ourselves and end up with lemon. It moves to spot #1.
Onto Ponte Vecchio. This was beautiful, as it was sunset, and we were surrounded by sparkling jewels, but again, it was so crowded. We window shopped for quite some time before finding a restaurant for dinner. Upon entering, it was obvious they cater to the tourist crowd, but we had a Ravioli covered in a mushroom gravy that was truly amazing. The most memorable part of this meal, though, was the group of 4 women (who proudly announced they were from Georgia) engaging in every Ugly American activity known to man, and having no knowledge of it. They asked what everything “was” on the menu, in English, to the waiter who obviously was not understanding them. They were amazed that “Ragu” was on the menu. And, they didn’t understand just why the waiter wouldn’t sell them wine by the glass.
The day came to an end, and we made it back to the comfort of BB Peterson. All in all a great day in Florence, and a perfect amount of time in the city for us.
We opted to do a day trip to Florence, and took the train in in the morning, spent the night, and took the train back to Rome the following morning. I think this was perfect…one day was plenty for us in Florence.
Strike number umpteen against my lack of pre-planning…I left our ticket printouts at home, and have to pay another 70+ euro to purchase new ones. I’m sure their was a way to retrieve our reservation, but the ticket agent wanted nothing to do with it.
The ride to Florence was beautiful, and fast. We took the express train, and it took 1.5 hours. Exiting the train station, we hit strike number umpteen plus one…I had no idea how to get to our hotel. I just knew it was “near” the station. Some helpful Florence folk helped us find it. And, thanks to Ira for the recommendation.
It was BB Peterson. For 52 euros a night, this was a steal. Yes, it is a bit of a walk, but not any farther than we had been from attractions in Paris or Rome. The proprietor met us at the building, and was so nice! I felt like he was my best friend by the time we left. Huge room, comfy bed, great bathroom, and a free make it yourself espresso upon arrival. Big thumbs up, and I definitely recommend this for any short trips to Florence. For longer journeys, the walk into town might be a bit much.
Stop one is gelato…I get a vanilla that tastes like cake batter and P stars with raspberry. The vanilla wins this round.
To be honest, I was less than enthused about Florence for the first little while. It was terribly, terribly crowded, everywhere we went. Then we stumbled on the Duomo, and I understand why people love it. This building is beautiful on the outside! One of the more impressive feats that have been accomplished I think.
We make another gelato stop on our way to our Uffizi reservations, and try the nutellata. This quickly becomes #1, and vanilla is moved to #2.
I am going to make a disclaimer here…our Uffizi experience was less than thrilling. So, my apologies to those folks that love it.
We had made reservations ahead of time (super easy with the phone number). When you get there, go in the building across from the museum building, and into door #3. We paid our 19 euros, and were directed to museum building door #1. Here, there was a velvet rope, and an attendant was letting folks in at his mercy, as opposed to the time on the tickets. Once we made it past the rope, we encountered the same thing at the ticket entrance. We finally attached ourselves to a school group that was being let in at once, and made it through. By this time it was 20 minutes after our reservation time. The time itself was not a big deal at all, it was that we couldn’t figure out how they were deciding which people they liked enough to let them in, and it was getting annoying.
Once we got in, and ushered past the sign that says something along the lines of “don’t take the elevators, you must take the stairs” a woman directed us onto the elevator. It stopped one floor up, and she looked at us, said “stay here” and walked off the elevator. At this point, we knew we were not on a regular museum visit.
We did finally make it to the museum itself, and while the busts were enjoyable, and I did like the Birth of Venus, all in all, P and I were both museumed out. We decided to make our exit, which much like our entrance, was not an easy thing. By the time we made it through an underground space, an outdoor space, 2 gift shops and a Post Office, I was thrilled to see the great outdoors, and may have vowed never to step foot in the Uffizi again. Our experience aside, for those that enjoy pre-Renaissance and Renaissance work, and have not been to a million museums already, it was good.
We had a few hours until our appointment with David, and after the Uffizi, I was questioning whether we should show up for that one or not. P said I would regret not going, so we decided to wander until reservation time. We decided to take Mr. Steves up on his suggestion of I Fratelini, and P deemed this the best meal of the entire trip.
I Fratelini is a storefront on a side ally, a counter big enough for two men and some sandwich fillings to sit behind. You can order one of 27 sandwiches, which come with a glass of wine for 4 euros. You eat on the street, drink your wine, and return the glass. Brilliant! The bread rolls were to die for, and we shared/devoured 3 sandwiches…salami with artichokes, salami with goat cheese and tomato mozzarella. I would go back to Florence in a heartbeat just for these delights. Oh, and the wine was good too. 3 sandwiches, 2 glasses of wine, 9 euros = the best deal in Italy.
We had plenty of time, so we ventured to San Croce. This ended up being my favorite few hours of our entire 10 day trip. Michaelangelo’s tomb was amazing, and I found my favorite tomb that I’ve seen to date…a very plain tomb, marked by one statue laying a wreath on the marble casket. We headed outside to the beautiful courtyard, and wondered into what seemed to be a pre-Renaissance, very sparse museum. Here, I saw two statues that brought tears to my eyes. They were so beautiful, and are my favorite “thing” we saw during our trip. Even the photos of the statues manage to show their beauty. This church and its surroundings are outstanding, and I recommend planning for plenty of time here.
We window shopped for a while, and made our way to Academia. Again, the line guard rule was in effect. If you were early, they’d let you in, if you were on time, you may get in behind those with later reservations. We were still happy from the sandwiches, and less annoyed this time.
I will admit, I went in just to see David. And, am I glad I did. The sheer size of the statue is impressive, and the art of the piece itself is astounding. I also loved the unfinished Michaelangelo’s…no words to describe them they were so beautiful.
We decide we need some gelato to refresh ourselves and end up with lemon. It moves to spot #1.
Onto Ponte Vecchio. This was beautiful, as it was sunset, and we were surrounded by sparkling jewels, but again, it was so crowded. We window shopped for quite some time before finding a restaurant for dinner. Upon entering, it was obvious they cater to the tourist crowd, but we had a Ravioli covered in a mushroom gravy that was truly amazing. The most memorable part of this meal, though, was the group of 4 women (who proudly announced they were from Georgia) engaging in every Ugly American activity known to man, and having no knowledge of it. They asked what everything “was” on the menu, in English, to the waiter who obviously was not understanding them. They were amazed that “Ragu” was on the menu. And, they didn’t understand just why the waiter wouldn’t sell them wine by the glass.
The day came to an end, and we made it back to the comfort of BB Peterson. All in all a great day in Florence, and a perfect amount of time in the city for us.
Aug 13th, 2006, 02:32 PM
#24
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 17,226
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
What a great trip report. Is the end of the trip on another report?
This is my favorite part of the report. It really decribes what makes this forum special -
About 200 yards further down the Champs Elysees, I stumbled upon Laduree and literally ran in the door. P had no clue what was going on, and followed me in saying “but this is a restaurant,” totally confused, until I led him to the bakery case. Had one of the sweetest moments of my life
This is my favorite part of the report. It really decribes what makes this forum special -
About 200 yards further down the Champs Elysees, I stumbled upon Laduree and literally ran in the door. P had no clue what was going on, and followed me in saying “but this is a restaurant,” totally confused, until I led him to the bakery case. Had one of the sweetest moments of my life
Aug 14th, 2006, 06:53 PM
#25
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I had given up on this report...we recently moved across the country (see Floriday post) and I haven't unpacked the journal just yet. But, I just finished reading a great trip report and it's inspired me to finish this one--although I can't live up to the one I just finished reading.
Aug 22nd, 2006, 10:55 AM
#30
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Day 9 – March 15 Back to Rome on the Ides
We sleep in because we plan to take a 9:30 am train. P figures out the self-serve espresso machine, another big plus to BB Peterson (side note, P just finished his PhD in August, and his gifts were 1. a leather bag from the leather school in Florence and 2. a Nespresso espresso machine—2 things he’s been dreaming about since this trip). We pick up breakfast on the way—pastries and a salami sandwich—how can anyone not love Italy??
We try to buy tickets once we arrive (I hereby swear to buy all of my daytrip tickets at least a day ahead of time) and the machines won’t work. Something to do with the fact that the train is SOLD OUT! We end up on the 10:10 train, which is only running a few minutes late, so we don’t lose much time.
We check back into Hotel Panda, where our stored luggage is waiting for us, out in the hall (I guess if you don’t want luggage taken from you, it is a good idea to pack it until it is so heavy, no one would dare try to lug it away) and they check us back into Room 21—huge and adjacent to the check in desk.
We are starving, so we head to the pizza by the kilo joint right next door. (When we first checked into our hotel, and walked past this place, a Scottish man---think the Sean Connery character on Saturday Night Live---walked out of the store and announced to the entire street “It’s a Pizza MAC Donald’s!!!”—we had been laughing about it since, and quite honestly, still are laughing 5 months later). They have 10-15 different types and cut you whatever size you indicate, weigh it and heat it up. It is delicious—we try 8 slices of 4 or 5 types of pizza (I’m a pizza connoisseur) with 2 sodas for 12 euros. Highly recommend this for a quick lunch or snack, and it is about 5 doors down from Hotel Panda towards the Steps.
It’s a beautiful day, and we alternate between jackets and no jackets as we stroll through Rome, headed for the Arapacus. P has watched this restoration for years and he’s excited when he sees how far it has come—you can see through the glass to the Arapacus itself—it is huge!! We also stroll around Augustus’ tomb (now known to us as the “poop tomb”—very popular place for dog walking and not picking up after them). There are kids of all ages, lounging around the area having lunch, etc. Crowds today are huge—we are guessing it is a holiday of sorts and that folks are off school and work.
P wants to create a laurel for Caesar. He has studied Roman history for years, and is most fascinated by Caesar. We pull a branch off of a tree and fashion a laurel and start to head towards Trajan’s Markets. We are sidetracked by ice cream at “American Bar” on the corner of the Pantheon’s piazza. We have two enormous cones for 7 euro—melon for P, cream and caramel for me (yum, yum, yum). We sit in the shade of the Pantheon and watch the children play, locals hang out and peddlers. We head into the Pantheon, but it is so crowded you can’t move. We finally make out way to throw the laurel. P has used some architecture and history books and decided which tree Caesar died against, and tosses the laurel down. He’s surprised no one else has done anything here (although statues around town are covered in flowers), but we’ve officially celebrated the Ides.
We start trying to find Maria Maggiore, one of my favorites, and one of 3 churches we are going to try to get to today. We are sidetracked by two women from Korea who speak little English and are looking for the Spanish Steps. We get them going in the right direction and head on our way. We then realize we’ve sent them in the totally wrong direction, and P takes off running after them to set them in the right direction.
When we make it to Maria Maggiore, it is still great, but I wrote in my journal “there’s a weird feeling seeing it a 2nd time—still really impressive, but not as ‘aweing’ as the first time”. We are running out of daylight and P wants to make it to another church. I didn’t write down the name, but it has a statue of St. Catherine and St. Catherine herself inside. Very small, and quite beautiful, if you don’t mind the preserved body.
Start down Via Veneto and have fun trying to find a restaurant from the last trip that was one of the highlights. We find it—Ciao Bella. Four years ago, the food and service were amazing—I’d recommend it, although we didn’t try it this time. It was quite pricey as I remember, and the menu shows that it still is.
Our goal now is to find the “crypt of monks.” We keep going in circles, literally and finally stumble across it. I don’t have the name, but P said it was basically skeletons of monks (thousands of them) made into art. I don’t have the stomach for that, so he went in alone, and as I waited at the entrance, I heard a great variety of what I’ll call “movie commercial quotes” for the place, including “well, that was uplifting….”, “that makes me want to keep meat on my bones….” P seems similarly freaked out when he exits and we take the metro “home” to the Spanish Steps.
We stroll through the night, accidentally buying P a new suit, tie and shirt that are beautiful and ridiculously cheap (he’s now worn it 10 times or so, and it is holding up quite nicely). We head into the Piazza Popolo, which I have not seen before. The twin churches and fountains are beautiful—this becomes one of my new favorite places. We also pick up wine and olive oil in a grocery store, so P is hauling quite a bit up and down the streets of Rome. We make our way back to Taverna Coppolla, mainly because we are hungry and too tired to make a decision on a new restaurant. It is full of Rick Steve’s toting tourists and we enjoy watching a grandma, sister, daughter and granddaughter on their first day in Italy. We get the fried mix with crab claw, zucchini blossom, cheese, salted cod and sausage stuffed olives, bruschetta, pasta americi, lasagna, penne pancetta and vodka and a caprese salad. We wash down this ridiculously huge meal with a liter of their house wine (drinkable, not great) for 39 euro. Halfway through the bottle of wine, we decide to head to the scene of our engagement—Tucci on the Piazza Navona.
We are literally the only people on the Piazza and we enjoy our Tartufo outdoors, warmed by the heaters. Every member of the 5-person waitstaff waits on us at some point. (P proposed by accident with the Tartufo several years ago. He handed my ring to the waiter, and while trying to explain his plan, the waiter took off with the ring. So, P didn’t know when I was getting proposed to anymore than I did. The waiter taped the ring on a plate underneath the Tartufo dessert plate. When he took the Tartufo plate and exposed the ring, P and I were both surprised! We enjoy reenacting P’s dropped jaw.) Fully stuffed, and mostly frozen, we run home to Hotel Panda.
We sleep in because we plan to take a 9:30 am train. P figures out the self-serve espresso machine, another big plus to BB Peterson (side note, P just finished his PhD in August, and his gifts were 1. a leather bag from the leather school in Florence and 2. a Nespresso espresso machine—2 things he’s been dreaming about since this trip). We pick up breakfast on the way—pastries and a salami sandwich—how can anyone not love Italy??
We try to buy tickets once we arrive (I hereby swear to buy all of my daytrip tickets at least a day ahead of time) and the machines won’t work. Something to do with the fact that the train is SOLD OUT! We end up on the 10:10 train, which is only running a few minutes late, so we don’t lose much time.
We check back into Hotel Panda, where our stored luggage is waiting for us, out in the hall (I guess if you don’t want luggage taken from you, it is a good idea to pack it until it is so heavy, no one would dare try to lug it away) and they check us back into Room 21—huge and adjacent to the check in desk.
We are starving, so we head to the pizza by the kilo joint right next door. (When we first checked into our hotel, and walked past this place, a Scottish man---think the Sean Connery character on Saturday Night Live---walked out of the store and announced to the entire street “It’s a Pizza MAC Donald’s!!!”—we had been laughing about it since, and quite honestly, still are laughing 5 months later). They have 10-15 different types and cut you whatever size you indicate, weigh it and heat it up. It is delicious—we try 8 slices of 4 or 5 types of pizza (I’m a pizza connoisseur) with 2 sodas for 12 euros. Highly recommend this for a quick lunch or snack, and it is about 5 doors down from Hotel Panda towards the Steps.
It’s a beautiful day, and we alternate between jackets and no jackets as we stroll through Rome, headed for the Arapacus. P has watched this restoration for years and he’s excited when he sees how far it has come—you can see through the glass to the Arapacus itself—it is huge!! We also stroll around Augustus’ tomb (now known to us as the “poop tomb”—very popular place for dog walking and not picking up after them). There are kids of all ages, lounging around the area having lunch, etc. Crowds today are huge—we are guessing it is a holiday of sorts and that folks are off school and work.
P wants to create a laurel for Caesar. He has studied Roman history for years, and is most fascinated by Caesar. We pull a branch off of a tree and fashion a laurel and start to head towards Trajan’s Markets. We are sidetracked by ice cream at “American Bar” on the corner of the Pantheon’s piazza. We have two enormous cones for 7 euro—melon for P, cream and caramel for me (yum, yum, yum). We sit in the shade of the Pantheon and watch the children play, locals hang out and peddlers. We head into the Pantheon, but it is so crowded you can’t move. We finally make out way to throw the laurel. P has used some architecture and history books and decided which tree Caesar died against, and tosses the laurel down. He’s surprised no one else has done anything here (although statues around town are covered in flowers), but we’ve officially celebrated the Ides.
We start trying to find Maria Maggiore, one of my favorites, and one of 3 churches we are going to try to get to today. We are sidetracked by two women from Korea who speak little English and are looking for the Spanish Steps. We get them going in the right direction and head on our way. We then realize we’ve sent them in the totally wrong direction, and P takes off running after them to set them in the right direction.
When we make it to Maria Maggiore, it is still great, but I wrote in my journal “there’s a weird feeling seeing it a 2nd time—still really impressive, but not as ‘aweing’ as the first time”. We are running out of daylight and P wants to make it to another church. I didn’t write down the name, but it has a statue of St. Catherine and St. Catherine herself inside. Very small, and quite beautiful, if you don’t mind the preserved body.
Start down Via Veneto and have fun trying to find a restaurant from the last trip that was one of the highlights. We find it—Ciao Bella. Four years ago, the food and service were amazing—I’d recommend it, although we didn’t try it this time. It was quite pricey as I remember, and the menu shows that it still is.
Our goal now is to find the “crypt of monks.” We keep going in circles, literally and finally stumble across it. I don’t have the name, but P said it was basically skeletons of monks (thousands of them) made into art. I don’t have the stomach for that, so he went in alone, and as I waited at the entrance, I heard a great variety of what I’ll call “movie commercial quotes” for the place, including “well, that was uplifting….”, “that makes me want to keep meat on my bones….” P seems similarly freaked out when he exits and we take the metro “home” to the Spanish Steps.
We stroll through the night, accidentally buying P a new suit, tie and shirt that are beautiful and ridiculously cheap (he’s now worn it 10 times or so, and it is holding up quite nicely). We head into the Piazza Popolo, which I have not seen before. The twin churches and fountains are beautiful—this becomes one of my new favorite places. We also pick up wine and olive oil in a grocery store, so P is hauling quite a bit up and down the streets of Rome. We make our way back to Taverna Coppolla, mainly because we are hungry and too tired to make a decision on a new restaurant. It is full of Rick Steve’s toting tourists and we enjoy watching a grandma, sister, daughter and granddaughter on their first day in Italy. We get the fried mix with crab claw, zucchini blossom, cheese, salted cod and sausage stuffed olives, bruschetta, pasta americi, lasagna, penne pancetta and vodka and a caprese salad. We wash down this ridiculously huge meal with a liter of their house wine (drinkable, not great) for 39 euro. Halfway through the bottle of wine, we decide to head to the scene of our engagement—Tucci on the Piazza Navona.
We are literally the only people on the Piazza and we enjoy our Tartufo outdoors, warmed by the heaters. Every member of the 5-person waitstaff waits on us at some point. (P proposed by accident with the Tartufo several years ago. He handed my ring to the waiter, and while trying to explain his plan, the waiter took off with the ring. So, P didn’t know when I was getting proposed to anymore than I did. The waiter taped the ring on a plate underneath the Tartufo dessert plate. When he took the Tartufo plate and exposed the ring, P and I were both surprised! We enjoy reenacting P’s dropped jaw.) Fully stuffed, and mostly frozen, we run home to Hotel Panda.
Aug 22nd, 2006, 11:31 AM
#31
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Day 10 – March 16 Rome
Our last day of vacation…We actually set an alarm, because we have 9 am reservations at Villa Borghese. We figure it we leave by 8:15, we can be there by 8:30, because it is at the same metro stop. We have figured wrong. To top off the fact that we have literally no idea where we are going, it is raining, hard!! Of course, there are plenty of peddlers with umbrellas at the ready. We decide the best option is to cut through the metro to stay out of the rain, and hopefully find some direction. We know it is in a large park, so we walk through a large open park, and suddenly do not feel like we are in Rome anymore. Similar to the feeling one gets in Central Park. (Sidenote—we are really starting to miss our two puppies at this point and are petting every dog we run into).
After wondering for a bit, we finally hit upon the right “road” in middle of the park. We are very late for the 8:30 call, but they let us pick up tickets anyway and we are let in for the 9 am tour. We did not know what to expect, and for those of you in the same boat, let me describe it. It is basically a huge house. I expected it to be the collection of one family, but instead, each room was redone by different families and/or family members that lived in the mansion. Then, inside of these rooms are statues. It is not cohesive at all, and about 5 minutes into it, I realized I was completely museumed out. Then, I stumbled upon a Bernini statue. I immediately became a Bernini fan. The statue of Apollo is one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen—I could have stared at it for hours.
We take the metro to the Vatican. It just didn’t seem right to be in Rome and not go (we are Catholic). When we exit, it begins raining again, and we are starving. Though the Vatican is to the right, something tells us to go left, and we cross the street and run into a local bakery. We are the only folks inside that do not speak Italian (or for that matter, that speak English) and we are the youngest by decades. It smells delicious, and we do a great job pointing and gesticulating with the young girl behind the counter. We end up with more pizza by the kilo and little rolls with olives in the center—probably the best thing I have ever eaten. P goes back to the counter to select dessert and does some more pointing. An Italian grandmother begins gesturing and speaking to him, and to the server. We are able to figure out that she is selecting a different dessert for us than we have picked out, and here choices of a blueberry tart and peach cookie are fantastic. 11 euros with drinks. We buy a bag of olive rolls to go home with us the next day, although we end up eating all of them before the day is over.
Finally, we make it to the Vatican, although I break down and buy an umbrella on the street for 5 euros. The line is stretched for miles, or at least 2 hours. We decide on St. Peters, and the line there is only about 30 minutes long. (also, there is security here. I don’t remember that from last time, but I think it is because we went in through the Vatican museum).
I forgot how truly awesome St. Peters is. It is sheer grandeur, and after the Bernini statues in the morning, it is amazing to see the altar. We are able to get very close to it, and I spend a long time taking it in. We notice a lot of folks coming in and out of a door near one of the tombs, and follow them in. It leads deep into the church, to the Basilica’s treasury (basically, artifacts, but really cool ones). We pay the 6 euros each, which includes an audio guide, and spend an hour. There are some really amazing pieces, and most people would be very impressed with the jewels. We finish here, and head for the Metro. We stop at another local store and pick up some more wine and olive oil.
After we drop off our purchases, we head to the Forum, which we have been saving, minus the short drop in when we first arrived. Splashing through the rain, we decided to get another umbrella, and this time, I get it for 2 euros and some change, which is all I had in my pocket. When we arrive at the Forum, we are astounded to find it closed!! I don’t know what the deal here was, but it was really cool to look down onto an empty forum in the rain, with the mist and the fog—quite a perfect vacation moment.
We climb to the top of the Palatine hill and enter the church there. It is very plain, but I am glad I saw it. We stop to warm up at a café (although we had wine instead of coffee) and have to go back to the hotel, because we are soaking wet at this point. (Although we dry out our shoes and clothes overnight, they are still wet when we return home almost 24 hours later).
The rain keeps us from traveling very far for dinner and we give in and decide to have dinner near the Spanish Steps. I am so glad we did, as this was the best meal of the two weeks here. It is called Enoteca Wine Bar, and it is on the same street as Hotel Panda, towards the Spanish Steps, on the opposite side of the street from Panda. It is small, and hip and very crowded. To get in line for a table, you must find a waitress and be put on the list and then hang out. They seemed to have a huge variety of wine, and it was shortly after a soccer match, so there were folks from a ton of different countries in there.
We order a bruschetta mix, with plain, hummus, traditional and one covered in mushroom gravy. Heaven. P gets a basic tomato fusilli that was fantastic and I have meat ravioli in a cream porcini mushroom sauce. It is right up there with the Laduree macaroon and olive rolls for favorite food moments ever. We finish with a Caprese salad that I wish I had taken a picture of. They served us an entire, unsliced, ball of fresh mozzarella and 2 sliced tomatoes, with a side of oil and vinegar to prepare ourselves. I wish we hadn’t eaten so much, so we could have eaten more. With wine and water, it is $46. This is the first restaurant I will go to when we return.
We try to go to sleep early, as we have an early flight, but I am kept awake by the thin walls and couple next door. Let’s just say, they may have been on their honeymoon.
Our last day of vacation…We actually set an alarm, because we have 9 am reservations at Villa Borghese. We figure it we leave by 8:15, we can be there by 8:30, because it is at the same metro stop. We have figured wrong. To top off the fact that we have literally no idea where we are going, it is raining, hard!! Of course, there are plenty of peddlers with umbrellas at the ready. We decide the best option is to cut through the metro to stay out of the rain, and hopefully find some direction. We know it is in a large park, so we walk through a large open park, and suddenly do not feel like we are in Rome anymore. Similar to the feeling one gets in Central Park. (Sidenote—we are really starting to miss our two puppies at this point and are petting every dog we run into).
After wondering for a bit, we finally hit upon the right “road” in middle of the park. We are very late for the 8:30 call, but they let us pick up tickets anyway and we are let in for the 9 am tour. We did not know what to expect, and for those of you in the same boat, let me describe it. It is basically a huge house. I expected it to be the collection of one family, but instead, each room was redone by different families and/or family members that lived in the mansion. Then, inside of these rooms are statues. It is not cohesive at all, and about 5 minutes into it, I realized I was completely museumed out. Then, I stumbled upon a Bernini statue. I immediately became a Bernini fan. The statue of Apollo is one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen—I could have stared at it for hours.
We take the metro to the Vatican. It just didn’t seem right to be in Rome and not go (we are Catholic). When we exit, it begins raining again, and we are starving. Though the Vatican is to the right, something tells us to go left, and we cross the street and run into a local bakery. We are the only folks inside that do not speak Italian (or for that matter, that speak English) and we are the youngest by decades. It smells delicious, and we do a great job pointing and gesticulating with the young girl behind the counter. We end up with more pizza by the kilo and little rolls with olives in the center—probably the best thing I have ever eaten. P goes back to the counter to select dessert and does some more pointing. An Italian grandmother begins gesturing and speaking to him, and to the server. We are able to figure out that she is selecting a different dessert for us than we have picked out, and here choices of a blueberry tart and peach cookie are fantastic. 11 euros with drinks. We buy a bag of olive rolls to go home with us the next day, although we end up eating all of them before the day is over.
Finally, we make it to the Vatican, although I break down and buy an umbrella on the street for 5 euros. The line is stretched for miles, or at least 2 hours. We decide on St. Peters, and the line there is only about 30 minutes long. (also, there is security here. I don’t remember that from last time, but I think it is because we went in through the Vatican museum).
I forgot how truly awesome St. Peters is. It is sheer grandeur, and after the Bernini statues in the morning, it is amazing to see the altar. We are able to get very close to it, and I spend a long time taking it in. We notice a lot of folks coming in and out of a door near one of the tombs, and follow them in. It leads deep into the church, to the Basilica’s treasury (basically, artifacts, but really cool ones). We pay the 6 euros each, which includes an audio guide, and spend an hour. There are some really amazing pieces, and most people would be very impressed with the jewels. We finish here, and head for the Metro. We stop at another local store and pick up some more wine and olive oil.
After we drop off our purchases, we head to the Forum, which we have been saving, minus the short drop in when we first arrived. Splashing through the rain, we decided to get another umbrella, and this time, I get it for 2 euros and some change, which is all I had in my pocket. When we arrive at the Forum, we are astounded to find it closed!! I don’t know what the deal here was, but it was really cool to look down onto an empty forum in the rain, with the mist and the fog—quite a perfect vacation moment.
We climb to the top of the Palatine hill and enter the church there. It is very plain, but I am glad I saw it. We stop to warm up at a café (although we had wine instead of coffee) and have to go back to the hotel, because we are soaking wet at this point. (Although we dry out our shoes and clothes overnight, they are still wet when we return home almost 24 hours later).
The rain keeps us from traveling very far for dinner and we give in and decide to have dinner near the Spanish Steps. I am so glad we did, as this was the best meal of the two weeks here. It is called Enoteca Wine Bar, and it is on the same street as Hotel Panda, towards the Spanish Steps, on the opposite side of the street from Panda. It is small, and hip and very crowded. To get in line for a table, you must find a waitress and be put on the list and then hang out. They seemed to have a huge variety of wine, and it was shortly after a soccer match, so there were folks from a ton of different countries in there.
We order a bruschetta mix, with plain, hummus, traditional and one covered in mushroom gravy. Heaven. P gets a basic tomato fusilli that was fantastic and I have meat ravioli in a cream porcini mushroom sauce. It is right up there with the Laduree macaroon and olive rolls for favorite food moments ever. We finish with a Caprese salad that I wish I had taken a picture of. They served us an entire, unsliced, ball of fresh mozzarella and 2 sliced tomatoes, with a side of oil and vinegar to prepare ourselves. I wish we hadn’t eaten so much, so we could have eaten more. With wine and water, it is $46. This is the first restaurant I will go to when we return.
We try to go to sleep early, as we have an early flight, but I am kept awake by the thin walls and couple next door. Let’s just say, they may have been on their honeymoon.
Aug 23rd, 2006, 04:58 PM
#35
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 149
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks for all your kind words. It's fun to have this to look back on (and share with my husband, who hasn't seen it just yet). Wrap up and final thoughts on the way tomorrow.
Erika
Erika
Aug 23rd, 2006, 05:20 PM
#38
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 17,226
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Lots of ways. Here's a post presently on the Europe board with folk's favorite sites -
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34847229
Good luck in S. Ga. It's part of my territory. What a change in everything - topography, climate, culture - for the two of you. I hope things are going well!
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34847229
Good luck in S. Ga. It's part of my territory. What a change in everything - topography, climate, culture - for the two of you. I hope things are going well!
