When in Rome
I’m now leaving Italy having spent 4 days in this historical country. It has been a whirlwind covering Rome, the island of Capri, and Florence. Rome was the city that I accomplished the most. My companions in Italy were Michele and Andy, two people that were very easy to travel with. They were ahead of me in Europe almost one week and I met them in Rome. I spent my first day with Michele as Andy decided on a side trip to Pompei. I arrived in Rome on the morning of Wednesday, September 24. By the time I got off the plane, took a train to the center of the city, found my hotel, it was already lunch time. :). I found Michele and found a little outdoor restaurant. Because I was feeling a little jetlagged, I ordered a vegetable soup and it was quite good- it was filled with a variety of beans and lentils. Not exactly what you would think to order, but it made me feel good. After a quick bite, we went on our explorations. I had to get some of the major attractions checked off otherwise I would never be done with my list. We went to Trevi fountains and each threw in two coins. One meaning to return to Rome and the other to find love. We visited and walked up the Spanish steps, absorbed the fountains of piazza navona, and managed to see the pantheon. In between that we went to a gelateria and a bar for paninis. I was pretty beat so decided to go back to the hotel and take a nap. I woke up in time to have dinner and asked the front desk where I could get good pasta. He suggested a bar down the street. I ordered my meal take away. I had the best pasta dish of my life – buccatini (the pasta that looks like spaghetti but it has a small hole in the middle) with a bacon sauce. OMG! Amazing, I thanked the guy at the front desk the next day! Michele, Andy, and I decided to go to the Vatican first. What normally can be hours of waiting in line probably took us 10 minutes. We lucked out. The details of most Catholic churches are amazing but when you see the size of st. Peters basillica, it really is incredible. Michele pointed out the windows where the pope normally comes out which was also very cool. We also were directed through the museum to see a lot of amazing artwork and then end with the sisteen chapel. Now we were off to the colloseum and the forum. Words cannot describe these two sites – breathless? I think I saved the best for last. The colloseum really was what I was looking most forward to in rome and it met my expectations. We decided to separate. I went off to find a pastry shop on my list. I had some excellent pizza there and got some cookies for our train ride the next day. The three of us met back for dinner And had more pasta and shared a bottle of chianti. Life is good.