Italy: When in Rome...There is ALWAYS room for gelato!

Buon Giorno!

Landing in Rome was quite a surreal experience. You go through the usual airport sequence; baggage claim, customs, tourist information, subway/taxi/bus to your accommodation of choice. But the real kicker is that feeling you get when you find yourself in the middle of this historical and breathtaking city. You drop your bags, take your sunglasses off, and allow yourself a minute to realize you are somewhere you always dreamed of going. 

Italy seems to work it's magic with people all over the world. The food, the language, the history. It pulls you in to this whirlwind of experiencing something new, yet something so familiar at the same time.  

I love that I recognize the food I'm eating, but yet every bite is exciting. Pizza, tortellini, foccacia, gelato, croissants. The pastas are honestly different, the pizza dough and mozza cheese is different. It's all just so fresh and homemade. I could go on for days about the food, but I swear we have been doing more than just eating. 

We spent four nights in a hostel called Funny Palace. We assume the name derives from the fact that the lobby is a laundromat/internet point. There were no signs for the hostel, and the only way we found it was from one of the staff members waiting outside on the street for us. We checked in, received a complimentary bottle of wine (I'm liking this aspect of European hostels) and a map with a fully laid out itinerary on what we should do in Rome. The rooms were in an apartment complex just down the street. Again no signs. I think there is a lot of these "under the table" type hostels in Italy. We didn't mind though, rooms were nice, staff was really helpful, and we enjoyed our stay. 
Our first day we toured around the Roman Forum and the Palatine Museum, the Coliseum, and the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore(the largest Roman catholic Marian church in Rome). We were our own goofy tour guide for the day, and we loved it. I'm sure we may not learn as much, historically speaking, by opting out of organized tours, but we honestly enjoy taking our time when we feel like it and breezing through what doesn't interest us. We tried the audio guide with the Coliseum, and some of it is really good to know, but we still prefer to be our own tour guides.

We spent the evening admiring the lit up fountains, streets, and monuments. Rome is breathtaking by night! The Spanish steps are a HUGE hang out for people, so we spent some time sitting around there. We threw coins and made a wish into the Trevi Fountain.  After a full day and night of walking we both slept like babies!


The next day we took a train to Pompeii and Naples for the day. Pompeii, The Forgotten City, was first occupied in the 8th century bc. It is now a city of ruins that was first destroyed by an earthquake, then while under re-construction in 79 ad, was completely covered with rock and ash from an erupted volcano. This was the largest city of ruins we have ever seen, and it didn't take us long to get lost. After wondering around for a couple of hours we made our way to Naples for lunch. Although dirty and run down, we couldn't miss eating pizza where it all began. I can't say it was the BEST pizza we have ever had in our life, but it was pretty damn good. The dough is what makes it! Differing from the Roman thin crust pizza, the Neapolitan pizza has a softer, thicker crust. Ohh drool...I can say it was the best crust I have ever had. Crispy on the outside, warm and squishy on the inside.


Our last full day in Rome was dedicated to the Vatican Museum and St. Peter's Basilica. The crowds were outrageous, but we lucked out as far as line-ups go. It would take me hours to describe everything we seen, seeing as you could spend days waking through the many museums. Everything is so detailed and intricate, from the painted walls and ceilings, to the tiled floors. There are sculptures, paintings, tapestries and maps from all over the world. Walking up the spiral staircase, before even setting foot in the actual museums, you could stop every two feet to admire old photographs. Then there's the Sistine Chapel. I can only dream of what it would be like to sit in there alone and admire the famous frescoes by Michelangelo on the ceiling and walls. People are packed in the chapel like sardines, craning their necks to see everything at once. Although, we thought that was crowded, until we talked to a group of students who made the visit on one of the free Sundays...


After all the crowds, all the history and art, we made our way back into the sunlight and celebrated with some gelato. This time the cone of delicious-ness was about the size of my head. "Oh, come one, better pick one more flavor!" I am easily persuaded.


Rome was a huge success, but we were ready to move on to Florence for a few days! Being the last-minuters that we are, we booked the night before, meaning very little availability, so our first hostel was 10km out of the city. It was a slight adventure, attempting our way out on the city buses, but we made it eventually.


I'm going to leave you all on that for now though...we have a ten hour ferry ride ahead of us, so I'll take advantage and catch you up on Florence, Cinque Terra, and Venice.


Ciao for now!


A&C