Roma

We left Naples early on a Monday morning and arrived in Rome around lunchtime. It felt great to be back and on our own schedule. The first time we were in Rome it was on a three day art history field trip....and it was a whirlwind of Renaissance history and walking some 30 miles. Now we were back and were able to pick and choose exactly what we wanted to see.

We stayed in a great apartment around Campo de' Fiori on via Vico Savelli. Our street was too narrow for cars which was great for sleeping and our building even had Roman columns built into the facade! The neighborhood was definitely an artisan area....every shop was either a painting studio, ceramics studio, glass shop, or antique gallery, we loved it!

Our days were filled with lots of walking, I always forget how much larger Rome is than Florence, and eating great Roman specialties. Some of the sites we saw throughout our three days were the Trevi Fountain (where we each threw in a few euro coins), The Spanish Steps, Piazza del Popolo, The Castle of Angels, Colosseum, Roman Forum, La Bocca della Verita, Capitoline Hill, the Pantheon, and Piazza Navona. We also went into almost every church we happened upon. I just love to walk through them, they're always so peaceful and it's just so nice to quietly observe in a silent sanctuary juxtaposed against a bustling city!

Another highlight of our trip was exploring the Trastevere area. We first wandered over there to find Pizzeria da Vittorio which was featured in the guidebook I had brought along. The pizza was paper thin and wonderful, we also enjoyed carciofi alla Romana (Roman artichokes)! We were also so pleasantly surprised by the lush, somewhat lazy neighborhood that was Trastevere. It definitely felt more residential than other areas of the city and a true Roman gem. We also ate dinner there the following night at Da Enzo, I saw that Erin from "The Olive Notes" had eaten there before and we thought we'd give it a shot as well. Oh, and I was very proud when I called the ristorante the night before and made the reservation completely in Italian....what excited me the most was that I was asked a few questions about the reservation in Italian and was actually able to answer back, what a concept!

Rome was also the setting of my first Crepe con Nutella experience. It was 4 euro and worth every cent! We watched the lady make it fresh and then I devoured it at a nearby fountain in Campo de Fiori! It was one of the best things I've ever been a part of.....pure bliss and oh so sinful!

We really enjoyed our time in Rome, it was a completely different experience from our first visit and much more "our style." We left Rome the following Thursday morning and arrived in Florence for our last full day...