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When in Rome…be ready to walk, stand in lines, and eat.
After being gone all weekend at the Comrades Marathon, Justin and Sarah flew in early Monday morning to Joburg to finish packing and winterizing the house before heading out in the afternoon to the airport. We flew 11 hours to Zurich with a quick layover (and $5 bottles of water!) before hoping a quick flight to Rome. Interestingly, we have a stamp for Zurich, which we never visited, but not one for Italy, which we did, as you get a visa for your first point in the EU and no others. From Rome it was a bus to Rome Termini and a train to our stop, slugging two kids and luggage the whole way.
Our 1st apartment was a solid find just 1 block from the Colosseum and Forum. From here we easily caught the metro or buses to all sites. A quaint place in a cute neighborhood, it had a dishwasher, washing machine, wifi, and all the space we needed. They even left us wine, bread, cookies, and other food! We immediately set out to Open Baldini, a burger joint with over 40 beers on tap. While the Belgian brews were delicious and the food tasty, the service was poor. When we got the bill we decided that sit-down meals might not be a daily occurrence when in Rome. On to the Pantheon and a free trip around the huge interior dome which includes the Tomb of Raphael. We then pushed on to Piazza Novona where three amazing fountains were seen. But not to be missed was the gigantic Trevi Fountain, which it is said it you throw a coin into you are certain to return. The girls enjoyed their first gelato while Justin battled with food poisoning and spent most of the night refunding lunch.
Day two required a trip to Vatican City. After a botched attempt to use the buses and trains, a pricey cab ride got us to St. Peter’s Square in time to see the Pope. He makes an appearance every Wednesday when he is in Rome for an address in the square. We stood with thousands as his motorcade paraded the area, then we headed in by guided tour to the Vatican Museums. This is Rome’s most popular attraction that sees nearly 20,000 visitors per day. Filled with more art than you could imagine owned by such a small city-state, they say if you spent 20 seconds looking at each item it would take you 5 years. Luckily, we were most interested in the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. No pictures are allowed but it is a spectacular site. Luckily we had a guide who explained a lot about it first so we knew what to look at because it is dark, hard to see, and extremely crowded. You cannot talk. After exiting the chapel, we hooked in to St. Peter’s Basilica. The sheer size of this building was enough to humble Christian and non alike.
Not to abuse the location of our lodging, we started day 3 at the Colosseum. While much destroyed and rebuilt over time, it is still quite a sight to behold, and all the better when you arrive early in the morning and not only beat the crowds, but don’t have flocks of tourists in your pictures. The girls were fascinated by the fact that animals used to be housed there and haunted that they were forced to fight. We meandered across the street into the grounds of the Roman Forum (a ticket into one gets you entrance into the other). From here we saw many remains of the ancient seat of government, including the treasury, the steps where orators would preach, and the senate steps. Most notably, the temple dedicated to Julius Caesar on the site he was cremated.
After a rest, a quick train ride took us to the very busy Spanish Steps. While nice to look at, be prepared to be in the mix with a couple thousand of your not-so-closest friends, Italians and Roman’s alike. Keats is said to have died in his apartment overlooking the plaza. We decided a nice way to cap off the Spanish Steps in the upscale shopping district with a horse drawn carriage ride. After inquiring, we laughed and walked (€150 = $200 for only a trip to city center, who does this???). Ultimately we walked all the way back to the apartment, using gelato (and the Irish pub) as a motivation to make it. The girls are troopers.
Day 4 and a side trip. All girls and luggage hauled to Rome termini and the mess of trying to figure out how to find trains that don’t have platforms or the correct city on them (note: this was our train, not all trains!). We made it and took the short, beautiful ride to Tuscany and the city of Florence. Narrow, twisting, one-way cobblestone streets made for a pricey and difficult cab ride, compounded by the hordes of tourists. It was like these were walking malls/streets, yet a car would still come down them. We soon learned the lay of the land and ventured past the Duomo, an immaculate church spanning many city blocks, and on to the Accademia Gallery, the home of the great David statute. A hefty entrance fee and hour’s wait later, we stood at the base of the enormous carving, awed by its size (no pun intended). Everything else in the museum just wasn’t as cool. More gelato and a rest took us to a rainy afternoon and a walk past the Uffizi Galary and onto the medieval Ponte Vecchio bridge.
All was not perfect. Expect a cover charge here (we paid €2 per person) and service was not included in some places. It significantly upped the meal price. And while our hotel was solid and in a good location, mosquitoes kept any sleep from happening. We were up early and heading for the train station, this time on the walk. The train to Pisa was only 1 hour and we arrived, hopped the bus, and arrived at the leaning tower. The tower was pretty cool to see, listing as it does to the side. However, the tourist trap that it is was a turn off as more people were selling stupid shirts, crap items, and peddling watches and sunglasses here than in all of Rome together. We took the obligatory pictures and headed for lunch.
The return trip was hectic starting with a 2K walk back to the train station. It had started to get hot and the kids tired, and we took longer than needed to make it. A 1 hour train and a near miss of our connection in Florence as Justin had to grab the left luggage and Sarah took the girls to McDonalds for the bathroom. Another 1:30 train ride and back to Rome and a 10 min walk to the apartment. However, when we arrived at the address, nothing had the name of the confirmation on it. We waited, asked for help, and even talked to people coming out of the building – no one had heard of the name. Finally a woman we asked earlier came back and said, “That’s my apartment.” Oh. Ok. So in we went. Smaller and with none of the amenities of the last place, it was a bit of a letdown for a more expensive place, but close to Termini so transport wasn’t an issue.
Pasta and Pizza’ed out, we made our own dinner to cap day 5. Day 6 dawned with an early run in Villa Borghese park. Lined with many sculpture gardens, the girls enjoyed a playground and a turtle and duck-filled lake while the adults ran. Then it was off for an afternoon of travel. When you have had your fill of pasta in Italy, where is the best place for meatballs in Rome? Ikea. We followed this with German brews and pretzels at a Bavarian place before heading to the trendy neighborhood of Trastavere. After several hours of failure in getting there, we stumbled in destroyed from the walking. Yet we were met with a great beer join in Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fa where world yummy beers are poured. After some street shopping in the maze of markets and avenues, we sat for organic pizza and Italian craftbrews at the Bir and Fud.
Day 7 was no shorter. Again a run, then off. We failed in our destination (a metro then train ride out to a town, long walk only to fine the site closed on Mondays). So we hustled back and made our way 30K out of Rome to Frascati. This cobblestone -filled town is famous for its fresh white wine so we enjoyed a carafe of it on the piazza with some antipasti and some Belgian beers. Done spending money and eating the same dishes, we hit the store to make dinner again. The last day we spend returning to Ostia Antiqua, a 4th century BC Roman city. The ruins were extravagant and vast. We ended with an Irish pub, pizzas on the street, and of course, gelato which we had at the oldest, largest, and cheapest (and best) parlor in the city at Giovanni Fassi just around the corner from our place.
Final impressions – Rome has much to offer and isn’t entirely difficult to get around to the major sites. Beware shortcuts and off the beaten path as roads twist and turn and are unmarked. The size of many of the buildings – especially when taking into account when they were built – make for some great sights, not to mention the history. The roads are a cobblestone mess, an artisan driveway that needed to be redone long ago. Its streets like ashtrays, full of butts and stinking of smoke from the every Roman citizen puffing away at all moments of the day. It is a dichotomy of old and new, 2000 year old views by horse-drawn carriages yet the drivers are on cell phones and charge $200. Florence is very small in comparison and a nice getaway, but lacks the grandiose appeal of Rome. Pisa is a must for the iconic tower but is otherwise forgettable and out of the way.
