Roma Fall 2016

We spent a week in Rome! Larry surprised me in June by booking a Viking ocean cruise through the Empires of the Mediterranean, leaving from Venice and ending up Istanbul, with Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, and Greece in between! We decided to add a week on our own in Italy and a week on our own in Greece post cruise. Here's our Rome part of the trip.

Bedroom balcony in "Roma Rooftop" Airbnb, with host Carlo!

We stayed in the San Giovanni neighborhood--not touristy. Great food. just blocks from the A line.

Ancient Rome. Vestal Virgin--only one of sixteen that has not been vandalized or broken through the millennia.

Fascinating historical lectures and tours throughout the Colosseum and Ancient Rome.

Rome is congested and exhausting. Sunset brings a warmth and renewal. We liked strolling along the Tiber in the autumn air. (It felt more like summer air--80s F.)

Piazza Novana: Fontana del Nettune

Ancient Rome--fascinating. We had an excellent guide/historian lead us through the ruins.

Colosseum formerly known as Amphitheatrum Flavium

(This is a hybrid name that came centuries after the structure fell into ruin. Nero, after burning the city, took more ground to build a grand palace and had a colossus of himself erected in front of the ruins.) 

Contrary to popular belief, Christians were fed to the lions here as the half time show for the daily games. That happened across the way at Circus Maximus.

Trevi fountain.

Fouled up by throngs of littering tourists.

Why is there litter everywhere?

Because there are not trash bins in Rome.

The fountain sees over a million euro in coins every year. 

Ponte Sant'Angelo

Bridge of Angles

View from our bedroom terrace

Carolos grows vegetables, strawberries, flowers, and herbs on the terrace.

We had a lovely AirBnb in San Giovanni district of Rome. Living like a local.

Beautiful apartment filled with art, books, relics, and delicious aromas coming from the kitchen!

Nice big marble bathroom all to ourselves

Carlo set us up for a lovely daily breakfast of cappuccino, petit fours, and croissants at "MaMa's Bar" below the apartment.

Castillo D'Sant'Angelo

St. Peter's Basilica, The Vatican. 

Evening on the Tiber

Evening on San Angelo Bridge

Angel on a bridge at twilight.

Just for me!

Piazzas in the evening

Breakfast everyday!

At the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica

Gelato at "White House." I had hazel nut

This way to the Catacombes. No photos allowed in Catacombes. 

Old city walls

We ate dinner in this alley behind our apartment. Excellent food, friendly staff, lively locals. So much better than the crap we ate in the tourist section.

Stopped for a glass of wine at this little place called "Buddy's." Asked for a biscotti, and we were brought this big jar.

Part of the Haunted Rome tour

Decided to take a walk along the river bank. Turned back quickly when realized how dangerous it is and also how stinky--urine.

One of the homes of one of the Vestal Virgins. If they could keep up their end of the bargain: stay pretty and ahem, "pristine," they would receive a generous pension for life and a beautiful home. Our guide said it was a fantastic deal for a woman. But if she did not remain, ahem, "pristine," she would be put to a gruesome, public, humiliating death.

Larry was very uncooperative and wouldn't let me take photos--but he enjoyed photobombing!

Spanish steps

It's a must to drink water from this fountain when visiting Rome. After picking up a horrible water-borne parasite in Canada last year, I declined. 

At the Pantheon

A gift of one of the emperors from thousands of years ago--and it still works!

Autumn walk beside the Tiber

I made friends with "Jumbo" on the Spanish Steps. 

Scalinata di Trinità dei Monti

On the Spanish Steps you may sit, you may wonder, you may talk, you may read, you may kiss.

You may not eat or drink!

Poliziotti will bust you!

I was not lying when I said this was the best cafe in Rome! We liked to dine in the narrow alley, where cars went flying through at 40kmh, coming within centimeters of our table.

We kept it simple. Spaghetti Bolognese. Pizza Napoli. Salata, Zupe, pan, vino. coco torte.

There's me. Waiting for food to stuff into my pizza pie hole.

Here we are outside the city walls to visit the Catacombs and later the Capuchin Bone Chapel. These were my favorite days in Rome! 

There was a Mass service happening in the catacombs, which is a few stories underground. It was eerie and superstitious.  

Not really sure what this structure was, but it looked creepy so I took a pic.

A little cake shop near our apartment.

Our bedroom was modest but spacious and inviting.

We took far too much interest in the Old-Fangled type elevator.

Little fridge in our room. Not sure why it was so cute to me.