Living The Bella Vita In Rome

For the final leg of our trip we headed to Italy’s largest city and capitol: Rome.  

Rome is a major, cultural city with fashion, art, architecture, and nightlife influences.  But, what is most impressive about the city is the history.  

  
Founded in 753 BC, Rome is nicknamed “The Eternal City” because, even in ancient times, Romans believed that no matter how many empires would rise and fall, Rome would go on forever.  Visiting the city and really, really thinking about just how old things actually are is not just amazing, but also very humbling.  

During our three day stay, as we wondered through the ancient city, into old structures that were constructed before Jesus and walked along the same roads as Julius Caesar we sighed.  There is a funny thing about travel that makes you realize what a tiny place that each individual occupys on this huge Earth and, in the scheme of things, that we really aren’t here very long.

 Which, of course, ignited even more wanderlust to see this great world in the very few years we have to do so.

  
… And, to return to Rome again someday.  (Even though we couldn’t throw coins in Trevi due to the renovations…)

Getting Around: 

We left Monterosso by train first thing in the morning and got on a fast train in La Spezia that would take us all the way to Rome.  The fast train took a little under three hours and it was a great way to travel.

The guys actually wished that we could take the train versus a plane home because of all the leg room and ability to walk around if you wanted to.  The girls “oh’ed” over the fields of sunflowers and vineyards that passed outside our car.  It was such a fun way to see the landscape of the country.

When we arrived in Rome, we all hopped off the train a little gun shy.  

We had heard awful stories our whole trip (and prior to our trip) about the pick pocket’s in Rome.  We heard that they are particularly bad at train stations, helping tourists with their bags and demanding Euros.

Or, they are known to shove babies into tourist faces and push them against walls so they “bump” into their co-con so he can snag their wallets.  

And, most terrifying of all, they are also known for slicing backpacks with box cutters so to dump all of their important contents when travelers least expect it.

We hesitantly moved through the station and out to the cab pick up area.  Like Florence, pedestrians cannot just flag down cabs, but rather get one at a designated area.

But, the line for a cab at the train station was massive.  So, with all our belongings and nerves in tow, we cautiously hit the streets for the one mile walk to our hotel.

Okay, so… Honestly, it’s not the worst idea to be cautious in any foreign country.  

Heck, it’s not a bad idea at home either.  

But, we psyched ourselves up for the worst of the worst and, not just on our first walk to the hotel, but for the whole stay we did not have any issues.  We didn’t even have moments when we were uncomfortable.  

…. But, people wouldn’t have warned us about it if it wasn’t real.

Where to Stay:

We walked about 100 miles during our two weeks abroad.  So, one mile from the train station to Hotel Mancino 12?  No big deal.

Right…?

Wrong.

Alright.  So maybe “wrong” is a little dramatic.  

… It was “fine.”

We all survived.  

But, we had all our bulky luggage with us on the cobblestone roads and learned very quickly that Rome is actually quite hilly.  

And, mid-day in July?  It’s Hot with a capitol H.

Luckily for us, Hotel Mancino was a great refuge from the busy, hot Roman streets.  The hotel was in a great location, down a quiet street super close to big attractions like Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon.  The rooms were very comfortable, modern and the AC was cranked way up.  

It was the perfect place to rest after our busy days in the heat.

The staff was also very accommodating, helping us with everything from restaurant recommendations, cars to the airport and dinner reservations.  

What To Do:

Even though it’s bound to be crazy busy anywhere you go, you have to see the big landmarks in Rome.  The Colosseum, Pantheon, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Vatican Museum, the Roman Forum and more.  It’s all worth it.

  
It’s also worth it to be aware of the time of day you choose to hit these sights.  Morning and later in the afternoon is best as cruise ships and tour groups flood the city during the middle of the day.  

Adam and I hit the ground running one morning thanks to a couple strong cappuccinos and checked many of the famous Roman fountains, monuments, and churches off our list.  As the morning wore on, we crossed the river to the west side of the city which is home to the Vatican.  

We are big Da Vinci Code (and Tom Hanks) fans, so it was fun to recognize places that were used as the backdrop for filming.  We decided to pop into the Castel de Sant’Angelo, which had a big role in the film, and linger a bit.  

  
When we reached the top of the castle we realized that we had found the best view in Rome.  With the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basillica just next door to the right and the rest of city stretching to the left, we admired the panoramic view full of intricate church steeples lining the skyline.  

 Late afternoon that same day, we met up with the rest of our group to use our tickets to the Colosseum that we purchased online in order to skip the line.   My gut would have told me to get to the Colosseum first thing in the morning, but many of the tour books we read suggested visiting late in the day.  

I am so glad we did.

The golden glow that the setting sun cast on the arches of the colossal landmark was beautiful.  

  
Visiting later in the day also allowed us to not feel rushed.  We took our time exploring the mega amphitheater where so many crazy, barbaric events went down.  

 We wondered if audience members ever happened to get caught in the cross fire…?  Or if animals, like lions, ever got distracted by the crowds and climbed into the spectators seats…?

But, the biggest question we had about the events that occurred in the structure: “Do you think they had concession stands?”

  

… Seriously, though.  What do you think?!

As a group we also purchased tickets online to the Vatican Museum prior to our visit and I cannot recommend pre-ordering tickets enough.  The line otherwise is just silly long.

  
As for the museum?  I could take it or leave it.  

I don’t know if it was because it was our last day and I was just maxed out, but I was totally overwhelmed.  There were so many people and so many things to see.  

  
Too many things to see.

We later heard that if visitors were to look at every artifact in the museum for just one minute, they would be in a museum for eight years.

It’s just a lot.  But, you do get to see the Sistine Chapel, which is pretty neat.

Another must do when in Rome is to embrace the siesta.  

During early to mid afternoon, shops shut down and locals take a break from the day.  These few hours are a great time to recharge for the evening ahead.  

We loved our siestas.  It was so nice to take a cat nap at the hotel or to stop by a trattoria for a bottle of wine with a book… or journal… and just relax.

  
Where to Eat:

One of my favorite things that we did in Rome was the Eating Italy tour.

I found out about Eating Italy through a pin on Pinterest about Rome restaurants.  The pin led me to the company’s blog.  

Eating Italy offers a couple different tours as well as cooking classes.  The twilight tour peaked my interest because it sounded like a neat way to do dinner.  After a quick look on Trip Adviser, only to find overwhelmingly positive reviews, I knew we had to do it.

The tour took us to an idyllic part of Rome called Trastevere, which our guide said that many guests compare to Greenwich Village in New York City.  It reminded me Broad Ripple or Mass Ave in Indianapolis thanks to it’s laid-back vibe, pretty ivy covered walls, cute cobblestone streets and amount of restaurants and nightlife.

  
We visited ten different places on the tour and it was similar to a progressive dinner where we had just a bite of something every stop.  And, it wasn’t just restaurants that we visited, but also bakeries, butcher shops, street food stops and a gelateria.

The following were a few of my favorites:

Da Enzo Al 29: Seriously the sweetest little place.  It looked like it was straight out of an Italian movie.  It was also home to the sweetest, local cantaloupe which was served with prosciutto and burrata cheese.

Sound strange?  

Think again.  The sweet, salty and creamy tastes and textures complimented each other so well.  

Spirito Di Vino: This is an old restaurant, but our group was led down the stairs into the cool, damp and dark wine cellar.  There, we had a great, bold red wine and we were informed that the cellar dates back to 80 BC.  

Jokes about drinking wine in a place older than Jesus ensued. 

Innocenti:  This is an award winning, family run bakery that specializes in biscotti, or cookies. They also are big influencers on the Slow Food Movement, which started in Italy when McDonald’s came to the big cities in the 80’s.  Here, we tried three different cookies that were fresh off their 60 meter long conveyor oven.  

Fatamogana:  This reminded me of my beloved Jeni’s.  It was the first organic gelato shop in Rome and there were also some pretty wild flavors.  A few of the interesting choices were Kentucky Chocolate (Not bourbon… but tobacco!) and Basil, Walnut and Honey, which will be recreated using my homegrown basil.  

Here, we also learned how to spot authentic gelato:

1. The gelato is in stainless steel containers and it is not heaping over.

2. There are no fruit pieces or cookies on top.

And, 3. The color.  Banana? White, not yellow. Pistachio?  Pale green, not bring green.  Mint?  White, not green.

  
Adam and I found Mill’s Pizzeria to be a great stop for lunch one hot afternoon.  We split a pizza topped with Salmon, rocket, and lemon zest over melted mozzarella.  The bright lemon with the spicy rocket kept this fresh and light.

In fact, Mill’s was so good that we convinced the group to go with us again after visiting the Vatican.  

And, on our final night, we decided to go out as a group one last time.  

Our hotel concierge recommended a wonderful restaurant called Life that was near the Spanish Steps, just a short walk away.  He booked us a table and we can’t help but wonder if he put in a good word too.

The whole experience was lovely.  

The sun was setting so the temperature had cooled and we were seated a great table outside.  Street performers would wonder by every so often playing everything from violins to accordions… which, of course, reminded me of Lady and the Tramp.  

But, no spaghetti and meatballs for me.

We decided to go all out and do things the classic Italian way with multiple courses.  Traditionally an Italian meal is done with an aperitivo, an antipasto, a primo (typically pasta), secondo (meat or fish), a contorno (side dish) and a dolce.

The menu was large and had plenty of options for each, but I opted for one of the few set menus that Life had already put together.  They all centered around a theme be it an ingredient or a type of wine.  I choose the truffle menu that also featured four different red wines.

It was beyond decadent.  

To start, I received plate full of duck prosciutto with pears, beef carpaccio with truffle mushrooms paired with cheese and jellies.  Followed by the most amazing burrata filled ravioli for the first course.

The secondo, or meat course, was a filet topped with truffle mushrooms.  It was paired with a potato cake that was good, but didn’t hold a candle to the tender, juicy meat.  

Adam’s secondo was really good too; he ordered lamb with potatoes and could not stop talking about it.

Lemonchello came with our desserts (tiamisu was a hot ticket…), and we all played “High, Low, Goal,” a game that my girlfriends and I used to play in the sorority.  I had everyone play every night we ate together on our trip and it became something we looked forward to.

The idea is to share the “high” of our day, the “low” of our day, and our “goal” for tomorrow.

But, because it was the last night of the trip, we changed the rules a bit. We spun it to be the high and low of the whole trip and our goal for the place we want to see next.  

The winery tour day, relaxing and romantic moments in Florence, and the time spent on the farm in London topped the “high” list.

The trouble with our Florence hotel definitely won the number one spot for my low.  (A hot train ride in Monterosso was number two.)

Places like Ireland, Australia, and Spain were shared as desired next trips as well as New York, Napa and Portland in The States.

As we cheers’ed with our second limonchello, we all thanked each other for being great travel companions and even better friends.  

And, it was in that moment we realized that it made sense to spend that last night, that bella notte, at Life.   

Because, in the next few years Life will grab hold to all of us taking us on new adventures.  

Careers changes.

New homes.

Babies…!

Growth, and even tests, in our marriages and friendships.

Hopefully more travel. 

And, with great friends and lovers by our side it really is a Bella Vita.