When in Rome....
Ordinarily, customs is a nightmare… but not today! We breezed through, grabbed our luggage and were on the street before we knew it! With the unpredictability of how long it would take to be set free in Italy, no transportation arrangements were made. Our options included a train (giving us a 12-minute walk to the hotel), Uber or a taxi… there was also “Wetaxi” which offered a set price ride. With our luggage, we decided to take the set price taxi straight to the hotel. We lucked out with our driver… Fabio!
Fabio was more than a taxi driver… he basically took us on a tour of the area. Describing historical content and even stopping for photo opportunities. Starting out, the streets were lined with trees. As you can see, the weather couldn’t be better! The right-hand photo showed us the Aurelian walls. Built between 271 and 275AD, these enclosed all seven hills. Later, the 12 miles of wall provided protection during wars/invasions.
Our amazing drive took us past historical architecture. Fabio explained the significance of everything from the trees to structures to ruins… it was like having a private tour! With the price set, it didn’t matter what route he selected to reach our final destination!
Throughout the city, we came across steps. Being tired, the thought of climbing the stairs seemed daunting but still beautiful!
One thing that surprised me was how green Rome is. In addition to the many trees and bushes, we passed several open spaces of grass. Incredible sculptures and historical buildings with locals and tourists enjoying the parklike settings. With so much to do and see, I only used Rome as a jumping off point, a place to recover from jetlag. Passing the Palatine Hill area made me wish I had scheduled more time.
Finally reaching our hotel neighborhood, Fabio shared his excitement at our hotel choice. He told us it was in the perfect location for sightseeing. When we turned the corner and saw the Colosseum before our eyes, we got more excited!
Landing in Rome at 11:15, we reached the Basilica Hotel by 1:30. It’s great when everything goes smoothly. Opening up our wooden shutters, we loved seeing the building across the street. Nice brickwork and colorful facade, this had the full Italian feel.
Though extremely tired, we wanted to get on track as quickly as possible. This meant staying awake until a reasonable time. We dropped off our luggage, started to reorganize but gave up and headed down the cobbled sidewalks to our lunch reservation!
Arriving on time to our rooftop reservation, Terraza Monti was in the perfect location. Fresh air would definitely help with the goal of staying awake until “bed time”. The wait staff offered excellent service. We enjoyed an incredible lunch! So far, finding foods to fit my restricted diet has been unusually easy. One item we had as a starter was the pumpkin flan with mushrooms. Wow! What a delicious taste combination!
What would an afternoon lunch in Rome be without wine and an Aperol Spritz? We had such a peaceful and relaxing start to our vacation. The views from the rooftop would allow us to see some of the sights without walking (if we wanted). We had decided that if we felt rested enough, we would explore a bit before heading back to the hotel.
Deciding to take in one iconic spot, we headed up the steps and prepared to walk and easy nine minutes.
We found ourselves at the Presidential residence. Noticing a heavy presence of security, we hurried on past the area.
More steps… just outside the Presidential residence, this set of stairs took us almost to our destination. We found this to be a very clean city. With police everywhere, we also felt very safe. Of course, we know about the pickpockets, so we took extra precaution. Being tired and distracted by all the sights, made us a fairly easy target but we took extra safety measures. The last thing we want is to have our things taken!!!
Travi Fountain! Excited to see this popular site, it was actually smaller than I expected. It would have take far to much effort/energy to get closer for a better photo. So, we stayed at the higher level and got as close as easily possible.
With the passing of Pope Francis, Vatican City was secured and closed down. We figured that was the reason for the unbelievable number of tourists crammed into one area. All of the side streets were full… after a quick couple of photos, we decided to take a taxi back to the hotel.
Not quite late enough to sleep… certainly didn’t want to wake up at 1am and be for the day! We walked the streets around our hotel. My eyes were drawn to a hotel that offered a rooftop bar. In keeping with the theme of rooftops… we decided to see if we could get a table. This was a very popular sunset spot, but we were able to get a table for two without a reservation. The bubble held tables for full-service dining.
When in Rome… what is a sunset without Italian wine? We ordered a bottle of Amarone. Complimentary olives, nuts and something I couldn’t have were served with our wine. Without a reservation, we did not get a seat with the best view, but it was still amazing!
Our last shot of the night. We survived a full day without sleep… it was time to turn in for the night! We have to check out and head for the train station in the morning. We had a great time in the Masa Rooftop Restaurant. Servers brought us limoncello and a treat I couldn’t have. Roxanne said it was a delicious fish bite.
Walking the block back to our hotel, we reminisced about the awesome food, delicious wine and impeccable service. People are so friendly and helpful! What a great first day…
