ROME, Italy – The combination of ancient civilizations, religion, and the
Renaissance give Rome the undeniable rich history and culture it boasts today. Last weekend,
Friday, April 19 – 10
PM
Friday evening we flew into Pisa, Italy and stayed at small
Bed & Breakfast right by the airport. Only a 15 min walk from the train
station, this location seemed perfect for us, and eliminated the headache of
having to schedule transportation to and from the hotel. When we arrived at the B&B, the young
lady in charge of the place was in the kitchen studying. She was about our age,
so we inquired about restaurants nearby she thought we would enjoy. “La Paradisea Pizzeria,” she suggested. At 11
PM and with a hand-drawn map in tow, we set out on the streets of Pisa to fill
our rumbling stomachs. Luckily, we found the place easily and it was still open
for business. Even more luckily, the girl at the B&B suggested a place that
served up the best pizza and red wine Juston and I have had on our Euro trip to
date. Seriously, it was phenomenal. Our waiter was a doll as well. For two
pizzas and a liter of wine, we had our best meal yet ring at about 24 Euro. Not
shabby.
La Paradisea Pizzeria
Cariola B&B in Pisa, Italy
(Source: googleimages)
Saturday, April 20 –
7 AM
Saturday morning we caught a 2.5-hour train ride to Rome,
where we started our day in Vatican City. It is a sovereign state that resides
within the city of Rome and is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church.
There, you will find St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican Museum, and the Sistine
Chapel.
St. Peter’s Basilica was built over (what is believed to be)
the burial site of Saint Peter, one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ and the
first pope of the Catholic Church. This church also houses Michelangelo’s
famous Pietà, a sculpture of the Virgin Mary holding Jesus after he is pulled
down from the cross.
The Sistine Chapel is where Michelangelo spent four years painstakingly painting his fresco masterpiece. Divided into panels, the paintings on the ceiling depict stories from the Book of Genesis. My personal favorite, the Last Judgment, shows souls being released into heaven or held onto the ground by demons.
Vatican City
(Source: googleimages)
St. Peter's Basilica
(Source:googleimages)
St. Peter's Basilica
(Source: catholicconvo.com)
Michelangelo’s famous Pietà
(Source:googleimages)
Sistine Chapel
(Source:googleimages)
2 PM
Although peeved, we did not let the incident obscure the great time we had in Italy. We finished our trip back in Pisa, where that evening we went to see the leaning tower and had our last dinner at, you guessed it, La Paradisea. Although we were only able to salvage a few photos from our trip on our iPhones, we are so grateful to have had an opportunity to visit and experience a city that was on both of our 'bucket lists'. And besides, I don't think that will be our last Rome trip ;)
Next up was lunch - Pizza, of course. We were on the move to
our next attraction when we stopped at Alice Pizzeria, a small shop next to a
Gelato stand (dessert decision - covered) that offered fresh pizza by the
slice. After pizza, well, you know what we did. The taste buds had waited long
enough for Gelato. It t’was time!
Alice Pizzeria
(Source:googleimages)
Gelato!
(Source: neelywang.com)
After
provisions, we headed toward the Pantheon. The ancient Pantheon stands regal
and looking relatively untouched, near the beautiful square of Piazza Navona.
Originally built to be a gift to the gods over 2,000 years ago, the Pantheon is
one of the cities greatest examples of Baroque architecture. It is also the
world’s largest unreinforced concrete dome.
We piddled
around Piazza Navona for a good while, watching street performers and other
Italians inhaling Gelato, until we wandered over to the Trevi Fountain. Complete in 1762, the massive and famous Trevi
Fountain is a statue of Oceanus, the Greek god of the ocean. It here that
people toss coins over their shoulder into the fountain to ensure their return
to the Eternal city.
Trevi Fountain
6 PM
Sunset at the
Spanish Steps, followed by more pizza, pasta, and wine (SEE: carbohydrates).
You didn’t think I would forget about gelato, did you?
Sunday, April 21 – 8 AM
The majority
of Sunday was dedicated Ancient Rome. Dominating the skyline and symbolizing
both beauty and savagery beyond all measure, we started our day with a trip to
the most iconic emblem of Rome - the Coliseum.
With a history
steeped in gladiators, predatory animals, naval battles, and bloodbath, it is
no wonder this tourist attraction is a favorite of all historic remnants in
Rome.
Near the
Colosseum is the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. The forum is where political
and religious meetings were held, as well as a place where Romans would do
their shopping and go to school.
It is believe
that the first Romans did indeed live on the land of Palatine Hill. Over the
years, it has served as the home for a number of emperors and other wealthy
romans.
Roman Forum
(Source:googleimages)
Roman Forum
(Source:googleimages)
11 AM
With our train
leaving back to Pisa at four, we decided to have a relaxing day and spend the
rest of our time in the Trastevere neighborhood. Across the river and set away
from the hustle and bustle of tourist attractions, the Trastevere neighborhood
is beautiful Italian neighborhood with an old-world charm that is filled with
many shops and cafes. To me, the pace of life was much different on this side
of the river. It was what I had imagined quaint and quiet Italian neighborhoods
to be like.
The Art of Espresso
It’s been said Italy has the best cappuccinos in the world.
(Source:googleimages)
(Source:googleimages)
(Source:googleimages)
(Source:googleimages)
Our Lunch Stop - Trattoria: Il Ponentino
Lunch
J enjoying a cigar before leaving Rome
It was a
gorgeous day, with crisp blue skies. We were full, happy, and in Italy. We had
blisters from walking all weekend and were very much looking forward to the
four-hour train ride ahead of us. We even purchased a couple mini bottles of
wine to take with us for the trip, as we would be passing through the Tuscany
region of Italy on our back and wanted to make sure we had wine in hand for the
occasion. Once we got to the train station, we found our train, our seats, and
settled in for a nice relaxing ride. We put our backpacks right above our
heads, took off our shoes, and melted into the seat of the train as it left the
Rome station. As hectic as it was to finalize the plans for this destination
and make our way through the crowds to see all the attractions we wanted to
see, the trip had gone off without a hitch. We even had great souvenirs for our peeps and awesome pictures to share.
Then it
happened. Our camera was stolen, and everything inside of the camera bag. (A whole different blog post entirely)
Sweet Lean
No comments:
Post a Comment