What a wonder a full night's sleep does.  Rob and I woke early, rested and feeling so much better than we had the day before.

Our first Italian breakfast arrived on a full tray.  Contents included; more delicious lemon cake, cornflakes in a glass jar :), roll, ham, fruit and European yogurt.  I am in love with European yogurt, it is delicious!

 

(Full disclosure:  I ate so much delicious gluten on this trip.  Rob and I decided you can't go to Italy and abstain from carbs.  My belly was happy the entire trip, minus the one afternoon we got Italian fast food in Bologna.  I think it was the gelato that balanced everything out :) 

An quick morning metro ride dropped us off at the Roman Forum.  For anyone traveling to Europe anytime soon please purchase Rick Steve's book for the area you will be traveling to.  More than once he has saved our hide.  This morning's recommendation was to purchase our combo pass at Palatine hill and then make our way to the other sites.  At least 1 hour was saved from our day for doing this. 

 Old arches were everywhere we walked

 

 Oranges were happy to be growing on trees scattered around the Palatine hill property.

View from Palatine Hill 

 After our walking tour of Palatine Hill we walked down towards the Colosseum.  This structure made my jaw drop!  At the time it was built it could accommodate 50,000 fans.  When the Colosseum was being built it took 200 ox-drawn wagons shuttling back and forth every day for four years just to bring the stone to Rome from Tivoli.  The Romans stacked stone blocks into the shape of an arch and then wedged a keystone into the top of the arch to keep it from falling.  Only a third of the original Colosseum remains. 

 

 A little lizard sun-bathing on the rocks.  We knew our girls would appreciate this picture.

 

Street performers  

 We left the colloseum and made a quick tour of the Roman Forum.  The Roman Forum was the political, religious and commercial center of the city.  Rome's most important temples and halls of justice were here. 
Exiting the Roman Forum we continued our walking tour, down the hill leading us to...

Victor Emmanuel Monument, which is a monument to Italy's first king.  At the base of the statue is Italy's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Right around the corner was a lovely café.  Rob feasted on an Italian sub (salami and cheese on a soft baguette).  I was in heaven with a spring salad and zucchini and peppers on the side. 

 We enjoyed the afternoon sun and street markets that were open.  I found a great owl bag for M, a few shirts for me and a few trinkets to make the little one happy.

Afternoon gelato stop, the best gelato of our trip (http://www.dellapalma.it/en/ ).  We had to go back later in the evening to enjoy another scoop.  Rob's flavors, coconut, lemon and grapefruit.  I of course go for nutella, coconutella and berry.

The crowds at the Pantheon.  We enjoyed our gelato at the base of the water fountain. 

Typical parking in Rome.  We were so happy we picked our car up after leaving the city!

Our favorite dinner in Italy, experienced at an eccentric and well-worn eatery that has no menu (http://www.trattoriaderpallaro.com/).  The restaurants slogan is ,"Here, you'll eat what we want to feed you."  Boy were we happy they wanted to feed us.

Antipasta:     lentils, prosciutto, fennel bulb drizzled w/ EVOO, meat and cheese balls that were lightly fried
Primo Piatto: Pasta in a rose sauce
Secondo Piatto: Tender shredded pork, greens and frita potato
Dolci: Cream tart with a sauce to drizzle over the top

What a great way to end our time in Rome

Funny things we saw today:
Nun and a priest riding together on a bus
The same man always peeing in the train station corner when we walk by.  Rob started teasing that it was a mannequin
Saw a real minivan
Car parking, I don't know how they do it
Street merchants running from the police

Rome, Italy 4/27/13

Rob and I were blessed to take a trip.  A wonderful trip to Italy.  I started planning for our little getaway in January.  It was a lot of work, tons of hours spent on the Internet, scouring books and magazines for an itinerary.  What a great feeling to hope onto the plane at IAD airport and finally be on our way.  We walked out the door with a carry-on backpack and a small bag.  As we were walking through airports, train stations and to our many hotels both Rob and I were so grateful that we packed light. 

 

Our flight departed from Dulles airport at 5:20 p.m., we landed the next morning in Rome, Italy at 8:30 a.m.  We hopped off the plane, made the our way through customs, purchased a train ticket into the city and navigated our way towards our B&B (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g187791-d3397719-Reviews-B_B_City_Life_Rome-Rome_Lazio.htmlfor) for the next two nights. 

The employee at the B&B insisted that we have a slice of cake and espresso before starting out for the day.  We accepted the delicious slice of almond cake and declined the espresso.

Highlights of our first day:

 

 

 

 Tour of the Vatican & St. Peter Basilica

The Vatican was a ZOO.  Looking back this might not have been our best choice to visit, an hour after landing :)  Makes for good memories, as we shuffled our way through each room, just hoping to get out and catch a breath of fresh air. 

 Lunch at a meat market.  This ended up being our favorite was to eat lunch.  Buy a chunk of cheese, loaf of bread, sliced prosciutto and salami, some fresh fruit and a few olives for Rob.  Cheap, delicious and authentic.

 Our first of many gelatos on our trip 

ea

 

 

 

Piazza Popolo

Villa Borghese

Walking along the main street of via del Corso

 

Spanish Steps

 

a visit to Trevi fountain

 

We ended the day stopping at a pizza shop, filling our bellies with some of the best pizza of the trip. 

 

Funny things for the day:

Man wearing a plastic bag for a hat

Teenager talking on the phone and steps over a rat, Italian boys on the side laughing at the screams she makes

Sea of umbrellas being pulled out each time it starts to rain, Rob and I pull out of rain coats

Being offered a umbrella on every single street corner.