Day 4: Roman Antiquity

Our first day in Rome, we began our day with the usual italian breakfast (cappuccino and croissant) at Jerri's Bar next door. The locals would come in, stand at the counter, order their espresso, knock it back and be out in an instant. I guess that is the italian version of "to-go". Afterwards we headed to Campo d. Fiori to check out some of the local produce and put together a picnic for later on that day. The produce was vibrant and fresh, but the picnic didn't so much happen. We picked up some fruits and washed it at the 'il nasone' which are running public fountains all over the city, with clean water you can use to refill you water. They definitely came in handy, as it was going to be a very hot day.

Artichoke Romanesca

Fiori di Zucca

After the market, we made our way across the Tiber river to the Trastevere neighbourhood. Trastevere literally means "across the river", and many of the locals are fiercely proud of their neighbourhood and of being "Trasvererian" not Roman. The Trastevere has maintained much of its character, a credit to its cobbled streets lined by midieval homes. It's quite the colourful neighbourhood, and slightly more gritty being across the river.

The Colourful Trastevere

At lunch we stumbled upon the neatest little pizzeria and local lunch spot. You'd order your pizza by the gram (in very spotty italian) and they'd serve it up to you on a piece of paper. It was such a neat atmosphere and excellent food. You could tell the locals enjoyed it because the tables were stuffed with local business men and neighbours gathering for lunch. Eating is serious business in Italy. After lunch we made our way back over the river, through the Jewish Quarter and onto the Roman Forum where we were to meet up with Icon Tours and have a tour of the Roman Forum and Colosseum.

The Jewish Quarter and the Teatro de Marcello (a Roman theater built right into the midieval roman street). The Roman way of doing things, "history in layers" where they just continue to build modern structures using remanants of ancient architecture is absolutely fascinating. We loved how if you just turned the corner, you never knew what you would see.

This was one of my favourite places in Rome. I loved the Roman Forum. Just imagining how 2000 years ago this place was just as busy and packed with toga wearing Romans was mind boggling. The Roman Forum was the center around which ancient Rome built its empire. Hearing the stories of ancient emporers building gratuitous temples to honour every god they could thing of, of the gladiators that fought in the colloseum for entertainment and how opulent the Roman culture grew to be was absolutely fascinating. The colloseum itself, seeing it in person, is a moment i'll never forget. Standing inside and thinking of the slave-power and the barbaric events that took place in this structure that we admire today in modern society was very sobering. We were lucky to get there at the end of the day, when it was not busy at all and we were amongst a few other small groups wanting to explore. We really got to spend a lot of time there and fully enjoyed the day. As the sun set, we sat at a cafe across the street, enjoyed the view of this ancient wonder and drank our birra de pression while munching on peanuts.

Forum Roma

The Colosseum

Wandering back that night through the heart of Rome we returned to my favourite Piazza Rotunda next to the Pantheon, ambled through the quiet cobblestone alleyways, caught an incredible view of St. Peter's over the Tiber river, floodlit by the city lights and enjoyed a late dinner of caprese salad on Campo d. Fiori.

Day 3: Bonjourno Roma

After a remarkably easy train ride through the rolling hills of Tuscany, we arrived at our destination. Rome. Finally. I had been long awaiting visiting this city and could not wait to explore! But first things first, we had to find the Tourist Information office so we could buy the Roma Pass (a good deal if you plan to use the public transportation and visit a couple of sights). BUT after wandering the ginormous Termini station for a good fifteen minutes, following the "i" signs which never lead to "information" we gave up. The bags were getting heavy, Keith had a mystery stinky wet stain on his pack (still to this day we have no idea what that was) and I was hot. So we bought two tickets at the Tabacci shop, hopped on the #1, jammed ourselves into a corner of the bus so we could keep an eye on our packs and road into the heart of Rome. My first reaction was "Omigosh this is the coolest place EVER!". Thinking back on that initial though, I was spot on. We arrived safely at our stop, easily found our Bed & Breakfast located on a quite alleyway close to Piazza Navona and settled in. This was at the beginning of the trip when Keith thought it was be easier if he just unpacked EVERYTHING HE OWNED!!. So we unpacked, we relaxed in our new place and listened to the excitement of Rome below.

The view from our room - Vicolo della Cancelleria

The first dinner in Rome was an absolute blast. We went to this fabulous restaurant near Campo d. Fiori called Trattoria der Pallaro. We were greated by Madame Fazi, with a turban wrapped around her head and a packed restaurant. The locals had also found this hidden gem where "you eat what they feed you". The multiple course menu was excellent, very reasonable and complete with foods we may never have ever ordered if we weren't just fed them (like the lentils which were my favourite). Here is Keith enjoying the first of many delicious courses.
After dinner, we strolled through the heart of Rome (seconds from our place) and saw the beautiful sights lit up at night. Highlights were Bernini's Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon and Piazza Navona.

The Trevi Fountain - I love the water falling in this shot with the long shutter speed.

Our first view of the Pantheon - this moment took my breath away. The Pantheon was absolutely magnificent. Tucked away in this little square called Piazza Rotunda, you turn the corner and there it is... antiquity. The very fact that the Pantheon is so intact is absolutely breathtaking.

Piazza Navona - everyone was just relaxing, milling about, street performers were entertaining, artists were selling the work and the whole atmosphere was festive and elegant.
I love this shot - Dolce Vita

And so we were off to bed, for an oh-so-early start to explore Rome... the Colosseum was waiting.

Day 3 - Ciao Venice

We awoke at a most ridiculously early hour to take, what should have been a day trip, a morning excursion to the nearby lagoon island of Burano. Famous for its brightly coloured homes and lace (apparently), we found a pleasant, small, genuine community where if you want to paint your house or put up curtains, you have to run it by a commitee of good taste first.

Reflections

My favourite house

Keith sauntering...

Keith's favourite house

Main street

We returned to Venice for cappucino and to finish packing... as we were off to Rome.

This is me packing light:

Day 2 - Venice

Our first night away was a little restless for both of us. We didn't sleep very well since it was really the middle of the day for us. But we both awoke excited and anxious to explore the city of canals and gondolas. We had a lovely little breakfast on the rooftop terrace of our B&B and were astonished with how quiet and peaceful it was without any traffic noise. With our bellies full, we made our way out to find the Ponte Rialto vaporetto stop and make our way up the grand canal to St. Mark's square and the Doge's palace.

Some canals along the way...

And the grandest one of all...

We rode the vaporetto, a venician style public 'bus' all the way to the Piazza San Marco with its famous domed basilica, dueling orchestras and infamous pigeons. The Doge's Palace (Palazzo Ducale) which we explored that morning, was one of the most impressive secular buildings in Venice. It served as the residence and governing building of venician doges who ruled over Venice for over a thousand years. This fabled city may now be sinking and eeking out its last days on artificial support (a.k.a. tourism), but at one time the Venetian Republic was a major maritime power during the Middle Ages and Renaissance, as well as a thriving center of trade and art. The over-the-top gilded ceilings and grandest of the Palazzo Ducale reminded us of those properous times.

The bridge of sighs, below, connects the doge's palace with the prison and was named for the condemned prisonners crossing over and gazing over the city of Venice... letting out one last "sign" before meeting their end. It is really quite creepy.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in Venice exploring the city without a map. Getting lost was half the fun and stumbling upon hidden gems, real venecian neighbourhoods and some excellent pizza and Bomba Mix were the highlights.

Carnival

Vorrei uno bomba mix per favore!

Resting from across the lagoon, on San Giorgio island.

The San Paolo neighbourhood

Us... happy to be there together.

After all the day trippers and cruise ships had left, the city completely changes and becomes one of the most enchanting places I've ever been. We returned to the piazza that evening to experience the dueling orchestras in person - two cafes opposite each other in the square which serve the most expensive water I've ever seen, but it comes complete with fantastic music. We chose the free steps :)