There is so much to see and do in Rome it is difficult to know where to start. We spent 10 days in Rome, at the end of June into the first few days of July. We took a train from Santa Lucia Venice Train Station to Rome Termini. The ride was about 4.5 hours. The weather was good outside of the unprecedented heat wave that swept through Italy.
Accommodation
We stayed in Trastevere, which is in the 13th Rione of Rome, on Villa della Scala. It’s located on the West Bank of the Tiber river. We had a 3 bedroom Airbnb to fit our party of 5. The apartment was not the best but the location was everything especially with Donkey Punch- a bar and restaurant, right below us. Trastevere is definitely the place to stay for young adults. It is also a good starting point for seeing the sights. Most of the sights are within an hour walking distance from Trastevere. And even though an hour seems far to be walking, there is much to see along the way to the sights. There is no such thing as boring walks in Rome. Trastevere is filled with party spots, bars, restaurants, and boutique stores. You’re bound to find something different here. During the day, it’s quiet but it comes alive at night.
Sights
We opted to do our own guided tours since we had so much time in Rome anyway. We used Google Maps to plan our trips and map out proximity of each sight that we wanted to see. Sights that were close to each other we clumped together.
On the first day of our walking tour, we visited the Pantheon and 3 squares: Campo De Fiori- a marketplace square, Piazza Navona- a large square with 3 beautiful fountains including the Fountain of Neptune and a large Egyptian obelisk and Piazza Del Popolo- an urban square with the Obelisco Flaminio (a large obelisk) and 2 fountains- many of the tours meet in this square. All three of these squares were on our way to Villa Borghese-a landscape garden with museums and attractions and a killer view of Rome. If you can climb the stairs and there are many of them, you will not be disappointed. After visiting the park, we walked to the Spanish Steps and admired the interesting architecture. But while we sat there taking pictures, I wondered why everyone visited these steps anyway. They are just steps. However, I am happy that we visited when we did because a few weeks later there was a ban placed on people sitting on the Steps due to the damage they were incurring. At the foot of the steps is the Fountain of the Old Boat and some boutique stores and designer shops. A 10 minute walk later, we arrived at the Trevi Fountain. It just kind of appeared out of no where. It’s like it sits right in the middle of everything. It is everything you’ve heard, absolutely beautiful. It’s huge!! For me, it was a highlight of Rome indeed. We couldn’t really enjoy it because it was so crowded. As soon as one person got up from taking their pictures another person sat down. We decided to visit the fountain again, but this time we went at night. We went at midnight in fact, sat a while and had a drink. I would highly recommend this. It was cooler and fewer people. Seeing it all lit up was even more stunning. There was plenty of room to sit and marvel. A wedding proposal happened there that night too. And of course Darryl and I tossed some coins into the fountain together and smooched. A 30 minute walk from the Fountain will put you at the Colosseum. We observed from the outside and this was the only place that I wished we had booked a tour to see the inside. Our 5 hour walking tour on this day cost us nothing except for a cone of sorbet.
On our next day of touring, we headed to the Holy See, which was on the opposite side of the River Tiber than the previously mentioned sights. We saw St. Peters Basilica and had a glimpse of the garden within Vatican City. The Vatican is where we saw the most tourist. And if I could rewind time I would do this visit a whole lot differently. We arrived at the Vatican around 9:00 a.m. and headed for the entrance. What we got instead was a line curling all the way around the corner. It was very hot but we were not about to leave Rome having missed the most holy place of Christian worship. So we stood in line, on one of the hottest days in Europe for almost 3 hours and we were not alone. We paid when we entered the Vatican and purchased the audioguide. The Museum was beyond crowded, too crowded to even enjoy the experience actually. I just kept thinking, this has to be a violation of a fire code. The entire time was spent shuffling through the crowds like we were in a herd. Museum attendants directed traffic. Tour groups and individuals were squashed together. It was not a pleasant experience, but an experience nonetheless. Finally we made it to the Sistine Chapel. Biblical events come to life in paintings all over this room and especially the ceiling. Historical figures painted in their likeness. It is very awe-inspiring, that one man, Michelangelo could create something so magnificent in a short period of 4 years. A work of art that he considered far inferior to his other art forms. Seeing this was worth the time spend in line in the heat. However if you can find and afford a private tour during off hours DO IT!! This way you can enjoy the entire experience and marvel at all of the artwork on display and a lot of the works we missed. [You aren’t allowed to take pictures of the Sistine Chapel but I managed to sneak a few].
My son attends Temple University in Philadelphia and they have a campus in Rome so we went there as well. The campus is very small and if you weren’t looking for it, you wouldn’t even know it was there. We also tried to visit the Museum of Criminology but it is permanently closed.
Other Things to Do in Rome
City touring of historical sights is great and all but I was overdue for some fun in the sun. A 30 min walk to the S. Pietro train station and a short hour long train ride took us to the outskirts of Rome to the Santa Marinella Beach. It’s a nice beach in a small town surrounded by neighborhood shops and restaurants. The water was cool and the weather was perfect. Santa Marinella Beach is a delightful escape from the hustle and bustle of Rome.
On Sunday, we visited Mercato di Porta Portese, a large flea market, where you can shop for some interesting finds. We also participated in a vegan cooking class. You can find the details by clicking here. The food was great but the limoncello was the best we had in Rome.
On some nights in Trastevere along the Tiber River there are festivals where you can play games, make purchases, eat, hang out or like us- people watch.
The only guided tour we took in Rome was out of Rome to Pompeii. It was a long bus ride but I highly recommend others to take a day trip someplace else while staying in Rome. There are many great places that can be visited with a day trip from Rome. Visiting Pompeii and listening to it’s history was a great experiences. After touring the ruins, we climbed Mt. Vesuvius. This was quite interesting since another volcano erupted close by the following day. It was a tedious hike, but provided a wonderful view of the other island in the distance, if you can endure the trek up the steep incline and rocky road. I just kept thinking of the movie Pompeii. City Wonders was our tour guide company.
Eating Vegan
Much of the food we consumed in Rome, we prepared ourselves after visits to the neighborhood markets: Carrefour and Pam. But of course I searched out some vegan restaurants. I really enjoyed eating at Flower Burger and you know it’s good vegan food if the non-vegans enjoy it as well. We tried out the spicy chickpea, cheesy chickpea, and the flower burger. All were fantastic. Another vegan restaurant I tried was Ecru- fully organic, vegan and raw. A little too raw for my taste and expensive. You can also find a few ice-cream shops that serve vegan ice cream, not just sorbet.
Ten days in Rome was enough time to see the sights and really enjoy all that Rome has to offer. I would like to revisit again but next time I’d like to stay on the outskirts to enjoy more of the countryside of Rome. But for a first timer, when in Rome you must: take in the sights, walk around to appreciate the architecture, try the gelato and definitely take a day trip to one of the other famous cities. There is so much to see and do in Rome, on a visit one could never get bored.
Teaching Abroad- American Teacher Overseas 
Test
LikeLike
received your test silly girl
LikeLike