Rome; day 1

We arrived in Rome around 11:30 at night, which meant that we had been traveling for about 36 hours straight. Yes...we voluntarily opted for a 10 hour layover in Amsterdam, thinking "Wow..what a great way to see the city without having to actually stay here!" Stupid, stupid, stupid! After about 2 hours of wondering the city and visiting the Anne Frank House, Nick and I were so tired, we couldn't see straight. I think a combination of anticipation for our upcoming travels and unlimited movies on the airplane kept us without slumber for the entire 11 hour flight. Oops...bad decision. Being on the verge of tears wondering around Amsterdam, I quietly requested to my travel partner that we head back to the airport and find a nice little dark corner to sleep in. He obliged. Lucky us, we scored two super sweet, lazy-boyesk chairs in our terminal and napped for a good 3 hours before boarding plane for the 2.5 hour remaining flight to Rome.

Needless to say, by the time our taxi dropped us off in front of our B&B (a 5 story building that looked like every other building in Rome) we were thrilled. Shower and bed...here we come!

Our first morning in Rome, we woke up in glorious splendor. A night full of deep sleep, sun shinning in through the window and the city bustling below us…we were refreshed and ready to go. Ricardo, our B&B host, was preparing our breakfast on the terrace. A simple fair of really, really hard white toast (I think this crunchy little squares come out of a package), a warm, flaky cornetto (with a hint of orange), butter, jam, yogurt, fresh squeezed orange juice and of course, cappuccinos. We really weren’t expecting much, since Italian’s aren’t too big on breakfast, but considering neither of us had had dinner, we were pleased.

Since our B&B was a hop, skip and a jump away from the Coliseum…it made sense to take Rick’s advice and hit up the trio tour: The coliseum, the Forum and the Palatine Hill. Once we located a kiosk that sold a Roma Pass (admission to 2 museums, ruins, or the like AND free transportation for 3 days) and a quick lunch we were in the Colesseum.

Purchasing the pass was key to bypass the extraordinary line that filled the corridor. Imagine a line if the world series were at Safeco field…LONG! We also decided to purchase an audio tour since neither of us were too informed with details regarding the Colosseum. Rick was right; the commentary was a bit dry, but informative non-the-less. We circled the Colosseum twice…one on the upper and lower levels, while a British accented woman shared the history of gladiator matches, wild animal hunts, the hierarchy of social class seating arrangements and various building materials. Though the Colosseum was amazing to see, we were ready to move on…2 full days in Rome isn’t much to see all there is to offer.

The Forum was next and thanks to Rick’s walking tour, we were well informed as to what the “rubble” used to be, without having to purchase another audio tour. From massive structures built for famous men, to market places meant to proclaim opinions, to Caesar Augustus’ burial sight…it apparently was the place to be back there in 500bc. This may not look like rubble (some was some wasn't, but I guess it just goes to show that they really knew how to build them way back when...)

The Forum lead directly into the Palatine Hill, which honestly was my absolute favorite of the three. Things were green up there. Gardens, walking paths guided by trimmed bushes, orange trees and fabulously tall trees that kinda look like big dinosaurs, I was thrilled to see life after all the brick and mortar and marble. We forwent the audio tour and though slightly dissatisfied with Rick’s description of the expansive area, it was still fun to explore and be wowed by the intricate details of the structures that remained.

By now, Nick and I had had it and were ready for a change of pace. Enough with this 2000 year old stuff..bring on the now! So we hopped on a bus (always an adventure finding the right one, the right place to stand to get on it and getting to our final destination) and headed to Piazza de Popolo: This is one of Rome’s trendiest places to be (they were currently prepping the piazza for an event)…stuffed to the gills with gorgeous stores (aka expensive) and locals out on a stroll. So we strolled, goggled at the fun and FUNKY current styles, hit up the Spanish Steps and hunted down our dinner location. Yes…a bit confusing with all the alleys, street names on the buildings that look like alleys, and the like, but we ended up at a great little spot on Rick’s suggested list, just as the rain started to pour down hard...nothing our huge patio umbrella couldn't handle though.

Of course I had heard that it is appropriate to order multiple courses (antipasti, primo piatte, secondi) plus coffee and dessert, and considering our hunger level, we did: Bruschetta to start, then the ravioli in butter and sage for me and fresh egg noodles with bacon, black pepper and Parmesan for Nick, then pork chop – to share, then sauteed eggplant and zucchini, all to be consumed with Vina Rosa and un café. Yumm. No really….yummm. They keep it simple there, maximizing the taste of the high quality ingredients. Butter and sage made my ravioli perfect. The bacon on Nick’s pasta had a delicious crunch to it that had me reaching across the table with my fork between bites of my own dinner. We also discovered that we had ordered too much food. It may be insulting to not order a meat dish next time or no dessert, but honestly, I would rather finish every meal (breakfast included) with Gelato. Va bene!

It was about 11pm by the time we left our quaint little restaurant. We strolled home, eager to see what we would stumble upon during the 2 mile trek. The thing about Rome that amazed me the most was around each corner was another fabulously old structure...just sitting there...to be looked at....like this: Amazing!

Just as a side note...I did in fact get pooped on by a pigeon our first day it Italy. But to the Italians, this is considered good luck. So I went with it. It was also a wonderful reminder that totting along anti-bacterial wipes would be a good idea. From the that day on, we were fully stocked. Just in case.

Nick and I chatted a bit during dinner regarding Italy and the things that make it fabulous (from my entire 24 hour exposure thus far). Here’s a few high points:

· Though it may appear to be chaotic, the locals have an overall aura of peace…even while driving

· The maximization of space is incredible…the alleys are safe, well lit and used frequently by all people all the time, the majority of people drive smart cars or Cinquecentos or mopeds, homes are smaller, but no one seems to mind since the minute they step out onto the curb anything they need is basically at an arm’s reach.

· You can walk everywhere…and if you don’t feel like it, the transit system is rather straight forward.

· Gelato is on every corner...it’s like the American version of Starbucks

· Buildings that are 3000 years old are just here…sitting around while people walk past them like they belong there (and they do of course, but it is just crazy to get my head around it)

There's more...but really, I could write all day, so I'll save some for later.