Rome, Day Five: Taking It Easy.
Frogger and I had gotten around to seeing most of what we wanted to see in the first four days. So for today, we wanted to wander the streets of the Trastevere area, Campo de Fiori, Piazza del Popolo and the Villa Borghese public park. We also decided to sit back down in the Piazza Navona for lunch, while we watched the artists display and sell their work.
Trastevere
The main draw here is the Piazza Santa Maria.
And, in my opinion, that's about it. There are a large number of panhandlers in this area, and the streets are very tiny. Given that this is the tourist high season, I was surprised there weren't more attractions. Supposedly, the nightlife here is abundant. There are a lot of clubs and bars. So perhaps it's better to visit at night, if you're a club person. (I rarely am.)
Campo de Fiori
This was a nice surprise. I hadn't thought of walking over here. It's a farmer's market. And the produce looked amazing. I saw so many things, including...
Zuchinnis with their blossoms...
And little bright red cherries. They look like candy!
Piazza Navona
This is just a lovely area. So many cafes and restaurants. And it is fun to look at all the art being sold. The fountains and the church in the piazza are beautiful.
Piazza del Popolo
My favorite part of this piazza are the two churches that sit side-by-side.
They look the same, but they are different. One is a hexagon, the other is an octagon.
Afterwards, we walked up to the park, and we overheard numerous sirens going off in the distance. We looked off into the direction of the busy streets below, and our view told us something...
The President of the United States ("Bushie," as I like to call him) had landed in Rome on his last official European tour as POTUS.
So I decided to give him the finger as he and his entourage drove by.
Normally people, I am a nice person. (Unless you piss me off.) And I have no tolerance for assholes. And I always let that be known.
After the park, Frogger and I decided we had to hit up the bar we were at the first night in Rome. It's on top of the hotel in the Spanish Steps. It has an outdoor patio, and the people there are so nice. When we walked in, they remembered us from four nights ago. They were happy to see us. That was nice. We had a few rounds of Bellinis (champagne and peach) and Rossinis (champagne and strawberry).
After cocktail hour(s), we headed over to the Via Condotti. No, we weren't shopping, as we had already done that earlier in the day... Instead, we were in search of a place to feast on our last night in Roma. Off the Via Condotti are smaller streets where AUTHENTIC Italian restaurants hide. And we found such a place...
The Trattoria Otello alle Concordia.
I spotted it as we walked down the side street. it was tucked into an off-shooting alleyway. I said to Frogger, "Let's just try that place."
It was packed back in the alley. I thought, "There's no way we'll get a table. There appears to be a 'waitlist.'"
But you know what? We walked back there, and they sat us right away. And there WAS a waitlist. We just got there at exactly the right time.
The menu was offered to us in Italian, English and Chinese. We managed to decide on the many things listed that sounded delicious. (I went with a plate of fresh mozzerella and proscuitto - what else? - and a bowl of fettucine with pancetta and onion.) And on the menu, they didn't offer a slew of wines to choose from for your dinner. You had two options: white or red. You told them you either wanted "A bottle of red," or "A bottle of white."
We went with the bottle of red, and it was delicious. As was the whole meal, including the panna cotta we ordered for dessert.
Yes, it was a great way to end the week here. It's flown by, and it has been wonderful. We board a plane tomorrow at noon, Rome time, and will be back in Boston at 3pm. Neither of us plan to eat on Alitalia flight. So we will have to make our meal tonight last us till we get home tomorrow.
Trastevere
The main draw here is the Piazza Santa Maria.
And, in my opinion, that's about it. There are a large number of panhandlers in this area, and the streets are very tiny. Given that this is the tourist high season, I was surprised there weren't more attractions. Supposedly, the nightlife here is abundant. There are a lot of clubs and bars. So perhaps it's better to visit at night, if you're a club person. (I rarely am.)
Campo de Fiori
This was a nice surprise. I hadn't thought of walking over here. It's a farmer's market. And the produce looked amazing. I saw so many things, including...
Zuchinnis with their blossoms...
And little bright red cherries. They look like candy!
Piazza Navona
This is just a lovely area. So many cafes and restaurants. And it is fun to look at all the art being sold. The fountains and the church in the piazza are beautiful.
Piazza del Popolo
My favorite part of this piazza are the two churches that sit side-by-side.
They look the same, but they are different. One is a hexagon, the other is an octagon.
Afterwards, we walked up to the park, and we overheard numerous sirens going off in the distance. We looked off into the direction of the busy streets below, and our view told us something...
The President of the United States ("Bushie," as I like to call him) had landed in Rome on his last official European tour as POTUS.
So I decided to give him the finger as he and his entourage drove by.
Normally people, I am a nice person. (Unless you piss me off.) And I have no tolerance for assholes. And I always let that be known.
After the park, Frogger and I decided we had to hit up the bar we were at the first night in Rome. It's on top of the hotel in the Spanish Steps. It has an outdoor patio, and the people there are so nice. When we walked in, they remembered us from four nights ago. They were happy to see us. That was nice. We had a few rounds of Bellinis (champagne and peach) and Rossinis (champagne and strawberry).
After cocktail hour(s), we headed over to the Via Condotti. No, we weren't shopping, as we had already done that earlier in the day... Instead, we were in search of a place to feast on our last night in Roma. Off the Via Condotti are smaller streets where AUTHENTIC Italian restaurants hide. And we found such a place...
The Trattoria Otello alle Concordia.
I spotted it as we walked down the side street. it was tucked into an off-shooting alleyway. I said to Frogger, "Let's just try that place."
It was packed back in the alley. I thought, "There's no way we'll get a table. There appears to be a 'waitlist.'"
But you know what? We walked back there, and they sat us right away. And there WAS a waitlist. We just got there at exactly the right time.
The menu was offered to us in Italian, English and Chinese. We managed to decide on the many things listed that sounded delicious. (I went with a plate of fresh mozzerella and proscuitto - what else? - and a bowl of fettucine with pancetta and onion.) And on the menu, they didn't offer a slew of wines to choose from for your dinner. You had two options: white or red. You told them you either wanted "A bottle of red," or "A bottle of white."
We went with the bottle of red, and it was delicious. As was the whole meal, including the panna cotta we ordered for dessert.
Yes, it was a great way to end the week here. It's flown by, and it has been wonderful. We board a plane tomorrow at noon, Rome time, and will be back in Boston at 3pm. Neither of us plan to eat on Alitalia flight. So we will have to make our meal tonight last us till we get home tomorrow.
Comments