Sept 4 - Accidental Tourists (and criminals)

Let me start by going to back to last night and telling you about dinner. We went to L'Orso 80 which was highly recommended to us. It was a small indoor restaurant in a tiny side street. It was beautiful and intimate. We had been told to have the house antipasti and that it would probably be enough food. It was crazy - so much food, tons of vegetables, cheese, meatballs, etc. We did decide to also get the seafood risotto which was delicioso as well. The waiter took a liking to us and gave us some compliemtnary limoncello (an Italian liquor) after dinner. The whole experience was delightful. After dinner we just started walking and ended up at Trevi Fountain by accident. It was a very charming evening (I need another word for "charming") - we love Rome at night - this city takes on a very special quality after dark. We took a taxi home from Trevi and as far as we can tell got totally taken advantage of by the driver, but we're not going to dwell on that and ruin our memories of the evening.

This morning we decided to check out the shops in Termini station. It was pretty overwhelming - totally crowded and the people smoking really got to me. We were on a hunt for real breakfast (our hotel is just pastries) and finally settled on McDonalds. I know, I know - but I think we were feeling a little homesick for something familiar. You have to see the pictures of this McDonald's though - it's fancy (very swanky decor).

After breakfast we just started walking (destination unknown) and ended up having the best day. We ambled down little streets (off the beaten path). We saw things we would have never seen if we stuck to the tourist spots, like an auto mechanic shop, a fabric store, and a nunnery. We wlaked through China town and an Indian neighborhood. Jen got some great photos of random things like a beautiful water facuet. Along the way we found the most amazing little market and bought some adorable little bottles of limoncello.

The only place I wanted to go today was The Forum and our rambling walk actually ended up taking us to The Forum (it was meant to be). The Forum is extraordinary - it's basically an active excavation site, so you can't get close, but it's so cool to see these ruins and imagine what used to be there.

The next part of our adventure I'm going to let Jen tell you about, but let's just say it involved criminal behavior (accidental criminal behavior - we're innocent I tell you). After that we found ourselves on Ave Nazionale (a main street that heads back toward our hotel). Nazionale is lined with shops, so we wandered in and out of the shops enjoying the day and the atmostphere of Rome. There was one great purchase (again I'll let Jen tell you).

We had a quiet lunch in a small cafe near our hotel (in the tea room because it was air conditioned) and then had our traditional afternoon siesta.

Tonight we had dinner at an outdoor cafe on the Pantheon square. Can I just say that the Pantheon is still my favorite site in Rome. Dinner was amazing. I think we both decided it was our best meal so far. The setting is incredibly romantic - the wine was phenomenal and when a man with a beautiful tenor voice started singing my favorite aria from La Traviata from the square...poor Jen was no longer the companion of my dreams. That the police quickly escorted our young performer away made for some drama, but it was memorable.

The evening was capped off with gelato of the day (of course) and a lovely taxi ride back to our hotel. Tonight we are packing up. It's our last night in Rome, we catch the train to Florence in the morning. Rome has been "magico" - unforgettable.

You can click here to view the Sept 4 slideshow.

Ciao,
:) Kristin