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We rounded up our European adventure at a new hotel in Rome! Our previous Bed and Breakfast owner really tried to sell us on staying at his place an extra night, I mean, Ryan was out talking to Francesco about how we would have to pay anyway at the other hotel for a good 8 minutes! Also, as we were leaving, a plumber had arrived to work on the electric sewage pump that was going off all throughout the night the first night we were at the hotel. We didn’t know that it was broken, but we definitely hated that thing with a passion!

We made the hike from our B&B in the city center to Trastevere, which is a less-tourist populated area just across the river. It took us about 25 minutes to walk to our new location (while trying to figure out where to go, find street names, and read the map). We could tell immediately that the area was different. Instead of tents filled with books, Rome figurines, fake designer bags, and postcards, the tents were filled with fresh produce, socks, stockings, belts, and a ton of other miscellaneous household items. At one tent, we saw scissors, alarm clocks, bathroom scales, and curling irons. It was very funny to see!

Giorgio, who is a fair-skinned blonde Italian, greeted us at our new B&B. He later explained that his mother is English, and that is where he got his light complexion and features, but he was born and raised within a 5km radius of the B&B in Rome. He showed us to our room, handed over the keys, and told us about some good restaurants in the area. We stayed in the room a while, then headed back to where we had just come for some more sight seeing. Notably, we made it to the Tivoli fountain and the Spanish Steps. Both are must-sees on a Rome visit, but really don’t have a ton of historical importance other than beauty, and were just packed full of tourists! We were lucky enough to come across several other ancient sites around the city center while we were walking around and found it interesting to see the juxtaposition of old and new. We also saw a holiday singing and dance show just off of the Spanish Steps, which we stopped to watch for a while. We walked around quite a bit more than we anticipated, grabbed dinner, and headed back to the hotel to sleep. Here are a few photos from the things we saw on Monday.

The Trevi Fountain.

The view of the square from the Spanish Steps.

A Random Ruins site that we came across while we were walking around!  These were everywhere!.

Tuesday, we woke up and went to have breakfast in the B&B kitchen. Giorgio made us espresso and warmed up a couple croissants, and we started to talk about some of the things we had seen so far during our stay. Our conversation with Giorgio was probably one of my favorite parts of our entire trip! We stayed in there for about an hour while he explained to us where he grew up, wines, culture, and Italian history including an in-depth discussion about Mussolini and his reign over Italy. He seemed to be so well informed and sparked my attention to read up more on his impact on Italy. He told us that Mussolini had grand ideas about Italy, and that he did some things that change the face of Italy forever. He created large roads that caused the destruction of many historic sites and home, and built up large white buildings made of marble to prove the wealth of Italy itself! He also commissioned building a road that went exactly from the Mediterranean to Rome in a straight line. This was very different from the way that things were built today. He said that it’s almost impossible to dig anywhere without finding ancient ruins, or tombs, or sarcophaguses, and each time something is found, work on that project is completely halted until excavation teams can come in and remove everything. This process takes months. He said that there is a tunnel that they have been trying to widen for 8 years unsuccessfully because of the discovery of ancient ruins and bodies.

After our discussion, we went to the Coliseum, Palatino, and Forums. We were so glad that we were able to see these sites on our tour, it was a great way to sum up our historic exploration of Europe! These were really interesting, but easier to explain over photos.

Palatino Forum -- Ancient Ruins.

Inside of the Coliseum -- It doesnt even seem real!

Outside of the Coliseum.

We also took some photos with some Gladiators, thanks Carrie and Brady for our tickets and photo (hehe):

Gladiator photo.

Grabbed a gigantic, delicious doughnut on the way to the Hammam after a whole day of walking around the ancient ruins.

In the evening, we went to Acqua Madre, which is a Hammam. After some technical difficulties with the Credit Card (uhhhhhhh), we finally went through our Hammam ritual, followed by massages. For those of you that don’t know what a Hammam is (I didn’t until I got to Roam) it’s basically a spa treatment, but it’s pretty intense. First, you cover yourself in this sticky olive butter (it’s very waxy). Then you go in and out of a steam room (45 degrees Celsius) for a while until you are relaxed, warm and have opened pours.. Next, is the scrub. With a very coarse loofa, you get scrubbed neck to toe by your Hamman guide. This was seriously intense! The amount of skin that was exfoliated was rather disgusting, and I felt like I had rug burns all over my body when I was done. Then you take a quick shower, and get into a cold bath. This is supposed to close your pours. After this, we went into the relaxing room for some tea, and then received massages. It was a lovely experience to have; we are both silky smooth now! Thank you to Andrea who got us massages for our wedding gift!

We grabbed a final celebratory dinner at a restaurant and then went home to bed before our busy travel day! We woke up this morning, ate croissants and packed, then walked to the tram. We took the tram to the train station, then the train to airport, then we had to take a shuttle to get to a different terminal, then from the first terminal, we had to get on another bus to get us to airplane, and then finally got onto the plane! It was a long morning already! We spent the rest of our Euros on junk food and snacks in the airport, and then got onto the plane!

Now, we are on the plane! After 30 days, we are on our way back to San Diego! It’s been a long adventure, but I’m still really sad that we are leaving! I thought that I would be ready to come home after 30 days, but I am really feeling not quite ready to get back into my everyday busy life! There are a couple things that I would say that I missed from the US:

1) Well-labeled street signs – The street signs in all of the cities that we visited were posted (sometimes) on the sides of buildings. You had to be right on top of the intersection to determine whether or not you should turn!

2) Dips and Bread served with butter – I’m pretty sure Europe doesn’t know the wonder that is Ranch. Or Ketchup, Honey mustard, BBQ, or any other sauce that we get for free at a drive through. Maybe that is how Europeans stay so thin!

3) Smoke-Free everything – Ya, the smoke was starting to get to me…

4) Ice – At one of the restaurants in Italy, there was a sticker on the menu that said “No Steaks, No French Fries, No Ice.” It was true. I asked for ice water about half way through our trip and the lady asked me twice for clarification. “You mean, ice, for your water?”

5) Usage of our Credit Card everywhere – We did have to take out a lot more cash than we were anticipating, there were a ton of places that didn’t take credit card. There were also a ton of places that said they would take credit card, but wouldn’t when your bill was low. We also encountered several scenarios in which the payment systems were just old and couldn’t handle our US credit cards.

6) Paying 3-4 Euros for a Soda – 1 Euro = 1.4 Dollars. You can do the absurd math. I don’t really drink a lot of soda, but I guess we really take this one for granted.

There were also some things that I didn’t miss:

1) People yelling at people that don’t speak English! – I mentioned this while we were in Prague, and experienced it again on the airplane. The flight attendant starting yelling and vigorously waving her arms because she thought these people in the seat in front of us didn’t speak English (even though I think they did). It made her seem arrogant, and it was difficult to watch.

2) US Travel security protocols – We were in and out of over 9 ports/stations over this trip, and only the ones in the US required finger prints and photos to be taken of each and every non-US Citizen. It did make me feel more secure, but it also made me feel bad for the non-US Citizens that had to be printed. Nowhere else in our travels required anyone to go through as rigorous security scanning as in the US airports.

And there are definitely some things that I will miss about Europe:

1) Good public transportation – We really enjoyed getting around easily and affordably. I know that there are a lot of cities in the US that have great transportation (DC, New York, Chicago, etc.) but we have never lived there, nor have we really spent a whole lot of effort looking into how to use the local transportation. I think that after this trip, we are more inspired to give public transport some extra effort though!

2) Not having a cell phone – This isn’t really a Europe-specific thing, everyone in Europe had cell phones (just like the US) except us. And don’t get me wrong, I love my cell phone, but there was something about being so disconnected for 30 days that was really nice! I wasn’t always checking for a new email, or looking up meaningless crap as the day went along. It was refreshing, and nice, though probably not a habit that I will maintain after our return.

3) Street food – Always an adventure, and usually delicious (and cheap). Though when it comes to sanitation, it is not a topic of which I want to ask too many questions.

4) Non-industrialized trades and shops – In the US, it feels like everything is about making money! There were several spots in our travels (restaurants, shops, etc) that just felt like they were tradition! Mom and Pop were still running their businesses!

5) Sharing uninterrupted meals with Ryan – We seem to always distracted by something, cell phone, email, Googling, reading blogs, forums, etc. But it felt really nice share good convocations over uninterrupted meals.

Our honeymoon was an adventure of a lifetime! We are so happy that the stars aligned for us to be able to make this beautiful and culture-filled experience happen. The things we experienced over the last 4 ½ weeks are priceless memories that we will never forget. Thank you to all of our friends and families that contributed to our travels through our Honeyfund (www.honeyfund.com) and generous wedding gifts!

Our first day in Rome was pretty uneventful. When we arrived at the train station, it was snowing! Francesco, the owner of the B&B that we are staying at, said that it NEVER snows in Rome. The last time it snowed in Rome was last year, then 25 years before that, then 25 years before that. I guess we should feel pretty special (or unlucky, depending on how you look at it). We found where the bus stop was located outside of the train station and went and stood there for a while. No Bus. We waited in the snow for a while and then decided we would look for cover and wait to see the bus. After about 30 minutes, and being propositioned for a cab, a cigarette, and lost of requests for change, we finally got on our bus! We finally got to our B&B and Francesco checked us in. He was very thorough on explaining everything to us, even requested that we practice unlocking the door. He also gave us a map, drew out recommendations for how to get places, restaurants, and what we should do for each of the 3 days that we were staying at the B&B. It was very nice of him! 

After we checked in, we walked around for a while. Then it started raining. We bought a couple umbrellas, stopped for Gelato, and continued to walk around until our shoes and pants were wet, then we decided to head back to the room. We stayed in the room for a while then headed down the street to see the Pantheon and some beautiful fountains in the square.

Ryan eating Gelato!  Boy, we love out Gelato!

The Pantheon and the beautiful fountains near our first hotel in Rome.

Then we went to dinner at a restaurant recommended by Francesco called Macaronis. The restaurant was vey busy, but they managed to find us a spot next to the door. We ordered another Caprice appetizer, some house wine, and 2 pasta dishes recommended by the waiter. The Caprice was very good, and then waiter placed the pasta dishes in front of us. We both tried our pasta and Ryan gave an unconvincing nod that his dish tasted good. So we tried each other’s pastas and immediately, all I could think was that Ryan’s pasta tasted like vomit! I told him that I thought it tasted weird, but really it was terrible! I took another bite, confirmed that it was the pasta that tasted that way, and then went back to my dish. After a couple minutes I asked Ryan again if he liked his dish, and he was like, ya, eh. Then, I was trying to say something without coming straight out and saying that it tasted like puke, so I said “It kind of tastes a little… acidy?” and Ryan looked right at me and started nodding and said “Yeah.” So I figured that he thought it tasted bad as well but was just trying to stomach it. We left shortly after, and when we got back to the room Ryan came right out and something to the effect of “At least your dinner didn’t taste like puke!” It was terrible! I don’t know how he finished it, but he said that he was just trying to not think about it and finish it. I would have just not eaten it if I had gotten it, but Ryan is a champ.

We saw the movie Gladiator in the shared cabinet in the hotel, and so we popped it into my computer and watched it before we went to bed. It was really good to see, and now we’re even more excited to go to the Coliseum!

We woke up on Saturday and headed over to Vatican City. We walked over to the St. Peter’s Basilica first, waited in a very long line to get through a metal detector/security checkpoint, and then went inside. The Basilica was beautiful! It was the nicest cathedral/basilica that we have been in to date! It was really astounding to see the mosaics, and the altar, smaller chapels, and side transepts were elaborately decorated. Here are some photos!

We exited the Basilica and got in line to walk up the 530 steps to the top. We made the trek and this time was much better than the last climb up St. Paul’s Cathedral in London (my knees and feet feel great)! I even videotaped the whole 2^nd half, you’ll see it on YouTube sometime! The view from the top was breathtaking! Here are some photos!

From the top of the Basilica.

We then headed over to the Vatican museum, at which point both of our cameras died, so we have no photos. We were able to see Michelangelo’s paintings on the wall and ceiling in the Sistine Chapel, as well as miles of galleries and other Fresco paintings by Michelangelo, as well as Rafael and his students. I really wish that we had been able to take some photos. We spent about an hour in the Sistine Chapel, and a couple more walking all of the halls of the Vatican museum. It was really something special to see!

We went back to the hotel to rest our feet for a while and then went to dinner at a restaurant called Cul de Sac, recommended by our wine expert friend (Primo) in Florence. The restaurant was tiny, so we were seated at a bench-style table with another couple something that would never have flown in the US, but made for an interesting experience. They were from France and spoke French the whole time so we didn’t really spark up conversation. We ordered wine and Caprice, then a pasta and a meat dish recommended by the server, and split them! Yummy! It was a really unique experience that we both really enjoyed! We went back to the room and fell asleep watching the Davinci Code on the computer.

Today, we went to another soccer match! We learned that soccer in Italian is called Calcio from our friend Primo, the wine bartender. We headed over to the “Stadio Olimpico” (Olympic Statium) where the Olympics were played in 1960. There was a giant Mussolini statue outside of the stadium, which Ryan said made him feel a little weird. We also came across a track field that was lines with about 50 gigantic sculptures of all of the games played in the Olympics. It was great! We snapped a couple photos.

Statues outside of the stadium.

The match was Lazio (the home team) vs. Udinese, and was very exciting! The stadium was giant, so there was no way the stands were going to sell out. We estimated that there were about 20,000 people there. The Lazio “fight song” was hilarious! It’s called “Vola Lazio Vola” (Fly Lazio Fly) and was a slow ballad that every fan knew the words to (in Italian). The mascot is a bald eagle, and they had one flying circles on the field before the match. We got it on video, as well ad the fight song, but you can search for it on YouTube for a giggle.

Ryan and I inside the Stadium.

Lazio scored in the first minute and then there were a ton of chances both ways throughout the half, but no scores. After they scored, fans set off pyrotechnics, including a bright red flair, something that created blue smoke, and then what sounded like a Bomb and scared the s*** out of both of us. No one did anything about it, the security guards were too busy watching the match to take care of the ruckus. We though it was very interesting – the security guards checked our bags and made me leave my water bottle at the gate, but were completely OK with the homemade “bomb” so to speak.

Here is a photo of the field from our seats.

In the second half, Udinese scored a goal very quickly, then each team scored another uneventful goal each. It looked like it was going to end in a draw, but Lazio scored a final goal in the 88^th minute! The fans went crazy! It was incredible. Then a series of fake flops began by Lazio to end out the uneventful stoppage time and we headed to the bus! At this point it started raining again, so we hurried out to try to catch the buss! We waited for another half hour and then our bus never came so we faked it on another bus, hopeful that we would make it back. We eventually did, then grabbed some lunch, then took a nap! We finished watching Davinci Code, then made the walk to grab some dinner at a restaurant we found on Trip Advisor. The food was very good, though a little more expensive than other places we’ve been. The atmosphere was fun though, and we didn’t have to share a table, so it worked out just fine! We’re off to bed now, and changing hotels again in the morning.

Final Score of the Udineze/Lazio match.

I’m starting to feel better now! And held down a whole meal, thank goodness! Hopefully I don’t have to deal with that any more. After our nap, we walked around our little neighborhood in Florence for a while and went into the Cathedral located near our B&B. It was very different from the other ones we have seen so far, it was renovated several times over the centuries so it had a more modern, and colorful exterior. The flooring on the inside was an elaborate Mable design, very cool to see! We stopped at a Gelato shop for some gelato and cappuccinos! They were delicious! Here is a photo:

A delicious Gelato and Cappuccino in Florence!

We grabbed real food at a small restaurant and learned about the “bread and table charges” that they charge you in most of Italy. We also went to see a famous bridge in Florence where the buildings are literally built over the edge of the bridge and held up only by some support beams! The views around this area were beautiful, we wished it was nicer out and we would have climbed up the hills a little way. Here is a photo.

Florence Bridge.  Notice the buildings are hanging off of the bridge and supported with a few stakes.  Scary!

Views from the Bridge in Florence.

Ryan found a great review of a tiny restaurant, so we went there for dinner. Unfortunately, we were unable to get in because the place had 5 tables and reservations thought 9:30 at night, so we went to another restaurant near by that had a large crowd in it. We ordered a steak by the l’etto (100 grams), which we think they literally cut off of a slab and cooked on a grill for us. The brought it out on a wood board for us. It was really delicious, and everyone in the restaurant seemed to order the same thing!

Thursday, we woke up late and went to the Uffizi Gallery, which is a collection of paintings and sculptures collected by De Medici Family over hundreds of centuries. It was huge, and took us several hours to get through. We stopped by the cafeteria near the end of our visit, and happened upon this beautiful terrace that showed the clear sky and beautiful area surrounding Florence! It was astounding! Here are a couple photos:

From the balcony located outside of the cafeteria in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.

For dinner, we tried to go to the tiny restaurant again, but again it was filled. The man that greeted us recognized us from the night before. He felt bad that we were there again and he said to come back in 10 minutes. So we across the street to a wine bar called Dei Frescobaldi’s. We grabbed a quick glass of wine and were severed bread and cheese as well. Everything was amazing! We almost wanted to stay, but we hurried back over to the other restaurant. We waited a little while longer, then were seated right next to the door at a tiny table, smashed up against 2 walls and another table. The server came over and translated the menu for us, then we ordered and ate one of our favorite meals yet! Everything was so fresh, and the portion sizes were perfect! It was a great experience. The server offered to sit us at another table that wasn’t by the door, but we declined and stayed in our seat. When he brought us our very cheap bill, he deducted 5 euro from the total price because we were by the door. We declined his offer, but it was very kind of him.

We went back over to Dei Frescobaldi’s for another drink after dinner, and met the bar tender Primo (who is not the first born... we all had a laugh at his expense about it). He was so nice, and got us tipsy on an over poured wine flight of 3 wines, plus an extra glass. We also had more cheeses and prosciuttos and dried bread crotons, and stayed until they locked the door behind us. Primo was so nice, he made great recommendations for things to do in Rome, and told us about soccer, explained some good local things to do, and practiced his English! We looked him up on Facebook, so hopefully we’ll keep in touch!

Today, we woke up hung over (thank you Primo). We checked out a little late and grabbed some breakfast of pastries and cappuccino from the café next door, and headed to the train station. The train ride was pretty uneventful, but we did break down and buy some French fries at the Mc Donald’s in the train station. We’re cheaters, but I guess that’s what a hangover will do to you!

Leaving for Rome! The train station was completely outdoors, and I was hungover and freezing!