Italy Trip Day 10

Read all about it: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7, Day 8, Day 9

May 13 - More Roma. This post has a bunch of pictures.

Eric got up and ready early and took some pictures of the Trastevere neighborhood.

To start our day we took the bus and then the metro/subway to the Colosseum area. Public transportation in Italy really is wonderful. This odd pyramid was near where we changed to the subway and I remember it seeming really out of place. We never figured out what it was.

Our first stop was the Colosseum. It took us a little bit to figure out the true entrance for where you go if you have a Roma pass which can get you in without paying anything extra. Outside is filled with people trying to sell you a tour or an audio guide so avoid them. Use the free Rick Steves audio guide instead. It is hard to describe what it was like (other than historic and a real work of art )and I'm know the pictures don't do it justice especially without a wide angle lens but nevertheless.

One of the original seats

The temps were a little hotter in Rome than in Florence or Venice but nothing unbearable. Of course kisses in the Colosseum really heated things up ;)

Next we moved on to the Forum. It was a little challenging to find the entrance to that as well because the signs and maps make it look right next to the Colosseum but you have to walk further away to find the actual entrance. The forum was neat but seemed a little more crowded in spots than the Colosseum did.

Listening to the Rick Steves audio guide

Roman water fountain

 Massiveness

By the time we finished there we were very hungry and had planned to later see the Pantheon... so we found a bus that took us close to there and sought out lunch. The Rick Steves book recommended a little sandwich shop so Keith, Megan and I went in to get food while Eric found us a spot outside the Pantheon to eat lunch in the shade. This is why Eric saved a spot for us... very crowded at lunch time on a nice day. You can spot him standing under the 3rd pillar from the right.

 The book said you could get "make your own" sandwiches which didn't end up being true as we tried to tell the man at the counter that the "book" said we could pick items to make our own sandwich and he kept thinking we said "pork" (which he had plenty of) instead of "book". We never overcame that particular language barrier. They didn't seem to have vegetarian options so after we bought 3 sandwiches, Megan went to get some pizza at a nearby place.

After lunch, we got our ipods ready for another Rick Steves guide and headed inside the Pantheon church. It certainly was not lacking visitors. It is free by the way.

Inside the Pantheon was spectacular just looking at the structure and learning about it. You can only help to stare up and the dome shape and the circle hole in the top. It is the same measurement wide as it is tall. Due to the size and the amount of people inside it was a little difficult to take pictures to represent what you fully see... so you'll just have to go too :)

Next up in our eventful day? Gelato of course! I had read Time article about gelaterias in Rome and one I read about said it had over 60 flavors of gelato including some soy gelato. You don't have to convince me! So we hopped on the subway and walked a little and searched a little to find Gelarmony.

It completely lived up to its name. Everyone had something different but I had cinnamon soy gelato and it tasted just like regular gelato and it was wonderful! If you are in Rome, you MUST go there. Here is the address: Via Marcantonio Colonna, 34 00192 Rome, Italy (50 meters from the Piazza Cola di Rienzo). Come to find out there was a bus stop right outside so we easily took the bus back to Trastevere.
Happy and filled with gelato on our ride home.

Later we had dinner in Trastevere at Trattoria da Lucia and sat outside. Most italians eat a bit later like 8 or 9 so during our trip we never really had to wait long (if at all) to be seated... a big plus.

Everyone had various pasta dishes... the spaghetti pecorino was delicious. We had fruit and cheese for our antipasta. I love how they arranged the pineapple.

Next up is our last full day in Rome (and Italy).