Arrivaderci Roma

Phew!  At last few minutes to digest the sensory overload of 4 days in Rome.  This city is everything Italian!  Layers of history on top of layers of history, high fashion, gypsy beggars, fast cars, slow meals, animated hand gestures, cold marble, ornate door knockers, dull exteriors and just about the only cuisine available is ITALIAN!!! We did see a Chinese restaurant, a Himalayan one and an Argentinian one.

We wore our feet out every day, grateful for the silence of our little hotel room at the end of an evening.  The Roman Forum, the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, St. Peter's, Palatine Hill, Campidoglio, Capital Hill, the Jewish Ghetto, Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, Il Corso.  May be easier to say what we missed!

We had good meals- my favorite so far was fresh pasta with mushrooms.  There isn't anything better than fresh pasta.  We got very lucky with our hotel and it's location- easy to walk nearly everywhere, and close to Termini for the further points, except for the day when there was a subway strike...  Very reasonable and the front desk staff was very friendly and helpful.  Great little place around the corner for breakfast for 2 at about $8.  Still loving a bargain!

Did I love Rome?  Yes and no.  This was my third time to Rome, but it was so long ago, I only remembered a few things.  You gotta love the chaos and noise and history.  I could do without the men urinating into the river and on the monuments as if no one were watching them.  And the neverending stream of people smoking outside.  And the woman on the bus who tried to slip her hand into my purse. I took some pictures of some details we came across that I was pleased with, which are posted on Facebook.  I am in awe of the scale of the monuments (how on earth did they build them????) and the length of time that is visually represented everywhere- thousands of years!  I hope to come back!

The skies are blue wherever we go!