Getting to Rome
So, I will start off with saying that Rome is absolutely perfect, and I fell in love with it in seconds.
As we hopped off a train from Salerno after staying on the Amalfi Coast for a few days, we thought we were heading into just another European city. Which, we were, but there is just something about Rome that has so much to offer and is a city everyone needs to visit.
Honestly, we did not do any research on Rome. Obviously, we knew we had to visit all the famous historical structures, but we enjoyed our time here more than we thought we would. Especially considering this was a side trip that we added to our Amalfi Coast adventure.
We stayed in Rome for only three days. Three days was the perfect amount of time to see all the iconic landmarks in this beautiful city.
If you speak English and are new to Italy, I am happy to tell you that a language barrier is not an issue in Rome (my one day of Italian duo lingo did the job).
Where we stayed
Trastevere is a neighborhood in Rome that I highly recommend staying in. No matter where you stay, you will likely venture into this neighborhood for a restaurant or two.
Trastevere is west of the city, just right over a little bridge from Rome proper. It is full of piazzas, cobblestone streets, colorful architecture covered in vines, entertainment, and much more.
This side of Rome also feels more authentic if you are trying to escape touristy areas (at least in my opinion). We stayed in an Air B&B about a 3-minute walk from the main strip of restaurants.
I should also mention that this area is full of thousands of restaurants and bars. Finding variety was not hard, although in our few days of staying, we found ourselves going to multiple places a few times each (gotta stick to what you know is good!).
So, with that said, I recommend Bar Del Cinque, which has a funky and hip vibe and very reasonably priced cocktails.
Next, we loved Caramella. This restaurant/bar literally looked like a candy shop on the inside. The pizza here was to die for, and so were the espresso martinis. I should note that I ordered an espresso martini at every place we went (sorry, not sorry).
Every day started with a croissant and ended with pizza and tiramisu. You can find both at just about every café and restaurant in Rome.
Trevi Fountain & Pantheon
We started our Rome adventure with a walk from Trastevere and headed to the Trevi Fountain. This walk took us right by the Pantheon, which we learned was one of the most ancient buildings in the city!
The architecture was grand and fabulous. This building was completed around 128 AD and was a temple for the Roman gods… eventually it became a Christian church. Inside is a giant hole called the Oculus, which opens to the sky.
I found it extremely interesting that the Pantheon’s dome is larger than the St. Peter’s Basilica dome in the Vatican! This place was absolutely Pan-tastic (hahaha).
The building is composed of giant pillars delivered from Egypt and has a lovely fountain out front. We soon found out that this fountain was a statement piece called the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi (Fountain of the Four Rivers).
This fountain also stood in the Piazza Navona. Many cafes are here. It is a beautiful place to grab an espresso or glass of wine, and this was about a 25-minute walk from Trastevere.
We walked about 10 minutes north to continue our journey to the Trevi Fountain. The Trevi Fountain is extremely huge in person!
I should also point out that it was March when we went, so Rome was not as packed as I assumed it would have been in peak summer vacation time. It worked to our benefit for a couple of reasons. 1. Less people (but still a good amount). 2. We got a corner seat at a café with a prime up-close view of the Trevi.
This made our Trevi experience even more spectacular as we sipped our espresso and ate our Nutella croissants by one of Rome’s best structures. Ugh, I miss it!
Something to note is that there is security everywhere, and they are extremely strict about sitting on Trevi’s fountain wall to take pictures (obviously, we still did it until they got mad at us). Also, I recommend coming here early in the day if you want a photo without people in the background.
After the Trevi, we headed to a nearby souvenir shop and stocked up on fun Italian postcards and other random touristy things. Then we headed to probably the best Zara I have ever been in. This Zara was not only the best because it was five stories tall. But it contained many more couture items than I have never seen at a traditional store!
After spending quite a bit of time shopping. We walked to Trastevere to relax at our Air B&B before heading out for pizza and artichokes. Oh yeah, I should mention that trying a stuffed artichoke in Italy is a must-do!
Colosseum
I don’t really love history, but I must admit the Colosseum in Rome was quite breathtaking!
We paid about 16 Euros for this and stayed there for around 1.5 hours (we would have stayed longer, but we were trying to squeeze more things in that day).
The Colosseum stands almost as tall as the Statue of Liberty and can fit about 80,000 people. The Colosseum is also the largest Amphitheater in the world! It was fun to visualize everything that took place here. Gladiator fights, chariot races, bullfights, and other events took place in this iconic structure.
I highly recommend getting tickets online before arriving to save time. As I said, we went in March, which is not a peak tourist time, and still had a bit of a wait. Once inside, you will see the two levels of this Amphitheater.
A crazy fact that we learned was that Julius Caesar (Roman Emperor) never even set foot here, probably because he got assassinated many years before entertainment started to arise here! This structure is a must-see.
Vatican
Okay, so checking out Vatican City is likely to be a whole-day trip. Or maybe because we spent about an hour trying to find the Sistine Chapel, where the famous Michelangelo artwork is.
We began the day in St. Peter’s Basilica. St. Peter’s Basilica is the massive dome in the center of Vatican City. The Basilica was so grand and unlike any place I have ever been. Beautiful artwork covered the walls, and ceremonies took place while we were there.
After exiting, we finally decided to pay for a tour because, at this point, we were just completely lost and wanted to see the iconic Michelangelo piece. The courtyard is full of people trying to get you to join their group for a tour, and I recommend doing so to get to the Sistine Chapel quickly. Oh, I should also say if you are not a fan of a lot of walking, Vatican City may be a little challenging.
We finally made it to the Sistine Chapel, and I should give my honest opinion. While this place is completely worth every cent you pay, you may find yourself looking at what seems like repetitive artwork. It is pretty cool to see famous paintings, and everything is quite extraordinary. But you walk a bit before even making it to the Michelangelo artwork.
Once you enter the room of this famous piece, pictures are not allowed, and security stands everywhere. Which was the only reason we knew we made it to the artwork. Soon after, we were led through many gift shops and headed out of the chapel. Restaurants and souvenir shops are everywhere. So, I recommend skipping any gift shop inside the Sistine Chapel because you can find other gifts for cheaper just a few steps outside!
So, if you find yourself in Rome for just a few days or a few weeks, you will not be disappointed with everything this city has to offer!
Even though we were only here for a short time, I fell in love with all the architecture, food, entertainment, and people we came across. I would never hesitate to say yes to coming back here. I would even say you should stay for a minimum of three days. There is so much to see. I do not even think we saw a third of it.
Another good thing to know, as a girl in her mid-twenties, I felt safe the whole time! We had heard about pickpockets around touristy areas. But we never had an issue with this. Also, just be smart and don’t swing your purse around if you are concerned about this.
Till next time – Mason 🙂
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