Rome Day 1: Fountains, Piazzas, Pasta and Pizza

For our last trip of the year we decided to go to Rome.  Last year we traveled to a few other cities in Italy but didn't make it to Rome.  And honestly, there is so much to see in Rome I'm glad we did it as a separate trip.  We stayed at Hotel Adriano in the heart of the city, walking distance to all the big attractions.  The room was extremely spacious with a sleeping loft where J & I slept.  The kids slept on the pull out couch down below.  In the hotel lobby was a large-scale tic-tac-toe board that kids spent lots of time playing at over the course of our stay.


While Rome is an easy walking city, there are so many small streets and alleyways that it's easy to get turned around.  Which we did...a lot.  Following a circuitous route, we finally made it to our first tourist destination, the Trevi Fountain, which to our dismay was covered in sheathing and scaffolding.


Seriously disappointing.  The kids had their pennies all ready to throw (legend has it that if you throw a penny in the trevi fountain then you will return to Rome).  We promised them that we'd find another fountain for their coins which wasn't hard to find.  The rest of the morning we spent wandering around the city, past la pietra, the pantheon, then on through piazza novena and campo d'fiori.

Rome is a beautiful walking city with so much history.  It felt as if every block or so we'd stumble across yet another amazingly old building or church.

Along the way we found the cutest store which was all wood toys with a pinocchio theme.


For lunch we went to Da Tonino, a very small mom and pop restaurant with amazing pasta.  Very authentic, full of locals and off the beaten path.  We tried the gnocchi, pesto pasta, spaghetti carbonara and meatballs.  It was all yummy and we rolled out of the restaurant stuffed beyond belief.




Walking off lunch was a must but the kids insisted on finding a Gelato place first.



We continued over Ponte Sisto to the Travestere area of the city.  We went into the Basilica de Santa Maria and spent some time relaxing in the Piazza.  There was something about this church that reminded me of the one on Stanford's campus.



For dinner we ate at a pizzeria near the hotel, Taverna Le Coppelle.  After the long day of walking the kids were pooped (as were J & I). C didn't even make it back to the hotel before falling asleep.

On our walk home J was having caffeine withdrawal and was in dire need of a coffee.  Lucky for him we passed an alcove with a few different vending machines, one of which was serving hot drinks.  J was pleasantly surprised by the quality and taste of the coffee.