l'italia pt 6

Okay, this is the last posting about Italy. I just wanted to make a quick note about the bed and breakfast where we stayed. Trastevere is a lively neighborhood with close proximity to most of the sights. We came across A Spasso per Roma in a last minute hotel booking and it ended up being perfect for us. Giulia, the owner is lovely and has opened up her luxurious home to a few visitors at a time. I think there are only 3 or 4 rooms available. Ours opened up to the terrace and had a view of one of the most beautiful buildings I have ever seen. Each morning we were offered fresh torta, cappuccino, yogurt and fruit. She has made the obvious decision to buy organic products and requests her guests to conserve water. After walking for as many hours as a tourist usually does, coming "home" to a clean and relaxing place was ideal. If you are traveling to Rome, I highly recommend you stay here!

l'italia pt 5

Whenever I think about moving away from San Francisco, I think about moving to a smaller town. Or not even a town, maybe just a farm in the middle of nowhere. I never wanted to live in New York, I never wanted to live in a city at all. But Rome...that is a city I could see moving to. Somehow the history and modernity come across as the perfect mix.

me

 dry peppers for sale at campo dei fiori

 undeniably perfect street corner

 carabinieri moseying despite riots getting ugly

fountain at the vatican

the pantheon by day

crossing one of many bridges

 the pantheon by night (twice visited due to proximity to amazing gelateria)

 

a mosaic fountain

rome's famous cacio e pepe

l'italia pt 4

The last 3 days of our trip were spent wandering the streets of Rome. As soon as we had booked our tickets, I started reading the food blog by Katie Parla. I didn't want to waste a meal eating anything less than delicious food, so having a guide like hers was extremely helpful. Of course it never goes perfectly. We accidentally walked around the entire perimeter of the Vatican looking for a pizza place that was never found (thanks to a huge error in the map we were using!) and two restaurants with the same name yielded an unfortunate plate of pasta. Then again, we happened to be staying 2 blocks away from a wine tasting hosted by Katie and the sommelier Hande which ended up being a total pleasure. We drank some fantastic wine, tried cheeses and meats from Lazio and met a couple who live three blocks away from me in San Francisco. The event was a fundraiser and you can read more about it here.

sunlight on a church