Thanksgiving Abroad 2019 – Rome

After we dropped off our rental car at the Leonardo DiVinci Airport, we hopped on a train to reach our lodging in Rome. Because my hubby was the one booking the accommodation, I wasn’t the one responsible for getting us from the train station to the front door. So naturally, we ended up walking in a massive circle dragging our suitcases behind us because my husband apparently made us walk the driving directions instead of the much shorter walking directions. Ahem…

I was crabby because not only was I hungry and feeling the first symptoms of the head cold he so graciously shared with me, but I also hadn’t taken a shower in roughly 48 hours because of the hot water boiler issue at our last place. So the extra exercise made me a bit snappy but by the time we reached our front door, I couldn’t help falling in love with the Monti neighborhood. Then when we were greeted by the apartment hosts and led into our gorgeous flat, my irritability faded pretty quickly. To my astonishment, my husband managed to book four incredibly solid accommodation choices on this trip. I’m not saying he’s totally going to take over those duties for future trips, but I am impressed. (He’s also not nearly as price-sensitive as I am so I’m sure that helps. I did not ask how much we were spending per night but being in the trough of low season definitely stretched our dollars.)

Our flat was a two-bedroom which seemed slightly excessive but it was in such a great location and was renovated so tastefully that I immediately was trying to figure out how long I could stay before my savings account ran dry. Our hosts were amazing. The flat was stocked with juice, wine, milk, packaged snacks, cookies, bread, rolls, coffee, spices and olive oils. Plus as an added bonus, there was a washing machine which definitely came in handy.

Although I was starving, the first order of business was a nice long hot shower under the rainfall showerhead. Clean, I was way less of a bitch and we set out to explore the neighborhood. Spoiler alert – the Monti area is one of my favorite neighborhoods I’ve stayed in. There’s a mix of trattorias, bars, shops, fancy restaurants, cheap takeaways, markets. Plus it’s right on the edge of where a bunch of the ancient Roman Empire ruins are located. We stopped in a beautiful restaurant to check their availability and they were able to book us a table for an hour later. We whiled away the time at a nearby cocktail bar until our table was ready. Our meal was superb and I was entertained by two couples behind us – one having the time of their lives hanging out with each other and the other couple the polar opposite, looking as if they would rather be anywhere than with each other. After our meal, we wandered around a bit more getting the lay of the land before turning in.

Can I tell you the bed was way too comfortable? I finally hauled myself out of bed around 9:30am and saw bright blue skies out of the window. My hubby wasn’t moving so I crept around getting ready and literally was pulling my boots on when he stumbled out of the bedroom. I gave him an ultimatum that if he wasn’t ready to go in 10 minutes, I was going to go explore without him. The weather was too nice to waste the day inside! Shockingly, he was ready within my deadline. Just minutes away was the Colosseum. We made a circuit of the exterior, dodging the shills hawking tours and selfie-sticks. (I found it hilarious that my hubby is hauling a DSLR around and dudes are trying to sell him a selfie-stick. Like, that’s trying to sell Toyota floor mats to a dude driving an Aston Martin.)

From the Colosseum we walked down to the Circo Massimo. We wandered along the edge of the Forum, checking out the ruins we could see without an admission ticket. We passed by the Teatro Marcello and the Temple of Apollo. Everywhere we looked, there was an incredible melange of centuries. One of the reasons why I love Rome so much is this mixture; it provides surprising juxtapositions of history and architecture. I dragged my husband along various alleyways towards the Pantheon, one of my I-am-not-going-to-Rome-and-miss-this sites. The Pantheon is one of the best preserved buildings from ancient Roman times, a temple to all gods when it was built. The massive dome with its open-air oculus at the center has provided inspiration for countless architects including Brunelleschi (Florence’s Duomo), Michelangelo (Saint Peter’s), and William Thorton (the first architect for the U.S. Capitol Dome). Incredibly, the Pantheon has been in continuous use since it was built (between 117 and 125 A.D.)!

Admission to the Pantheon is free! While my hubby wandered around with his camera, I checked out the tombs of Raphael and Emanuele, the various statues, and finally just stood and stared at the perfect dome itself. If the weather hadn’t been so nice, I could have stayed there all day admiring the building. Back on the street, we passed a shop selling leather gloves and scarves. My hubby stopped, claiming he needed gloves. The husband-and-wife shopkeepers were adorable (and so damn fashionable it made me envious). The next thing I knew, I was trying on various glove styles and having scarves wrapped around my neck. I finally settled on a pair of lined bright red leather gloves and a matching red and pink scarf while the hubster picked up a pair of black leather gloves. (I sure hope it gets cold enough in Austin this winter for me to wear my new purchases.)

We paused at Tivoli Fountain, because we are still tourists. I brought coins from home specifically to throw into the fountain, making our wish to return to Rome. We stopped for lunch in an adorable trattoria where the waiter doted on me and encouraged me to practice my horrible Italian pronunciation with him. We made our way to the Spanish Steps. Apparently, you’re not allowed to sit on the steps anymore but you can stand around getting your selfie on. We climbed to the top and then made our way back down just as the sun was setting. We ambled through the neighboring area, packed with high-end shops. At the Villa Borghese, we finally turned towards the Tiber, leisurely making our way back in the general vicinity of our flat. But first, we crossed the river, walking to Castel Sant’Angelo, lit beautifully in the twilit sky. We could see Saint Peter’s Basilica and the enormous Christmas tree down in the distance.

We crossed the Tiber again and on our way back to our flat, we stopped in an Irish pub and then a high-end cocktail bar/tattoo parlor (it was a weird combination but totally worked) before finally, finally making it back to our flat. We walked miles that day so of course we deserved the decadent dinner we had later that night.

The next day, we did some more exploring, checking out the Piazza Navona and the surrounding neighborhood. However, we had a tour booked for the afternoon so we grabbed a light lunch before we crossed over the Tiber into Vatican City. My husband’s other request for this trip besides seeing the Statue of David was to see the Sistine Chapel. After agonizing over the various options, I finally booked a tour of the Vatican Museum that ended at the Sistine Chapel. About an hour prior to our assigned meeting time, we walked over to the area where we were supposed to meet our tour guide to scope it out. At the top of the stairs, touts for the other tours were trying to get us to change our tours to them (change and you can go in earlier, no waiting) but I shook my head at my hubby. No, we will wait for our tour. A representative for the company we booked with told us to come back in 45 minutes so we went to a German biergarten down the street to kill some time before heading back to the stairs.

Finally, a representative of the tour company arrived and was in conversation with a woman that I assumed (correctly) was the guide. Suddenly, the guide walked up, introduced herself and then she said those magic words, “well, it’s just you two booked for tonight so let’s get started”. My heart leapt because although my husband had no idea at that time, I had booked a semi-private maximum of 15 people VIP “go behind the scenes” tour that morphed into a “holy shit, I can’t believe we get to do this tour by ourselves” private tour. We made our way across the street and into the Vatican Museum.

At the main entrance we met the Vatican guard who would accompany us at various points. Alessandro was awesome. If you ever take this tour, hope that you get him as your designated guard. We made our way to an outdoor courtyard where we admired the view of Saint Peter’s before plunging into the Pius-Clemetine Museum. If you’ve never been to the Vatican Museum, just know that the amount of artwork is staggering. I’ve been to the Louvre; I’ve been to the Uffizi; I’ve been to the Prado. Nothing prepared me for the sheer number of pieces that the Vatican Museum contains. Ancient statues, paintings everywhere, stunning architecture. My head was on a swivel trying to take it all in. Our guide led us to a larger than life nude male statute that was roped off. Alessandro picked up one end of the velvet rope and we got to walk a circuit of the statue (the “those are some rock hard buns” comment I whispered to my hubby seemed sacrilegious based on our location but I couldn’t help myself) and then we got to check out a hidden hallway filled with ancient marble sculptures. We kept walking and then we were at one of the highlights of the tour – something that most tours never get to see – the original Bramante’s Staircase.

The original Bramante’s Staircase is a helix winding from the street level to the Belvedere Palace. (Not to be confused with the modern staircase at the exit of the Vatican Museum.) This staircase was built in 1505 by architect Donato Bramante to allow Pope Julius II to ascend to the papal apartments located several levels up while still in his carriage. It is a masterpiece of engineering and architecture. The tower that the staircase is housed in also provided stunning views of the expanse of Rome. The light at that time of day was golden and even the guide paused with us to take photos of both the Staircase and the views from the tower.

We continued, pausing for the Gabinetto delle Maschere, containing ancient Roman mosaics taken from Hadrian’s Villa at Tivoli, and the Three Graces statues. The velvet rope again lifted for us to enter Cappella Niccolina, the papal chapel frescoed by early Renaissance master Fra Angelico in the mid-1400s, We saw the Gallery of Maps and the Gallery of Tapestries. We got to enter the Raphael Rooms to admire the masterpieces hidden away from the public. Throughout it all, our guide provided the foundation on what we were seeing and why it was important in a historical context. For practically three hours at that point, we had been treated to some of the world’s greatest art and architecture. But we had one last stop… the Sistine Chapel.

I specifically booked this tour because it claimed to provide a private “after closing hours” experience of the Sistine Chapel. I read how crowded it can get during the regular visiting hours. I wanted a more intimate experience to be able to absorb Michelangelo’s masterpiece ceiling but when I paid for this tour, I had no idea that it would turn out that literally the only people in the Sistine Chapel would be me, my hubby, our guide, and our guard Alessandro. On our way into the Chapel, Alessandro turned to us with a smile and said “you are so very, very lucky tonight” before opening the door.

How can I describe it? It was one of the most awe-inspiring experiences I’ve ever had to be alone within the hushed confines of the Sistine Chapel. After a few moments, our guide started to explain the significance behind some of the various elements contained within the vignettes on the ceiling and within the Last Judgment. Because we were by ourselves, she was allowed to provide commentary (normally guides are forbidden from speaking in the Chapel itself) and it helped immensely to have her expertise bring to life the stories behind the images. After about 5 or so minutes, we all just wandered around soaking in the magnificence. And then Alessandro did something that honestly brought tears to my eyes; he told us we could take photos as long as we promised not to post them on social media since the images are copyrighted by Fuji Films who paid for restoration work a few years ago. Despite my loathing of selfies, the one I took with the Last Judgment in the background will be treasured forever.

And then, we slowly made our way out of the Sistine Chapel and back towards the entrance. The museum had been closed for nearly an hour at that point and it was surreal to walk along the empty corridors. We had one last treat, a ride in the original elevator near the exit before saying goodnight to Alessandro and our guide. In a daze, we walked back to Saint Peter’s Square. The ceremony to inaugurate the Nativity had occurred while we were on our tour so we checked it our alongside the Christmas tree before walking back to our flat to rest up before dinner in a tiny Monti restaurant.

The next day, our last full day in Rome, we explored the colorful and vibrant Trastevere neighborhood. So many little shops, so many restaurants… Although I love Monti, I could also see myself living for a month or two in Trastevere. It would take that long just to try all the restaurants. We wandered aimlessly for hours, stopping here and there for gelato, wine, cocktails, lasagna, pasta, and meatballs. We didn’t actually eat a full meal anywhere but I was stuffed and tipsy by the end of the night. We didn’t return to the flat until 2am! And of course, we had a very early wake-up call to catch our flight.

The alarm rang at 4:45am. I frantically scoured the apartment to make sure nothing was left behind before we went downstairs to meet our prearranged Blacklane driver. The plush Mercedes whisked us through the predawn, quiet streets of Rome towards the airport. We were dropped off right on time. We checked our bags and gathered our boarding passes, making our way through security to our gate. I was really sad to be leaving Rome. I didn’t expect to fall in love with the city the way I did. I hope those coins we threw in Tivoli ensure that we return to Rome someday.