When in Rome

I have been dreaming about traveling quite a bit lately- as I imagine many of you have been as well.

And while we wait for things to open up and get back to planning our next adventure- we are spending some time dreaming about where we will go, what we will do when able to get back on the road again.

But for now, of course, travel is on hold. And so, the dreaming continues- and today it is all about 24 hours in Rome, Italy.

Last fall we traveled to Europe in October. We were in France for a week where I had some work I was doing there- and after we wrapped up- it was over to Italy for a bit of R&R.

You might not know that we had just finished shooting all the photos for my new book – literally finished a late night location styling and photography the night before we left for Europe.

My husband knew how much I wanted to include a field styling in the book- and we just ran short on time to get it done. So, when we drove to Tahoe to drop Sweet Pea off with my daughter- on the way back we stopped and set up a farm table in a golden field surrounded by mountains. It was one of my favorite shoots actually- the sunset was perfect, the field was beautiful and no one was out wandering on the trails which was perfect.

Rome

I have shared what we were up to on our travels in Capri, Positano and France- and today it is all about a day in Rome. Literally. Just a day. We were there less than 24 hours- but we managed to see quite a bit just by wandering.

We left Positano in the morning and hopped on a train to Rome. It was several hours trip and we have found that we really enjoy the train travels in Europe. It is relaxing (mostly) and you get to see beautiful countryside along the way. When we got to the Rome station- we walked a mile or so to our hotel which was right in the heart of the section of the city where my husband wanted to stay. Have I mentioned before that my husband is half Sicilian? He loves all things Italian and all things full of history- and so-while all things French are my cup of tea- all things history filled like Rome- is his.

We dropped our bags at our hotel and ventured out to do a bit of exploring. Rome was actually not on our original travel agenda and was a last minute stop – we changed from leaving Positano earlier and stayed several extra days there. Rome just happened to be where we could get a flight to Paris easily- and so we decided to stay one night there on the way back. The goal was to see as many of the things within walking distance as we could before our flight back to Paris the next morning.

Where we went

Since we were just a block or so from the Coliseum – we started there. Side note – we did not pay to ‘formally’ tour or go inside anything. These are all just photos we took while wandering.

You can see that it was not too busy – there were tourists but in many of the areas it was not that crowded.

Though that said- the Trevi fountain- was insanely cram packed. I was actually a bit claustrophobic trying to grab a few photos. I am already a big germaphobe and don’t like crowded situations- and I had gotten a cold the week earlier while in Capri and was already sucking on cough drops like they were going out of style- so I was trying to be extra cautious of being exposed to anything else. So, at the fountain- we wandered in- snapped a few photos above all the tourists heads and left pretty quickly.

We wandered to most of the historic spots that were in walking distance- the Roman Forum was quite beautiful and interesting to explore on several side.

Wandering & then stopping to explore is kind of how we do things wherever we are- so basically- that was just what we did. My husband knew what many of the buildings were from history books-and we pretty excited to see them in person.

We did wander off the beaten path a few times and found hidden gems tucked away.

And we continued to explore until evening and the sun was beginning to set.

Random note: The sky and clouds above the architecture kind of reminded of those skies that are painted inside the shopping and casinos in Las Vegas. haha. So, I guess they replicated the look pretty well.

It was such a beautiful evening- and wandering the side streets not far from our hotel was so fun.

We enjoyed a traditional Italian dinner in a restaurant and sat outside to soak up the ambiance and beauty.

And then headed back to our hotel to relax. We did do a little more exploring of some of the areas the next morning before our flight left- and then it was back to Paris for one night before heading home.

Tips

Stay Close –The best tips I have for a quick stop in Rome- is to stay right in the area you are trying to see. It makes it much easier to not have to get a taxi or uber.

Grab the map and wander – most of what we saw was right in that central area- and we didn’t really need the map to figure out where to go- you can kind of get a sense from just walking where the paths and crowds are. But the map does help you plan which direction and how to avoid dead end paths or streets that you think might go through but don’t.

Ask for dinner recommendations. There were a lot of little bistro and deli type restaurants right along the main areas. Usually we like to stay where we can cook our own food- but this was a quick stop and we didn’t want to buy a bunch of fresh produce etc to cook anything when we were leaving the next day. So, a dinner out. Being vegetarian -we asked our hotel concierge for recommendations as to where we would find the best vegetarian options.

I hope this helps inspire a few day dreams about your next travels – I know I am itching like crazy to get back over to Europe- and I have some big ideas and plans I am working on. 🙂

Side note: Today is the last day to enter this weeks New Book Celebration Giveaway– a set of 4 Arte Italica Finezza chargers- click on over to enter in this post here.

Happy travel daydreaming all.