On Saturday, we flew two hours south to Rome! It was a city that we had heard so many wonderful things about, but admittedly, I was nervous (despite living 7 years in NYC). I think I read too many warnings about scams and thievery. Well, needless to say, that was all for nothing. We came out unscathed and lovers of Rome!
While waiting for our flight to depart Amsterdam, Jude was taken with this group of brothers (well, the oldest in particular). He walked right over and stood with him longer than he'll stand for most things (ice cream/gelato aside). The brothers were equally taken with him and while waiting for our luggage in Rome, they played with him at the luggage carousel, being very cautious with his fingers. So sweet!
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| New friends before the flight |
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| Jude gets really stimulated on airplanes so it seems a miracle when this happens! Apart from my arm that lost sensation, it was a great start to the vacation. |
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Friends playing with Jude in Rome.
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We used a car service at the Rome airport. It was only 7 euro more than a taxi and ensured that we'd have a van big enough to accommodate Jude's car seat. The driver took us all the way to our small little piazza- Largo de Librari no matter the pedestrian only signs!
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| Our AirBnB apartment was just to the left of the hidden church in the piazza. |
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| Wonderful location to stay in Rome right off Campo di Fiori. We were able to walk everywhere we wanted to go. |
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| Rooftop terrace at the apartment. |
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| Street scene near the apartment. |
After a brief settling-in, we headed out to see the Pantheon and our surrounding neighborhood. One wrong turn led us to the river, not the Pantheon. Whoops!
I had been told by other lovers of Rome that ancient architecture was part of the landscape, but it was still awesome to see with my own eyes. Here at Largo di Torre Argentina there was some spectacular relics. Pete was psyched. Jude was gellin'.
We did finally make it to the Pantheon, an impressive sight. Some tourists found Jude more interesting though.
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| The Pantheon |
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| Pete dropping some history on Nana |
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| Inside the Dome |
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| Jude's admirers |
I follow a handful of celebrities on Instagram and had seen that Reese Witherspoon was in Rome a few days before we arrived. She posted a selfie in the Saint Ignacio church, claiming it to be her favorite church in Rome, so of course we needed to check it out. It was stunning and really cool to see a group of nuns practicing for a concert. Jude did what he does best in historic churches. I'll spare him the embarrassment and leave the rest to your imagination.
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| The scene of the crime. |
Back outside, a downpour caught us by surprise. Thank goodness for the enterprising man running to sheltered tourist groups selling umbrellas for 10 Euro. We slipped giddily through the medieval streets of Rome, already enchanted after only a few hours time.
Apart from the great company, the beauty of traveling with parents is all of the free babysitting! While in Rome, we would take turns going out at night to find dinner- easy to do given our very central location. Pete and I were given the first night out and went to a spot recommended by his brother. Afterwards, we got the obligatory gelato and strolled the streets taking in the sights of Piazza Navona, Trevi fountain (under construction), Capitoline hill, more churches and the Pantheon by night. What a magical city!
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| Campo di Fiori evening scene. |
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| Post dinner gelato :) |
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| Piazza Navona |
