Nate's First Weekend

A very delayed posting (only a month late) - but here are the highlights of Nate's first weekend in Rome. First, everything went like clockwork for his arrival - his plane was on time, he met me at the gate, we caught a train in just a few minutes and were back at my apartment in less than an hour (unheard of with Italian transit!). We spent his first day walking around and getting acclimated to the city. We walked by Piazza Venezia (which he loved):



And continued on towards the Colosseum. We had lunch at one of my all-time favorites, La Bottega del Cafe, which is in the Cavour neighborhood near the Colosseum, but tucked away enough that it's usually filled with locals (not tourists). The food is fabulous, my personal favorite being the traditional caprese and the four cheese gnoccetti.



After lunch we wandered around the Colosseum and were lucky enough to find a fellow Canon DSLR carrier who obliged us in an excellent photo in front of the Colosseum (those who know me well know that this picture is already framed in my new apartment!).



Sunday was the single most perfect day of the entire trip. It started with an early walk to Campo d'Fiore, one of my favorite Roman neighborhoods. There's a daily market with the freshest flowers and food, so we stocked up on fruit, salami, prosciutto, cheese, and fresh baked bread. From there we took a bus to Villa Borghese, my favorite park in Rome. We wandered until we found the perfect spot in the green grass for a picnic. It was lovely.



After lunch we walked across the bridge into Prati, my new favorite Roman neighborhood where my friend Cat lives, with my latest discovery of the best gelatto in Rome. From there we took the subway to nearly the end of the line in attempts to find a bus to go to Fregene. This was an adventure, as most people will tell you Fregene is best accessed by car. After some broken Italian conversation with the bus driver, we found bus tickets on sale across the street, and rode to Fregene, anxious to get off at the "right" stop (which we did) and follow the directions to the restaurant (which we didn't) and were subsequently rescued by very kind workers at Singita (the restaurant we were headed to).



Singita more than lived up to my expectations - it was fabulous. It is a restaurant on the beach (more like a bar, with free food). You can rent beds that face the ocean, which are comfortable and relaxing and as cool as it sounds!



We ordered Singita sangria (a pitcher) and while they brought us tons of pasta plates we watched the sun set over the ocean. It was windy, but magical :)