(light blue = on foot / dark blue = bus, metro, train etc)
Castel Gandolfo:
Rome:
Today we went to Castel Gandolfo, a town about an hour south of Rome that used to be the summer home of the Popes, until Francis decided to put the kibosh on that extravagance and turned it into a museum. It was nice; the Papal Apartment was quite sparsely furnished, but I think had it been any more opulent that would be too scandalous – it was neat to see the Pope-Mobile and the Pope’s bedroom.
After the palace we toured the gardens, but that means a little open-air bus with audio guide that slows down for picture stops and you can’t get out. It’s not possible to explore on foot since it covers over 50 acres. I was disappointed because I would have enjoyed a garden stroll, but we had no choice. The ride was a little under an hour.
It was a nice activity to occupy our morning, and then we had lunch in a nice restaurant overlooking Lago di Albano… what a treat!
This is my favourite setting: eating with a water-view. It was so beautiful that I wasn't even upset that my main meal (white lasagna with truffles) was CLEARLY microwaved left overs of last night's menu!
We caught the train back to Rome a little before 3PM and I napped the whole way back. Aside from sleeping off a heavy lunch, I also slept badly last night so I was exhausted. The walls of our hotel room are paper-thin and we can hear TVs and snoring in adjoining rooms. I DO NOT remember this from previous stays. I am sure I got less than 6 hours sleep last night.
Back in Rome, I was still burping up memories of lunch so we went for a drink so I could push the food down with a digestif. AHHH… Grand Marnier is magical. We found a great spot in the porticos of the Piazza della Repubblica.
Refreshed, we head out to the archeological site of Largo di Torre Argentina which also houses a cat shelter. It was nice to see all the kitties living there, over 100! But when I went into the visitor center and saw all the indoor cats curled up in their beds, I just started blubbering. UGH the poor woman who greeted us must have been so uncomfortable! Through tears I told her: “Il mio gatto e morto”, but after 3 minutes we just left. Too much too soon. It was so awkward.
The heat and shade were just perfect for the next item we had to check off: the Basilica di Santa Maria in Arecoeli. It’s 124 steps up to the door and I was not willing to do that in the sun! It was worth the climb today, gorgeous interiors… and I lit a candle for JR again.
We had just a sliver of an appetite for supper, so we decided to try the café that overlooks the Colosseum where we had breakfast on Sunday to have a drink and a sandwich. It was perfect, minus my Aperol Spritz "in the wrong kind of glass".
We totally lucked out – just as we arrived, another couple on the end table was leaving so we got a full on view of the Colosseum as the sun was setting.
It was the perfect way to end the day, I could not have asked for more.
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