Steps today: 21 199 / 13.98 km
Our last change of home-bases for this trip, we moved to Rome today
I took a chance on our hotel that's not a hotel - it's like a B&B in a way, but not in someone's house. It's seems to be a private business where someone has retrofitted apartments into hotel rooms and manages it himself. We had to tell him what time we'd be arriving so he could give us the keys etc... so that's why I say it's like a B&B.
This is our 5th visit to Rome (2003, 2006, 2013, 2019) and for the past 3 trips we always stayed at the same hotel a little further away from the center to save money... but I was becoming disenchanted with it and besides, I like to explore new neighbourhoods, so this time instead of lazily rebooking the same place, I searched for something new and found this. We were in walking distance of just about everything: 15 minutes to Piazza Popolo. 20 minutes to Piazza Navona and Saint Peter's Square. 25 minutes to the Spanish Steps. 30 minutes to the Trevi Fountain. 45 minutes to the Colosseum.
I did have 2 minor complaints about the hotel : 1 - The lack of hooks! We needed a few hooks by the door to hang our coats instead of in the wardrobe clear across the room, and hooks in the bathroom near the shower to hang your towel. 2 - the keys were insane! Not just a keycard like a normal hotel room which you can slip into your wallet, but a whole key ring with old-timey four inch long keys that you have to carry with you because there is no reception to let you in the building. A key for the door to the street, then a key to enter the building, then a key to enter the apartment, then a key to unlock the door to our room. Lucky for me, Frank carried them the entire time.
The room was ready, but it took a little time to check in because he had to give us a tour of the place, explain the keys, and also book our transport to the airport on the day we leave. (more on that later!)
We finally got out and hit the road a little after 1, and my plan was Piazza Navona for lunch.
After lunch, we walked over to the Largo di Torre Argentina - not to see the ruins, I am SO OVER "rocks on the floor" - but to see the cats. Last time I was here, we had just had to give the GO to put our cat down, so I was a blubbery mess and seeing cats was not helping!
This time, it was fun trying to spot them.
Get a load of this chonker!!! Yowza! It's a cat-ball!!
Next: ANOTHER attempt to visit the Basilica Santa Maria Sopra Miverva. On every trip to Rome so far there has been a reason (which I now cannot recall) why we could not visit it. Today was our lucky day. It was so beautiful ... but they all are! I can't narrow down the pictures.
Chilling?
It was just after 4PM: Aperol Spritz O'clock, so we decided to go to the cafés around the Piazza della Rotunda and admire the Pantheon. No such luck! the fountain is being renovated so the views were less than great... but it's ok, I have a pile of pictures from our previous trips.
My drink was great!
After this, we made our way to Piazza Popolo.
And my plan was to have an Espresso Martini at Rosati. This is where I had my first one back in 2019 before they were so popular like they are now, and I wanted to relive the experience. I also remember that they served a lot of pretty snacks with their drinks instead of the usual chips and nuts most places offer.
The snacks were as pretty as I remembered, but to be honest: a little stale, and caviar does not mix well with Espresso Martinis!
We strolled around the area after for a while...
Saw the Spanish steps which are ALWAYS too crowded but from this angle with the flowers, it doesn't look so bad....
Then decided on a snack-supper at Canova, a place we've been to on previous trips that offers great views of the piazza for free, and so-so food for a fortune... so I didn't order much. It's a tourist trap, but we knew it going in and I wanted the views!
We headed back to the hotel after this, it was about 8:30 which was relatively late for us!
Another fun day :)
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