Last night Matt and Anna got in around 8pm and we had welcome drinks ready. The four of us enjoyed the night skyline from the top terrace of the Airbnb with a cocktail and then Matt and Anna freshened up from their flight before we went to dinner. Sara had made a reservation at a place around the corner recommended by our host called Il Duca in case they were up to going out after they arrived. The reservation was for 9:30/10 as the gentleman at the restaurant said but we ended up getting there around 10:30. The place was completely packed and it was probably better that we were late because they were able to seat us right away. The food was pretty good if not a little heavy and the portions were huge. We did get artichokes though (high five)
The Airbnb is in a very popular part of Rome that has tons of bars and restaurants, even after we finished dinner around midnight the streets were so full that it would have been hard to walk anywhere purposefully. Thankfully we were without purpose and so enjoyed meandering the streets filled with Romans and expats enjoying a relatively warm evening, spilling out of bars and restaurants, drinking wine and beer from plastic cups and bottles. We walked down to the river and watched the street musicians for a while and then headed back to the apartment for a nightcap on the terrace above the street.
This morning was sort of overcast but warm, we had a coffee from the bar directly in front of the apartment before taking off for a day of sightseeing. Being Matt’s first trip to Europe we made sure to show him a bunch of cool old stuff on our way to the Coliseum. Unlike when we were here six years ago in January, today the major attractions were packed with people and the line was almost two hours long. We decided to buy the Roma Pass which gets you into a bunch of museums and archeological sights for discounted rates or free and allows you to jump the line. It also lets you ride the buses and metro for free so if you plan to see more than one or two places it’s a pretty good deal. Plus not waiting in line with street hawkers in your face for two hours has got to be worth something…
The sun was out and it was a great day to explore the Coliseum. After we heard a few of Dave’s art stories, it was time to go in search of lunch. We ate pizza at a place near the Pantheon, the restaurant was kind of weird but the pizza was ok (more flatbread than Neopolitan style). It started to sprinkle a little bit as we left lunch, but since we were right there we decided to go into the Pantheon (we confirmed the hole in the middle does not have glass in it when the sprinkle turned into a steady rain) and walked through Piazza Navona.
After that we turned back to the apartment, stopping on the way for a coffee and at the grocery store for wine. It’s now raining fairly heavily and we plan to sit on the terrace under the awning and watch it rain while enjoying said grocery store wine. A great way to spend a Sunday evening with friends!