The Day I Became a Trat Queen
In the words of the one and only Fetty Wap, "I'm like hey, what's up, hellooo". Welcome to day 2 in Rome! We have a busy day, kind of, so hold tight.
The Mancub was very excited to go to the Colosseum, so that's how we started our day. We saw it the night before, but he wanted to go inside and see the history. I was pretty apathetic on this one - you know, because of the throngs of people - but it was actually pretty amazing! Those alleys you see in the bottom there - that's where I imagine they kept the bears. Don't crush my dreams if it's not true.
We pre-purchased our tickets, and my word of advice for this one: PRE-PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS. We had to wait in a very quick line, but the people waiting to buy tickets were not so lucky. There were people standing outside offering tours for an extra price, my mom used them and said she was able to walk right in. We went in March, they went in August, so it might be more worth it in August. It's a judgment call! (Just pre-book). There are also tours than can take you into exclusive places, but you can see plenty on your own. Unless you're really into Ancient Rome, I probably wouldn't.
Also, for the first time on our trip, it was really effing hot. I was regretting my outfit choice, so please excuse the haphazard way it's hanging off my shoulders. Prash saw this hole and told me to stick my hand into the Colosseum, and I did it. Nothing bit me, don't worry.
We walked around here some more, and then sat on
a rock in the shade because I was turning into a human made entirely of sweat. Such an attractive visual, right?
After the Colosseum, we had tickets to the Roman Forum. However, it was hot and almost lunch time and that line looked about an hour long, just to get in the door. Instead, we walked up the hill beside the entrance to the Forum. At the top, there is a really pretty church that does free tours of the church, grounds, and an overlook of the forum. We didn't take the tour because someone was getting hungry, but we did find this really cool door on our way back down! I think it was actually part of the church gardens, but I wouldn't know because we didn't take the free tour.
Before we did anything else, we needed gelato, and I needed to go buy a new shirt. Yes, it was that hot. Prash tried to take gelato into Zara and the security guard kicked us out until he finished it. After finding my new favorite shirt, we headed toward the Pantheon for lunch! We ended up at the Taverna del Seminario. It was pretty good, but it wasn't as good as the lasagna I had at the Osteria the day before. That's my benchmark and I'm sticking to it.
We had heard the Spanish Steps were overrated, but, I mean, when in Rome, right? We headed over and so many selfie sticks. So, we developed a game. I picked a number, if there were less than or equal to selfie sticks, he bought the next round of drinks. More? I got stuck with them. There was also a 5-minute time constraint. If you sit there long enough, you're going to see enough selfie sticks. One other thing to know, I always instinctively pick 12. Yet another thing to note is that we had wine with lunch, so when the Mancub told me to strike a pose, I definitely did.
While sitting on the steps, we googled the best sights to see in Rome - we were running out of ideas. If you google that, know that we hit them all and they're pretty cool. Piazza Navona was gorgeous! I lost the selfie stick game again, so I owed us two rounds. Drinks are expensive here because it's a tourist square, so we kept it moving. But it was still gorgeous.
We ended up having drinks at Campo de Fiori. During the day, it's basically a farmers market. At night, the restaurants surrounding the square expand their patios and it becomes a pretty cool place to hang out. Prash had his first beer in nearly a week here, he was a happy camper. Look at that cute face.
After a few drinks, we went for a walk before dinner and ended up at Capitoline Hill. Oh, holy stairs. Definitely got my workout in that day! Once we got to the top, it was worth it! The view was great and we got there right as the sun was going down. That, my friends, is what they call perfect timing.
I'm finally going to explain the Trat Queen thing. There are (generally) three levels of restaurants, in order of fancy pants, an osteria, a trattoria, and a ristorante. We were going to a trattoria for dinner at the recommendation of my mom. Prash was really excited about it so kept asking me, "You want some trats?". From there, he started singing Fetty Wap, but instead of a Trap Queen, I was a Trat Queen. I'll take it.
We had some time to kill before dinner, so we put the maps away and went for a walk. You might remember from the first Ireland trip that I can sniff out breweries. As luck would have it, we walked right onto a brewery! Naturally, we went right into Open Baladin Roma. They had a big selection and the drinks were really good. If you're in Rome and sick of wine (who is that person?!) check it out. You won't be disappointed.
Finally, it was time for dinner. Trattoria der Pallaro is a freaking dream come true. It's a family run place and all of the food is cooked by the sweet, little, Italian grandma who comes out to greet guests in her apron and headscarf. That being said, there's no menu - you eat what she cooks. It's all delicious. There is a flat rate of 25€ and for that you get: bread, 4 appetizers, a pasta course, a meat course with two sides, dessert, an aperitif, and UNLIMITED WINE. You guys, this food was so good. We walked away stuffed and buzzed and wanting to go back. Prash enjoyed it so much that he took this picture to show my mom how much he liked it. I could totally go for some trats right about now.
The patio is also closed in and heated, so it's a nice change of pace from sitting side a restaurant all the time.
After dinner, we headed back to our hood over by the Vatican. It was late, so we thought we would go see the Vatican at night. We had tour tickets for the next day, but as I said before, everything looks better at night.
That's all for tonight! Next time will be our last day in Rome. Will there be trats? Will there be osters? Will there be wine!? Okay, that was an easy one. But for the other two, there's only one way to find out!
The Mancub was very excited to go to the Colosseum, so that's how we started our day. We saw it the night before, but he wanted to go inside and see the history. I was pretty apathetic on this one - you know, because of the throngs of people - but it was actually pretty amazing! Those alleys you see in the bottom there - that's where I imagine they kept the bears. Don't crush my dreams if it's not true.We pre-purchased our tickets, and my word of advice for this one: PRE-PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS. We had to wait in a very quick line, but the people waiting to buy tickets were not so lucky. There were people standing outside offering tours for an extra price, my mom used them and said she was able to walk right in. We went in March, they went in August, so it might be more worth it in August. It's a judgment call! (Just pre-book). There are also tours than can take you into exclusive places, but you can see plenty on your own. Unless you're really into Ancient Rome, I probably wouldn't.
We walked around here some more, and then sat on
a rock in the shade because I was turning into a human made entirely of sweat. Such an attractive visual, right?
After the Colosseum, we had tickets to the Roman Forum. However, it was hot and almost lunch time and that line looked about an hour long, just to get in the door. Instead, we walked up the hill beside the entrance to the Forum. At the top, there is a really pretty church that does free tours of the church, grounds, and an overlook of the forum. We didn't take the tour because someone was getting hungry, but we did find this really cool door on our way back down! I think it was actually part of the church gardens, but I wouldn't know because we didn't take the free tour.Before we did anything else, we needed gelato, and I needed to go buy a new shirt. Yes, it was that hot. Prash tried to take gelato into Zara and the security guard kicked us out until he finished it. After finding my new favorite shirt, we headed toward the Pantheon for lunch! We ended up at the Taverna del Seminario. It was pretty good, but it wasn't as good as the lasagna I had at the Osteria the day before. That's my benchmark and I'm sticking to it.
We had heard the Spanish Steps were overrated, but, I mean, when in Rome, right? We headed over and so many selfie sticks. So, we developed a game. I picked a number, if there were less than or equal to selfie sticks, he bought the next round of drinks. More? I got stuck with them. There was also a 5-minute time constraint. If you sit there long enough, you're going to see enough selfie sticks. One other thing to know, I always instinctively pick 12. Yet another thing to note is that we had wine with lunch, so when the Mancub told me to strike a pose, I definitely did.
While sitting on the steps, we googled the best sights to see in Rome - we were running out of ideas. If you google that, know that we hit them all and they're pretty cool. Piazza Navona was gorgeous! I lost the selfie stick game again, so I owed us two rounds. Drinks are expensive here because it's a tourist square, so we kept it moving. But it was still gorgeous.
We ended up having drinks at Campo de Fiori. During the day, it's basically a farmers market. At night, the restaurants surrounding the square expand their patios and it becomes a pretty cool place to hang out. Prash had his first beer in nearly a week here, he was a happy camper. Look at that cute face.
After a few drinks, we went for a walk before dinner and ended up at Capitoline Hill. Oh, holy stairs. Definitely got my workout in that day! Once we got to the top, it was worth it! The view was great and we got there right as the sun was going down. That, my friends, is what they call perfect timing.I'm finally going to explain the Trat Queen thing. There are (generally) three levels of restaurants, in order of fancy pants, an osteria, a trattoria, and a ristorante. We were going to a trattoria for dinner at the recommendation of my mom. Prash was really excited about it so kept asking me, "You want some trats?". From there, he started singing Fetty Wap, but instead of a Trap Queen, I was a Trat Queen. I'll take it.
We had some time to kill before dinner, so we put the maps away and went for a walk. You might remember from the first Ireland trip that I can sniff out breweries. As luck would have it, we walked right onto a brewery! Naturally, we went right into Open Baladin Roma. They had a big selection and the drinks were really good. If you're in Rome and sick of wine (who is that person?!) check it out. You won't be disappointed.
Finally, it was time for dinner. Trattoria der Pallaro is a freaking dream come true. It's a family run place and all of the food is cooked by the sweet, little, Italian grandma who comes out to greet guests in her apron and headscarf. That being said, there's no menu - you eat what she cooks. It's all delicious. There is a flat rate of 25€ and for that you get: bread, 4 appetizers, a pasta course, a meat course with two sides, dessert, an aperitif, and UNLIMITED WINE. You guys, this food was so good. We walked away stuffed and buzzed and wanting to go back. Prash enjoyed it so much that he took this picture to show my mom how much he liked it. I could totally go for some trats right about now.The patio is also closed in and heated, so it's a nice change of pace from sitting side a restaurant all the time.
After dinner, we headed back to our hood over by the Vatican. It was late, so we thought we would go see the Vatican at night. We had tour tickets for the next day, but as I said before, everything looks better at night.
That's all for tonight! Next time will be our last day in Rome. Will there be trats? Will there be osters? Will there be wine!? Okay, that was an easy one. But for the other two, there's only one way to find out!
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