Friday, June 09, 2006
June 7, 2006 – Florence to Rome
Note: Donna wrote this entry.
Today was a light day comparatively. We were allowed to sleep in until 9 am before getting back on the coach to leave Florence and head to Rome.
We arrived at our hotel, which was on the outskirts of Rome around 3:30. After a brief rest we headed into the old city for a short walking tour and evening driving tour. During our drive into the old city, our tour manager warned us how she ranks Rome a 9.9 out of a scale of 1 to 10, as a place most likely to be pick-pocketed. Andrew made sure to wear the pouch that Jacob had bought him, that fit under his clothes. It wasn’t exactly discrete, as you can tell in most of the photos where it is located. We repeatedly had a good laugh at it. What it lacked in style, it made up for in safety. No one was reaching under Andrew’s clothes for his money or passport, that was for sure!
We started our walking tour at the wall that used to enclose the entire city of Rome. From there we went to the Spanish steps, although there were so many people sitting on the steps that we were barely able to see any actual steps.
Next we went to the Trevi Fountain. You are supposed to throw in three coins for luck; Andrew and I are satisfied with our current luck and chose not to throw in any coins, while Bonny decided to throw in three Swiss Francs. You can’t cheat luck, which Bonny found out the next day.
Our final two stops on the walking tour included the Pantheon, which was closing, so we only were able to see the outside and the Piazza Novona.
Our group was grumbling about food by this time, so we headed off to a relatively inexpensive Italian meal. Bonny, Steph, and I all ordered a pasta dish, which although small, were all delicious. Andrew ordered a calzone, which came out about 45 minutes after our meals. I am not sure he felt it was worth the wait, but he did say that it was excellent.
It was 9:15 pm by the time we finished dinner, so of course we hurried to get some gelato. I think this was by far Andrew’s favorite gelato stop; they offered him whipped topping and he accepted. I had three new scoops of gelato and we took a nice photo stop to capture our delight.
We finished the evening with the driving tour, which included a stop at the Colosseum at night. We were told that they were driving around because there was no way to see all of Rome in one day. Little did Andrew, Bonny, and Step know about what was in store for them the next day on my “little” walking tour. I covered everything that we saw on the coach that night!
Today was a light day comparatively. We were allowed to sleep in until 9 am before getting back on the coach to leave Florence and head to Rome.
We arrived at our hotel, which was on the outskirts of Rome around 3:30. After a brief rest we headed into the old city for a short walking tour and evening driving tour. During our drive into the old city, our tour manager warned us how she ranks Rome a 9.9 out of a scale of 1 to 10, as a place most likely to be pick-pocketed. Andrew made sure to wear the pouch that Jacob had bought him, that fit under his clothes. It wasn’t exactly discrete, as you can tell in most of the photos where it is located. We repeatedly had a good laugh at it. What it lacked in style, it made up for in safety. No one was reaching under Andrew’s clothes for his money or passport, that was for sure!
We started our walking tour at the wall that used to enclose the entire city of Rome. From there we went to the Spanish steps, although there were so many people sitting on the steps that we were barely able to see any actual steps.
Next we went to the Trevi Fountain. You are supposed to throw in three coins for luck; Andrew and I are satisfied with our current luck and chose not to throw in any coins, while Bonny decided to throw in three Swiss Francs. You can’t cheat luck, which Bonny found out the next day.
Our final two stops on the walking tour included the Pantheon, which was closing, so we only were able to see the outside and the Piazza Novona.
Our group was grumbling about food by this time, so we headed off to a relatively inexpensive Italian meal. Bonny, Steph, and I all ordered a pasta dish, which although small, were all delicious. Andrew ordered a calzone, which came out about 45 minutes after our meals. I am not sure he felt it was worth the wait, but he did say that it was excellent.
It was 9:15 pm by the time we finished dinner, so of course we hurried to get some gelato. I think this was by far Andrew’s favorite gelato stop; they offered him whipped topping and he accepted. I had three new scoops of gelato and we took a nice photo stop to capture our delight.
We finished the evening with the driving tour, which included a stop at the Colosseum at night. We were told that they were driving around because there was no way to see all of Rome in one day. Little did Andrew, Bonny, and Step know about what was in store for them the next day on my “little” walking tour. I covered everything that we saw on the coach that night!
Andrew 6:34 PM