Franc’s 3-Day Tour of Rome
Wow Wow Wow! In case you haven’t heard, Franc just got back from a whirlwind trip to her family’s home in Italy. La vacanza è stata favolosa! (The vacation was fabulous!)
After so long of no travel, a quick three-day tour of Rome was on the itinerary, with Franc sharing all her highlights below. Unsurprisingly, most are food based! Enjoy!
Gelato and Spanish Steps: Without a doubt, the first stop is always gelato – and at the Spanish Steps if you can manage it! Did you know they have police on the Spanish Steps to ensure everyone is behaving – and that means no food or drink allowed! So grab a gelato from one of the many shops nearby and hang out in the piazza at the base of the steps for some people watching and La Dolce Vita (the sweet life!)
Porchetta Pizza and Trevi Fountain: Every morning, my favourite way to do breakfast is with a porchetta pizza by the Trevi Fountain. That’s right – some may say cappuccino is the way to go but I say salty, juicy roast pork in a pizza before 9am is the best! Luckily, my favourite deli/café L'Antico Forno di Piazza Trevi is right next to the fountain! Did you know it’s said that if you throw a coin into the Trevi, you’ll come back to Rome? So many people do this, it’s estimated that over 3,000 Euro (about $4,350 AUD) is collected each day. What do they do with all the money you ask? It’s donated to charity. Go Italy!
Campo de’ Fiori and Pasta Carbonara: Campo de’ Fiori has long been known for its daily food markets. Although they’re pretty touristy now, they’re still fun to wander through. The highlight here really is my favourite restaurant in all the world (no really, we went here three times in three days!) Osteria da Fortunata. Wow. There are people out the front making fresh pasta all day which they then cook fresh. Carbonara is one of their most famous dishes as is cacio e pepe - which is basically cheese, pepper and more cheese. You can’t book, so just turn up and join the queue.
Other Must Sees:
Castel Sant’Angelo is also another really cool place to visit that’s not always on everyone’s hit list. Make sure you climb to the top (there’s a café to get a cold drink) and enjoy the views across Rome along with the stunning artworks and frescos in every room.
The Pantheon, the queue to go inside was sooo long! But really worth it to learn about the history of this building said to be the oldest building in the world that's still in use today.
The Colosseum is without a doubt one of the icons of Rome and super cool to visit. So much history and so massive! Just make sure you buy your tickets online BEFORE you visit – the ‘officials’ that hand at the entrance to help with tickets are rarely very ‘official’!
Ciao!