It was time to head back to Europe. This time with a party of three versus only two of us. We couldn’t find a direct flight to Rome, but I wanted to avoid Atlanta. Next option was a connection in Miami – sold.
Temps to expect – okay, a break from the heat of Florida.
Next flight got us overseas. Surprisingly I slept! Not enough of course but more than in the past.
Woke up to this view of Italy.
Upon landing in Rome, we were prepared to go through a new Entry/Exit System (EES) that was mandated to start 4/10/26 – shortly before our trip. Everything I had heard was be patient, the first time it will take longer and future trips would be a shorter process since everything would be on file. As we prepared to go through Passport Control, we were suddenly directed to go up a flight of stairs, get in a line for ‘non-Italians’, to go down an escalator to the original entry point! Basically, they were making us form a queue since it was a compact space and a number of flights had landed. Yikes, this is going to take us awhile. After taking the escalator down, passengers with a US or UK passport were directed to the left side of the holding area. We were waved through a number of gates and OMG within minutes we were through and at the luggage carousels. No stopping, no stamping and no more interactions.
After a taxi ride with our talkative drive, we arrived at our first AirBNB. Eric had detailed instructions for the four keys needed for this place. First a phone call that automatically let us inside the first door. Then the actual keys in a mailbox, with the longest one needed to get through the iron portal doorway. Another key was for the elevator – luggage and one person was all the space available. Adrienne and I walked up two flights of stairs and met Eric outside of the door utilizing his fourth key to get inside. Whew!
Two bedrooms, two bath rooms and a small kitchen.
Then you had the world’s most uncomfortable couch. Yikes! Minimal padding with a wooden frame – maybe it was a daybed? The red cover was hiding it.
First order of business – food. At the end of our block was several options. Restaurant 433 it is!
Drinks & bread before a quick photo.
Then the meal arrived: Buffalo mozzarella, pasta de pepe and pasta carbonara.
Next order of business was a short nap before walking the streets of Rome. We locked in our destination (Piazza Navona) and started walking. It was the original site of the 1st century Stadium of Domitian. The stadium was commissioned as a gift to the people of Rome and used almost entirely for athletic contests. It was Rome’s first permanent venue for competitive athletics, seating approximately 30,000.
On our last visit, work was being done on some of the fountains. This time all three were working. The center one the famous Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or Fountain of the Four Rivers. The rivers collectively represent four major rivers of the continents through which papal authority had spread: The Nile, The Danube, The Ganges and the Rio de la Plata representing the Americas. Below is one of the four sides.
Really liked the detail on some of the sculptures.
At one end is the Fontana del Moro or Fountain of the Moor depicting a nautical scene with tritons, dolphins and a conch shell. The basin was constructed in the 1570s, with sculptures added in the 1650s.
At the north end is Fontana del Nettuno or the Fountain of Neptune. The basin was designed in 1574 without the sculptures for 300 years. The fountain as it exists today was finally completed in the 1870s following a competition.
We continued walking and came across the Pantheon. You might ask why we didn’t go in? We did it on our last trip and that time we hit a few of Rome’s highlights. We were checking off a lot of things that time. I got a quick shot while the other two were looking at meats & cheeses.
All this walking worked up an appetite, and we found Vecchio Locanda down this tiny alleyway.
Octopus w/ potatoes along with some parma was a hit.
There is art everywhere, even in the alleyways. While eating, this was our view from our outside table.
The night was so nice, no rain and a comfortable temperature that we did some walking around our area. We are near the Tiber River.
This spot is the meeting point for our food tour the next day – a hint about the next post.
We headed back towards our apartment, and suddenly you are looking at ancient ruins, surrounded by more modern architecture.
I wanted some dessert before heading back to our place. Outside of a number of restaurants there was a ‘handler’ that approached, asked what you would like and upon mentioning dessert, we took up his offer of a table.
Savory before sweet so we ordered fried meat-stuffed olives – quite delicious – and fried artichoke.
Finally we got to the desserts. Three selections were made and shared.
Now it’s time for bed!
Darden Travels 