Finished most of a sweater:
and had a lovely Sunday night dinner party:
Oysters with Bagna Cauda Butter
Grilled Fish with Homemade Tartar Sauce
Caesar Salad
Bulgar Pilaf
It's been bliss. Definitely a fabulous weekend!
3.08.2009
We Interupt This Blog For A Regular Post
I'm interrupting the Italy posts (only 4 more to go!) for a "regular" post. This has been the most perfect weekend in the 'No - high 60's, clear skies, nothing on the calendar to do... So I:
Finished most of a sweater:
and had a lovely Sunday night dinner party:
Oysters with Bagna Cauda Butter
Grilled Fish with Homemade Tartar Sauce
Caesar Salad
Bulgar Pilaf
It's been bliss. Definitely a fabulous weekend!
Finished most of a sweater:
and had a lovely Sunday night dinner party:
Oysters with Bagna Cauda Butter
Grilled Fish with Homemade Tartar Sauce
Caesar Salad
Bulgar Pilaf
It's been bliss. Definitely a fabulous weekend!
3.05.2009
Italy: Day 4
Our final morning in Rome was spent at the Vatican & St. Peter's Basilica. And really, nothing you've read about or photos you've seen before can really prepare you for it.
This altar, called the Altar of the Confessio used 6,200 k. of metal. Seriously?!?
The Pieta, carved by Michelangelo at 21. Want to know what I was doing at 21? Oh, nevermind....
We decided to walk back to our hotel and hit the other major sites along the way. We stopped for some wine and pizzas at a place called "Friends Cafe" (which, after some Goggling right now, I learned was named for the actual American Sitcom...) They had this amazing gorgonzola, arugula, and grilled raddicho pizza that was to DIE for.
Recharged, we ventured on to the Pantheon, which is the oldest standing domed structure in Rome.
Seems very appropriate that from where I was sitting I was starring directly into a McDonald's, no? There were also like a gazillion teenagers sitting around that fountain, which limited out time there. So we headed inside.
This oculus, or opening at the top, admits the only light into the structure. Lucky for us it wasn't raining that day.
We continued on to the Trevi Fountain, and threw our coins in to ensure our return to Rome (yes please!)
(Had to steal this one from Google since I apparently didn't upload any of ours)
We did some shopping for the family and headed back to the hotel for a siesta, then showered and headed out for the night. First stop? Hard Rock Rome! It was nice to see something somewhat familiar, but we stayed true to our location and ordered Campari's and Peroni's.
We then walked down Via Vittorio Veneto and found a cute little outdoor place outside the Hotel Imperiale and settled in. We had some more Prosecco, and some cured meats to start. I had Pasta Arrabiata and I can't remember what Matt had, but it's a safe bet it was Veal. We finished with Tiramisu (for the 4th night in a row!) and leisured over our bottle of wine until almost 11pm. We fell asleep that night full and happy and a little sad to be leaving Rome!
***edited to add***
While in Rome, Matt and I were mistaken for locals NO LESS than four times. Two people even asked us for directions in Italian (my 1/4 heritage must have been screaming through ;) )
This altar, called the Altar of the Confessio used 6,200 k. of metal. Seriously?!?
The Pieta, carved by Michelangelo at 21. Want to know what I was doing at 21? Oh, nevermind....
We decided to walk back to our hotel and hit the other major sites along the way. We stopped for some wine and pizzas at a place called "Friends Cafe" (which, after some Goggling right now, I learned was named for the actual American Sitcom...) They had this amazing gorgonzola, arugula, and grilled raddicho pizza that was to DIE for.
Recharged, we ventured on to the Pantheon, which is the oldest standing domed structure in Rome.
Seems very appropriate that from where I was sitting I was starring directly into a McDonald's, no? There were also like a gazillion teenagers sitting around that fountain, which limited out time there. So we headed inside.
This oculus, or opening at the top, admits the only light into the structure. Lucky for us it wasn't raining that day.
We continued on to the Trevi Fountain, and threw our coins in to ensure our return to Rome (yes please!)
(Had to steal this one from Google since I apparently didn't upload any of ours)
We did some shopping for the family and headed back to the hotel for a siesta, then showered and headed out for the night. First stop? Hard Rock Rome! It was nice to see something somewhat familiar, but we stayed true to our location and ordered Campari's and Peroni's.
We then walked down Via Vittorio Veneto and found a cute little outdoor place outside the Hotel Imperiale and settled in. We had some more Prosecco, and some cured meats to start. I had Pasta Arrabiata and I can't remember what Matt had, but it's a safe bet it was Veal. We finished with Tiramisu (for the 4th night in a row!) and leisured over our bottle of wine until almost 11pm. We fell asleep that night full and happy and a little sad to be leaving Rome!
***edited to add***
While in Rome, Matt and I were mistaken for locals NO LESS than four times. Two people even asked us for directions in Italian (my 1/4 heritage must have been screaming through ;) )
3.02.2009
Italy: Day 3
Onto Day 3. We were able to sleep in a bit and have a leisurely breakfast. On that note, I need to pause and say that this is the best breakfast I have EVER had.
Cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes, ham... seriously? I only wish that my life back here allowed me to walk 5 miles a day like we did in Rome so I could eat this way every morning.
Anyway, we finished up and headed over to the Spanish Steps (only about a 20 minute walk from our hotel). We stopped to watch a group of people who we can only assume were raising awareness of the Kyoto Treaty. They were dressed up like a heard of penguins and parading all over the steps.
Matt modeling Beau on the Spanish Steps
After ducking into a cafe for a Cappuchino (which we are now both addicted to), we headed back to Barberini Square to share some pizza, panini, and a bottle of wine for lunch. We scored a great table in front of the cafe/bar and met some fellow travelers from both Australia and Ireland. We also watched a crazy dude run around the square and try to scare people.
Around 2pm we headed onto our "Crypts and Catacombs" tour. The Catacombs of St. Callixtus, Catacombe di San Callisto were outside the city walls, and were fairly interesting. We then headed to the Basilica of San Clemente, which was a 12th century church built on top of a 4th century church, which was built on top of a common-living area from the 1st century.
Matt and I both agreed the common area was the most interesting - there is still running water leading into the ruins of old homes that no one knows the source of. All the floor tiles and walls of the homes were original!
The final stop of the tour was the Cappuchin Crypt. I'm not even going to explain to you what the inside of the Crypt was like. Just click here. Story of these guys here.
That evening we ventured to dinner at a place near our hotel that I read about in a magazine, Otte e Mezzo. The service and wine was fantastic, but we were just a bit disappointed in the food. Don't get me wrong that is a relative term, because I still think it was a great meal. Just a bit pricey and smaller portions compared to other meals we had consumed.
This was also an adventure because this was the one place we had been where they spoke pretty limited English. Our waiter tried pretty hard, but I think I ordered something I didn't intend to ;)
Cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes, ham... seriously? I only wish that my life back here allowed me to walk 5 miles a day like we did in Rome so I could eat this way every morning.
Anyway, we finished up and headed over to the Spanish Steps (only about a 20 minute walk from our hotel). We stopped to watch a group of people who we can only assume were raising awareness of the Kyoto Treaty. They were dressed up like a heard of penguins and parading all over the steps.
Matt modeling Beau on the Spanish Steps
After ducking into a cafe for a Cappuchino (which we are now both addicted to), we headed back to Barberini Square to share some pizza, panini, and a bottle of wine for lunch. We scored a great table in front of the cafe/bar and met some fellow travelers from both Australia and Ireland. We also watched a crazy dude run around the square and try to scare people.
Around 2pm we headed onto our "Crypts and Catacombs" tour. The Catacombs of St. Callixtus, Catacombe di San Callisto were outside the city walls, and were fairly interesting. We then headed to the Basilica of San Clemente, which was a 12th century church built on top of a 4th century church, which was built on top of a common-living area from the 1st century.
Matt and I both agreed the common area was the most interesting - there is still running water leading into the ruins of old homes that no one knows the source of. All the floor tiles and walls of the homes were original!
The final stop of the tour was the Cappuchin Crypt. I'm not even going to explain to you what the inside of the Crypt was like. Just click here. Story of these guys here.
That evening we ventured to dinner at a place near our hotel that I read about in a magazine, Otte e Mezzo. The service and wine was fantastic, but we were just a bit disappointed in the food. Don't get me wrong that is a relative term, because I still think it was a great meal. Just a bit pricey and smaller portions compared to other meals we had consumed.
This was also an adventure because this was the one place we had been where they spoke pretty limited English. Our waiter tried pretty hard, but I think I ordered something I didn't intend to ;)
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