The McCutcheon's Take Italy: Part 11 of 11

July 11, 2019: Rome

Candace, Jimmy and I went to Castel de Santangelo in the morning. We got really lucky because there was no line to get in. Over the years it's been a fortress, prison, castle and is now a museum. There was a special exhibit by BVLGARI showcasing "jewelry throughout the years". I preferred the cannons and lookouts as opposed to the jewelry but to each their own.

After exiting the castle we grabbed a sandwich on the go and continued walking to Vatican City to meet mom and dad. We had scheduled a 12:00pm entry time for the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. We made it through everything in about 2 hours but it was PACKED.

After, we grabbed a cold drink and soaked in some A/C in a small cafe before heading to St. Peter's Basilica. Candace, Jimmy and I climbed the steps to the dome where we had a 360 view of Rome. The stairs leading up were really tiny and the wall started to slope downward following the shape of the dome which was a bit unnerving. The top was incredibly crowded. While the view was really pretty, I'm not sure if it's a must do activity. We walked back down and explored the main level of the basilica which is for sure a must do activity. It's by far my favorite. It's large, ornate and absolutely stunning.

After our reverent afternoon we headed back to the airbnb so that we could all get packed. Even though tomorrow we'd be leaving this beautiful country we still had one more night and we weren't going to let it slip away. First on the agenda was drinks at a small wine bar. I should clarify, the building itself was small but the drink menu was huge. There were over 100 bottles to choose from and we were completely lost. Our waiter offered to help and chose a subtle red for us. He then asked if we wanted any olives or cheese to go with it. We had already told him we weren't eating, just drinking, so we assumed these treats were free, just like at some of the cafes before. However, once the cheese arrived we knew it wasn't complimentary. In fact, it was almost as expensive as our bottle of wine. That was the first time we had experienced something like this. After finishing our wine and unnecessary,  uncomplimentary cheese plate, we walked to dinner.

We sat outside at a beautiful local spot with live music across the way. Dad, Candace and I shared carbonara (dad's favorite) and amatriciana, while Jimmy had pizza with ham and mom had gluten free cracked black pepper pasta with grilled veggies. So Italian of us! Not to mention our house liter of red wine, obviously. After dinner we went for gelato at our favorite place in Rome, Gelato de Teatro (the place we had been introduced to during our food tour) It was a great end to a great trip in a great country.

The McCutcheon's Take Italy: Part 10 of 11

July 10, 2019: Rome

On today's agenda was a cooking class with Chef Andrea. There were 12 of us participating, so it was a full kitchen. We made eggplant parmigiana. Mom and dad were in charge of cutting and deep frying the eggplant, which we then put into ramekin bowls, layered with buffalo mozzarella, parmigiano and homemade tomato sauce, before baking. The result was delicious! Our next course was homemade potato gnocchi with tomato sauce (again made from scratch using fresh tomatoes) and after we enjoyed beef that was lightly floured and cooked with tomatoes and arugula. For dessert we made lemon custard topped with fresh peaches. Everything was made from scratch and boy was it delicious. I was especially excited for two reasons: 1) I had recommended this cooking class and after the flop that was our food tour I needed to redeem myself and 2) Chef Andrea remembered me so he specifically chose dishes that were different from the ones I had cooked last time I was in his kitchen. One of the tips he gave us was to always cook your veggies and starches first and then skin them. We cooked the potatoes and the tomatoes prior to skinning them and damn were they hot! Although this is supposed to bring out the best flavor, it definitely takes a toll on your fingers. After filling up on lunch we walked back to our airbnb for a rest.

Mom, dad and I went to the Pantheon, and then stopped in the street to enjoy the music of a violinist accompanied by a little girl dancing her heart out, before meeting Candace and Jimmy for a late dinner.

Dinner was at Ivo a Trastevere, a place Chef Andrea recommended for roman style pizza. It did not disappoint. Dad, Candace and I split white pizza with gorgonzola and apple and red pizza with buffalo mozzarella, tomato and basil. Both were delicious.

After we had dessert (obviously!) 

We then stopped to watch a street performer whose show was totally awesome. He did fire limbo, balanced bottles on a stick that he held in his mouth, did balancing acts on wooden boards and finished with a series of flips. After cheering him on and throwing a few coins his way we continued on our walk home, full and happy after another eventful day in Rome.

The McCutcheon's Take Italy: Part 9 of 11

July 9, 2019: Rome

We were up and out by 7am to go to the Colosseum. There's a new system (apparently implemented in March) that mandates each visitor must reserve a visiting time slot prior to coming to the Colosseum. However, Candace and I found this out yesterday while trying to finalize our itinerary for Rome. All online spots were booked. Oops. Our plan for today was to arrive early and hope that we could get a day of spot. Divide and conquer. Candace and Jimmy waited in the line at the Colosseum entrance while mom, dad and I went to the ticket office near the exit of the Roman Forum. We waited until 8:30 when the office opened and were given a 9:40 timeslot. Perfect. Just enough time to use the bathroom and grab a coffee and croissant before heading inside. Bypassing the ticket line is for sure the way to go. It was incredibly long and because we had an entry time we got to walk right past. We wandered around inside, looking at the ruins and exhibits for about an hour.

Then we made our way to Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. Luckily for us it started to rain lightly, which cooled us off and put us under cloud cover. The views from Palatine Hill are really grand.

After exploring we decided to get the bus back but to our dismay we waited for the first cycle, second cycle and finally third cycle of buses before we found out that traffic had been suspended and rerouted because of a man threatening to jump inside of the Colosseum. We decided to walk back which got us caught up in a wave of protesters. We eventually made it out of the fray, hot and sweaty, not really sure what had happened.

We cooled off and ate lunch at the airbnb. We needed a rest because later in the evening we'd be heading out for a food tour. I was really excited for this particular food tour because it was through the same company Mark and I had used when we were in Rome. I couldn't say enough good things about our first tour, so I made sure to book the same one for my family. Since my family didn't have anything to compare it to they were satisfied, but I felt like it was sub par at best. Our guide this time around didn't give us much history at all, nor did he chat with us as we walked from one location to the next. He didn't provide a lot of explanation about our food or why it was important or unique to Roman culture. Even though he was a bit of a dud, we still had some really delicious food at some cool spots, including: ham with pistacchios, deep fried cod, pasta with black pepper, pasta amatriciana and flavored gelato. The deep fried cod place, Filetti di Bacala, and the gelato place, I had both visited on my initial tour and loved so I was glad my family got to experience them.

 One of the few historical things we did learn on our tour pertained to the jewish quarter of Rome. There used to be a wall separating the people living in this area from the rest of the city. Pictured below are remnants from the wall.

After the tour mom and dad went home and Candace, Jimmy and I walked along the river where there are tons of pop up bars, restaurants, souvenir vendors and games. We enjoyed a beer and listened to some live music before making our way back to the 'bnb. When we got there we were relieved to see that mom and dad had in fact made it back and were not wandering the streets of Rome, lost and alone.