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	Tom & Shirley's Page -- 2022 Rome
	The Great Pandemic of 2020/2021 saw the cancellation of All travel (certainly to Europe in 2020), so previous plans for England in 2020 were a no go and not much was promising in 2021 for European travel either.   We’d been planning for years to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary in Rome so it was to be in 2022……two glorious months in the city of our hearts.
	We rented a great apartment, just outside of Trastevere (a hop, skip and simple bus ride away).   We got a lot of space for the money and our landlords were simply marvelous! The neighborhood was perfect, plenty of grocery stores, bakeries, restaurants, take away deli’s as well as many shops and a daily fresh market just a block away!   Additionally, we lived like Romans, it was a lively area of everyday life.
	Absolute Highlights of the trip:
	•  Colosseum underground tour-especially since it was Blazing hot that day!
	•  Day trip to Ostia Antica.
	•  Colosseum underground tour-especially since it was Blazing hot that day!
	•  Day trip to Marino for the Wine Festival.
	•  Day trip to Frascati.
	•  Overnight to Pompeii.
	•  Overnight to Orvieto.
	•  Tour of Castel Sant’Angelo.
	•  Vatican night tour.
	•  Capuchin crypts tour and concert.
	•  Borghese Museum.
	•  Hiring a photographer and having a photo shoot in Rome.
	•  Baileys on the terrace each night.
	Lowlights of the trip:
	•  Tom trying to kill me on an Appian Way bike tour…
	•  Eataly…..total waste of time.
	•  Crazed bus driver in the dead of the night…..
	Wonders of just roaming:
	•  There were gardens galore that were enjoyed and often in hidden spots.
	•  The zoo is Absolutely worth a visit.
	•  Take in a concert at a church, we did, Vivaldi, The Four Seasons, at Piazza Navona.
	•  The National Etruscan Museum, impressive.
	•  Villa Farnesina, excellent.
	•  Jewish Ghetto, lively, sad, definitely worth a visit.
	•  The Pantheon…..what is there to say?
	•  Musei Capitolini, very interesting.
	•  Botanical garden, worth a visit.
	•  Non-Catholic cemetery.
	•  Underground Roman houses on Caelian Hill.
	Excellent restaurants, quaint walkways for great photo shots, fountains galore, parks in abundance, ruins around every corner, opulent churches, friendly people…..so very much offered from Rome.   Our itinerary always leaves room for just walking an area.   Some end up boring but some are just stunning.   Depends on what you like.   There are always Doors, doors, doors and more doors to photograph and surely a church or two as well as 2000 year old ruins….just over there in the hole in the road!   Amazing.   And always easy to find music at a church.
	We ate fabulous food and drank great wine (and great beer)!   Pizza, Pasta, cheese…….oh my.   Best pasta I had was at Osteria Delle Coppelle.   Had an excellent dinner at Meridionale also.   The public transportation system worked Perfectly for us (hubs is a genius figuring it all out ahead of our trips…).
	The charcuterie boards were to die for…..just order them!!!.   Stopping for a cocktail is such a pleasant experience, Europeans and especially Italians, really know how to present…..always a little side dish of something..
	We tried to pace ourselves to enjoy our trip.   We aren’t youngsters, we are in our 70’s so a slower pace for sure than when we had our first trip to Rome (2004).   Part of what we wanted to do was to “live like Romans” and truly that we did.   Across the street was a local bar (Mad for Beer) and here the soccer games ruled supreme, often into the night with a cheering boisterous crowd.   They had no problem with us playing a card game while we were waiting for the kitchen to open, nor did another bar in town however the park up the street told us it was against the law {gamble} to play cards and we had to put our cards away……   Mornings in our neighborhood were bustling with students on their way to school, residents enjoying their morning coffees and shop keepers sweeping the sidewalks in front of their pristine shops.   On our lovely terrace we had our morning coffee and cribbage game daily and ended the day with Baileys and a little music each evening.   You can go to a park and enjoy a cocktail or coffee while watching families, well, be families.   We had a terrifying night bus ride…. like almost midnight…..missed our stop, crazy fast bus driver that acted like he didn’t understand what we were saying…..good outcome though, we recognized something near our stop and managed to get off…..after getting dropped off and getting back on the same bus!!!
	Hubs absolutely fell in love with the Aperol Spritz.
	Sacrilegious I know but I think we only had one gelato…….   We are from the Dairy State (Wisconsin) and custard reigns supreme here so the gelato is pretty unremarkable to us.   The baked goods were all to die for though, that is for sure and we had way more than our fair share! I would rather have a cannoli or a good cookie than a gelato any day and the bakery across from us had everything anyone could want, so fresh, so beautiful and so delish (thank goodness we were walking thousands of steps a day) with a simply wonderful owner.   One of those pretty little green packages of joy was always at our place.
	Don’t go on an Appian Way bike ride unless you are a pretty good bike rider.   We don’t bike here and the ruts, an assisted bike…..it was a disaster for me.   The e-Bike Tour Company was excellent though and did refund us since I crashed before we even started.   I did get pretty banged up and was only on the bike for less than a minute.
	This is a overview of our stay in Rome.   Below are a just a few of the photos from this trip.    Please contact us for further information on any of the tours or places we stayed.   Our place was lovely-landlords even lovelier; the photographer was awesome and our guides and tours were well worth any that was paid.   Rome was fabulous and in a lifetime, you could never see all she has to offer.   If anyone wants more detail or info on anything just email us at luvtworoam@yahoo.com.   We always like to help other trip planners as many have provided help and good advice to us.       ~Tom & Shirley
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Rome

		Almost there after a 9 hour flight.		Our home in Rome's Monteverde Nuovo neighborhood for the next 2 months.		This rental offered a large outdoor patio which we always appreciate.
		There was a bus stop right outside our apartment that got us to Rome's tourist sights in as little as 20 minutes.		This cutie was a frequent visitor to our apartment.		At the Colosseum on the Palatine Hill, Forum, Colosseum & Underground Tour.
		Villa Borghese Museum & Gardens is well worth the price of admission. The Garden is huge being the third-largest public park in Rome.		Various musical performances in our neighborhood add to it ambiance. We love this stuff.		The local butcher shop just down the street from out apartment.
		An open-air market just down the street sold just about every thing.		Interior of the impressive Baroque Church of the Gesu was consecrated in 1584.		Taking an afternoon break with my bella moglie.
		Happy 25th Anniversary Photo shoot arranged by Shirl.		Another from photo shoot.		One more from photo shoot.
		Alessandra, our lovely photo shoot photographer.		The lightly visited Orto Botanico in Rome's Trastevere district offers a quiet escape from the bustle of the city's streets.		At the Capitoline Museum, from Greek mythology, Medusa was a snake-haired woman who had the power to turn into stone anyone who dared to look her in the eye.
		Took a night-time tour of Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel. Highly recommended due to less crowds and cooler than day tours.		Spent the day doing a Janiculum Hill walkabout. It is a peaceful and refreshing attraction close to the city center. As you walk pathways, you'll enjoy superb views of the city.		Met this unusual Living Statue in Campo de' Fiore.
		A raid on the Roman Ghetto took place on 16 October 1943. These plaques are detailed with the victim’s first and last name, date of birth, date and place of deportation, and date of death in a Nazi extermination camp.		Villa Doria Pamphili Park and gardens is part of Rome's largest landscaped park, Villa Pamphili, and free to explore.		Took a train to Orvieto for an over night stay and personal city tour the next day.
		Apparently all this touring fires up the appetite in my lady.		Guided tour from Rome of Ostia Antica to see remains of the docks, warehouses, apartment flats, mansions, shops, and baths. It's a very cool place.		What the heck is that? Street food at Wine Festival in the little town Marino located 20 km from Rome.
		The spectacular Villa Borghese Gardens are located on the Pincian Hill. At the scenic overlooks you can see across the terracotta roofs, the historic center, and all the way to Vatican City.		Church of San Marcelo al Corso is another beautiful church in Rome to visit. Like many other Roman churches, it did not look too fancy from the outside but inside we discovered another amazing cathedral.		Spent a day in Pompeii touring incredible ruins left from the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD. The tour provides outstanding information on the art, customs, trades and everyday life of the past.
		Palace Altemps is part of the combined ticket which included access to this site plus Palazzo Massimo & Terme di Diocleziano. it's a collection of ancient art in a historic palazzo.		Roasted Chestnut vendor in Piazza Narvona.		An old friend from past visits, the Turtle Fountain in in the Jewish Quarter.
		Took a golf cart tour of the vast Villa Borghese Gardens.		The elephant and obelisk statue by Bernini in Piazza della Minerva near the Pantheon.		The Pantheon is the best-preserved building from ancient Rome and was completed in c. 125 AD
		Took the Castel Sant’Angelo Tour. Most famously, Pope Clemente VI holed up here during the 1527 sack of Rome.		Fontana del Mascherone (Fountain of the Mask). It's said on special holidays, wine ran from the fountain rather than water, thanks to the generosity of the Farnese family.		Day trip to Frescata for wine tour and lunch.
		Wandered about in the Villa Celimontana Park. There is a cool obelisk, fountains, gardens, ruins, kids playground, fish ponds. Not too big, not crowded, and free.		Exploring the free Villa Sciarra Park. The park is beautiful with fountains and palm trees, also offers scenic views, turtle ponds, winding hillside paths. Very peaceful and quiet.		This was suppose to be our Appian Way electric bike tour, but the bike got away from Shirl and she took a tumble. So, maybe another time (but I doubt it).
		During a Aventine Hill and Orange Garden park walk-about. Another great place to go for views over Rome.		Then, all too soon it seems, it was over. Arrivederci Roma.