Villa Borghese…

I am now a huge Bernini fan. That guy could sculpt! At the top of Rome is a park (much like Central Park is to New York). It is a huge park with lakes, palaces and museums. The most famous museum is the Galleria Borghese. It was once a palace belonging to the amazingly wealthy Scipione Borghese. He, of course, wanted everyone to know how incredibly wealthy he was, so he made this very ornate and expensive mansion. Being an art lover – he collected, commissioned, and sometimes stole incredible art. There are several Bernini sculptures, the most notable being- the young David; Apollo and Daphne; Pauline Bonaparte and Plato and Prosepina. There are also several Caravaggio and Raphael paintings.

We started out as a family and then the boys decided they would rather go to the amusement park. That left the girls and I to a leisurely hour and a half of audio guide heaven. It was so nice and relaxing to just wander and listen to the backgrounds of each piece. I have never seen a sculpture like those where it looks like clay the way it is so lifelike and smooth. How they do that with marble is amazing to me.

After the museum, we rented a surrey and pedaled through the rest of the park. What a delightful afternoon. It even rained during some of our ride, but we were protected by the canopy and didn’t care!

when in Rome…

We loved the two places where we stayed in Rome. The first was right off the Campo de Fiori. This is what the outside looked like.

This is the really cool looking neighbor’s home with gorgeous flowers.

This is the view from the apartment towards the Campo.

In this apartment, we were right in the center of the action. It was so fun to be a part of the energy of the city. In the morning there was a farmers’ market and in the evening there were people walking aound, performing and restaurants lined the square with their patio dining. This was Jon’s very favorite neighborhood and we even came back to eat our last dinner here and walk around.


The boys loved knowing how to use the "nose" fountains to get drinks of water!

Two minutes away was another very fun square, Piazza Navona. The kids loved watching all of the artists at night painting and doing caricatures. Their favorite was a painter who was using spraypaint (both by spraying and by dabbing the paint) to paint a landscape picture. I loved the fountains by Bernini.


The second apartment we stayed in was a little bit farther north. Still in the city center, but at the top of it.

I loved this apartment because it felt like we were living in a real neighborhood where Romans lived. It was a little less touristy, yet not far from it. The owner was a very sweet man who lived a floor beneath. When we checked in, and he was showing us around, we asked him where we might buy a new stroller as we lost our other one on a train and swere going to the Vatican that afternoon. He said he thought that he had a stroller we could use, and ran downstairs to get it.

So we went to the Vatican, as you know, and having the stroller helped so much! On the way home, we went to the pizza place two doors down to grab some pizza, and then home. The next day we went to get the stroller and realized it was gone. In panic, we searched the apt and then recalled our previous day. We realized we had left it in the pizza place and went back to find it. They said that it was there, but someone came in and asked for it and they gave it to her.

I couldn’t believe that we had to go to sweet Giancarlo and tell him that we lost his stroller. Of course we did, and he was so kind. He told us not to worry about it. When we insisted, he said he would talk to his wife and let us know how much it would be. Later, he knocked on our door and said they would not want us to pay for it and that it was no problem. Amazing graciousness! I loved that apartment. It was on the 5th floor and the kitchen had a balcony that looked onto the Villa Borghese Park. From the front windows, we could look onto the Piazza de Popolo.

This is the building with the apartment.
From our fifth floor apartment, this is our view to the right.

This is our view from the left (notice the archway to the Piazza de Popolo).

This is the view from our kitchen patio.

Yay!! Laundry!! We fit right in, drying our underwear on the patio. I must say, they come out so fresh and nice.

Here is our trusty washer that we really worked hard. It is right in the kitchen.

Speaking of kitchen, is this cool or what? The cupboard has a built in dish rack that drains into the sink. So you wash your dishes, put them in the cupboard to dry and then the next day you already have your dishes put away and ready to be used again. Why don’t we do this at home??

This was the elevator in the building to get to the 5th floor. You close the little doors and the gate and go up. The kids loved it....except Lauren. She said it reminded her too much of the Tower of Terror ride at Disneyland, so she happily walked up and down the stairs most of the time.

Here is our dear new friend, Giancarlo.

the vatican...

This was a good day. We packed up our suitcases, left them in our apartment and then walked around the Campo dei Fiori market. The girls and I found a few cute clothes in a little store near the market and then we moved apartments (more about that later). After we checked into our new apartment, we left for the Vatican.

That is an inspiring place. There is SO much to see (and so much to walk) that we had decided previous to our tour that we would only hit the "main sights" so as to preserve the sanity of all those who must deal with Andrew. I did my research at home before we came here and found a step by step guide to the necessary shortcuts, etc. to make the most of our visit. It worked perfectly! (Although I did need to beg in Italian for one guard to let us through a "tour guides only" door!)(I was pretty proud of myself.)

In the middle of the Vatican museums, with St. Peter's Basilica in the background.

The beautiful spiral staircase which is actually the exit.

A copy of the Pieta by Michelangelo. The original is in St. Peter's Basilica but didn't photograph well. This is a very moving sculpture that shows the love Mary has for her Son.

NOT the Sistine Chapel. But it got me thinking...here is an INCREDIBLE ceiling - why is this one not so famous. There are actually a lot of incredible ceilings in a lot of churches around Rome. It is interesting which ones become the must see famous ones, and which ones you kind of walk through to get to the famous ones. By the way, look at how many people! We felt fortunate to leave with all four children at the end of the tour!

Close up of the Not Sistine Chapel ceiling. Speaking of the Sistine Chapel, it really is quite an experience to see what you have read and studied so much, in person. It is incredible. It is in this big chapel with tons of people in it. We found a bench to sit on by the wall and just looked all around, above us. Even Andrew was moved and sat still and quiet. It could be because of the security guard that would, every 15 seconds, clap his hands and yell "Silence Please!" "No Photos." We recorded his voice so that we could use his authority at home. Of course we didn't dare take any photos either!

St. Peter's Square. They were getting set up for the Papal audience the next day.

In St. Peter's Basilica. It is so ornate and huge.

I love being with these guys!!

the colosseum...

We loved the Colosseum. We were able to go on an underground tour (which was unavailable until recently). It was amazing to see the cages where the animals were kept, the tunnels and passageways and the organized water system. The water was used both to fill up the colosseum floor for ship battles; and to wash away all of the morbid leftovers after a gladiator battle.


This next picture shows one of the water passageways througout the Colosseum floor.

If you look at the next picture, you will see the little "elevators" where the slaves would, with ropes, lift the animal up to the stage where it would "appear" for battle. These elevators were used for the smaller animals, whereas the elephants and lions would be brought in through a gate outside. Incredible! Elephants? Lions?! Our guide said that it took 4-600 slaves all working underground to make the shows happen.

Part of the underground tour was also the privilege of going on the very top, 3rd tier. The view was incredible and we could see all around Rome.

They have restored a part of what the stage would have looked like - covering all of the mazes and tunnels underneath.

It is amazing to me to walk outside the bus or metro and see the Colosseum in all its glory just standing there. It used to have marble on the entire exterior and interior...wow. Must have been gorgeous!

We met our next tour guide outside the Colosseum and walked over to tour the Forum and Palatine Hill. Andrew had decided he was completely uninterested, so Jon and I took turns watching Andrew climb on rocks (mostly Jon did) while the older kids paid more attention to the tour. They found it fascinating and learned a lot about what life in ancient Rome would have been like.

The touring day ended with a late lunch and a trip to the famous Giolitti gelato store. This was my favorite gelato so far... After gelato, we walked home in a rain storm.

things I have learned about Italy...

1. They LOVE little children! Andrew is the rock star here. Everywhere we go people cater to him. Waiters do magic tricks for him and talk with him. Farmers at the market give him fruit. Strangers pat his head. They fall over backwards when he uses his Italian. We are lucky to be with him!

2. Little children have a hard time sometimes in Italy. We can pretty much count on a daily breakdown from Andrew. We ARE pushing him as we are on the go a lot (and a bunch of rocks called the Forum is not of particular interest to a 4 year old). A stroller and a little stash of treats help a lot. Somehow, he gets a second wind around 9:00pm and is roaring until the end. He is a trooper and is doing mostly great.

3. Frizzy, curly hair is okay in Italy. There are many beautiful women who have frizzy, curly hair. I feel right at home. I haven't flat ironed my hair since the first day. Ahhh - liberating!

4. Scarves make any outfit look more fashionable. I gotta get me more of these.

5. People are very helpful. It is easy to ask for directions, or help as we need it. Everyone tries to do their best to assist us. (Could be related to point #1)

6. There are policemen EVERYWHERE! In fact, there are GROUPS of policemen EVERYWHERE. This is comforting in a big city.

7. Fresh food is available to buy everyday. There are many outdoor markets that sell everything.

8. There are pizza shops everywhere.

9. It is incredible how many VERY old things are everywhere. It is so strange to walk around and see buildings, monuments, etc. that are thousands of years old!

10. Public transportation is easy and convienent (except during a strike).

oh how I love the markets...

I was so excited our first morning in Rome to wake up early and walk a block away to the market at Campo dei Fiori! It was a beautiful collection of flowers, produce, pasta and various products.

The wonderful bakery next to our apartment.

Inside the bakery.

The butcher.

The cheese shop.

Flowers at the market.



Fresh produce, artfully displayed.



Look how this lettuce is all cut, cleaned and displayed standing up - LOVED THIS!

Fruit vendor.

That night I made a dinner using all our fresh ingredients - pesto (from Levanto) pasta, asparagus, caprese salad, arthichokes and strawberries. Yum.

The next day, I brought the rest of the family to the market. We found this vendor who sold these gadgets that make cool spiral veggies, etc. It actually does a lot of garnishing things with vegetables. Andrew was enamored with the product. We bought it and Andrew has not stopped carrying it around and talking about it. We are going to buy carrots at the market today so that he can use his new "vegetable cutters!" (The vendor gave us a you tube link that shows how to use the product if we forget... http://www.youtube.it/ mercatoportaportese. - just in case you were as interested as Andrew!)