Tag: rome
Naples- Last Day!
I am thrilled to be here in Naples but am disappointed that we only allotted 2 nights for this fabulous city. For me the highlights have been Bologna and Naples. Sorrento, Amalfi, Positano and Capri were very nice but I think I like the cities- so much more to explore and so much more to eat! Well, there was plenty to eat in Sorrento as well- we did have some yummy meals but nothing compared to the big cities.
Morning started the usual way, exercise and breakfast… we ventured out soon after that and headed to the National Archeological Museum which is very close to our hotel. It was filled with all the artifacts from Pompeii… it was fascinating! After a few hours, we headed to a very highly rated dessert place called, Pasticceria Poppella…it was delicious stuff, but to go. We ate some pastries and realized a very high rated pizza place was just a 100 feel away, called Pizzeria Oliva. We walked over and saw a crowd waiting outside, we put our names down and found out there would be about a half an hour wait. As we waited with the rest of the crowd, one of the owners came out and started giving out small fried pizzas to everyone- topped with mozzarella cheese and a bit of sauce- they were delicious… small pillows of fried dough, not greasy at all. He then brought a bottle of beer and poured it for some of the people. After about 45 minutes our turn came and we ordered the fabulous pizzas- one with mushrooms and the other one with spicy salami. The pizzas were delicious- better than yesterdays! Yummy sauce, cheese and toppings!
After a very satisfying meal, we walked around the city for another few hours and finally got back to our hotel to rest our tired feet and have a drink and sit in the courtyard… Time to research dinner places!!!
So, we didn’t do any research and decided to jus walk out and explore. We walked and walked and finally came up with a place to go- La locanda dei borboni… it was empty when we got there- which was at 8:30 but as we sat down, the place started to get crowded. We started off with a fabulous bottle of red wine- it so good… ordered an octopus salad to start. We also got fried calamari and shrimp, a gnocchi with seafood and spaghetti with anchovies, pine nuts, raisins and crushed crackers- that one was mine and it was delicious- more Sicilian flavors with the sweet and savory- I love that flavor profile and so I was delighted with all the food- it was all delicious… what a nice way to end the trip! I ended the evening with a panna cotta with a berry sauce on top- exquisite!
So, my final thoughts…well, this trip has been fabulous and feel lucky to be able to experience different cultures myself and also expose my daughter to all the world has to offer outside of the US. I will fondly remember Bologna and Naples. I enjoyed Sorrento, Amalfi, Positano and Capri but Naples has definitely captured my heart… and I can’t wait to come back!
Very Crowded Capri, For The Day!
Okay, so I am not sure if people are going to be too happy reading this post about our day in Capri… Don’t get me wrong, we had a lovely day… it started early as we took a ferry from Sorrento around 9:45 to Capri. The line was long and the ferry was packed… half an hour later we were in the hyped up island. As we got off, it kind of looked like Santorini.. wait, I thought.. have I been here before?? Santorini was completely barren.. no vegetation at all.. Capri was quite green but other than that it looked similar with shops and restaurants all around. There were about a hundred groups being managed by different companies, including about 200 kids visiting from Rome. We all walked towards the funicular to get to the center of the island which was perched up on one of the hills. With the huge crowd we made our way up and got to the center. By this time, I was quite unhappy with the amount of people everywhere.. I guess I should have known, Capri is a super touristy and obviously there will be loads of people. The center was filled with designer stores and high priced restaurants.. we walked around finally got to the beautiful gardens that have the stunning views that everyone is familiar with (the two rocks coming out of the ocean)… it was definitely beautiful but I am not sure if it was worth it.. am I glad I visited Capri… well, yes, I think so… would I recommend it to anyone… hmm, I am not sure. It is just a tourist trap…I am afraid I sound a bit jaded- I don’t mean to… but I can’t help myself.
We took a bus from the area to go to the other side of the island called Anacapri… it was less crowded and we found a yummy trattoria off the beaten path, called, Le Arcate. We ordered a bottle of house rose, a mushroom pizza and a pasta with seafood… I was hesitant to eat pizza as I am saving my pizza appetite for Naples… Well, the food was delicious! We sat, relaxed and finished the bottle and walked around some more and then back we went to the crowded part on the bus and then got on the line for the ferry to get back to Sorrento.
I was thrilled to be back in Sorrento, even though I thought it was touristy but… nothing in comparison to Capri… If you are planning on going to Capri in the summer, good luck to you… I can’t imagine how crowded it gets…
Back in Sorrento, we walked the narrow streets and tried to decide where to go for dinner in a few hours. We started looking on TripAdvisor.com, which is a source we use all the time while traveling. The app is great as one can look for restaurants close to where you are. While taking a rest in our hotel room, we found a hole in the wall place outside of the main, touristy area- bingo! That was the one we wanted to try- it was called La Cantinaccia Del Popolo. In the reviews, it said that it was a deli with house cured meats… it had a few tables and was family run and very little Italian was spoken. We decided to take a chance and headed that way. We got there and no one was sitting down for dinner except one woman. A friendly guy came over and asked if we spoke Italian, we told him we spoke very little… he sat us down and her daughter set the table for us and served us some house wine. With some broken Italian and hand gestures, we ordered a plate of antipasti which included some hams and the most delicious cheeses. As we ate, the woman sitting there started eating a huge steak served on a wooden board- I knew I wanted that for dinner! As we enjoyed the homely atmosphere, another couple came and sat down who didn’t speak Italian and had read about this place on trip advisor. We started chatting and suggested they get the antipasti…
Our steak came and it was delicious… delicately flavored with rosemary… as we were finishing the young girl asked us if we would like to try a melon and apple liquor her grandma made- of course, we did, and they were yum!!! We then asked about the tortes we saw in the glass case- we decided on the apple one as well as a ricotta and pear one- wow, they were delicious!!
It was an amazing experience sitting in the friendly place with very generous people- these are the experiences I wait for when we travel- it really gives an amazing glimpse to a foreign culture…
Rome Day 3- Lots of Gelato and Pasta
Day three started with a good breakfast and a trip to the Colosseum. We then walked all the way to Piazza Navona on our way to lunch. We were exhausted and ended up at a small restaurant in a tiny little alley. We sat down, ordered lots of water and a half liter pitcher of white wine.
Ravioli with Sage & Brown Butter
We ordered a few salads and pasta. I ordered the pasta carbonara, which was delicious! It was creamy, savory and perfectly al dente! We sat there for a while, refueling our batteries and mapping our way to the best gelato place ever! We stumbled upon (Gelateria del Teatro) it yesterday and were dreaming about it since. I had a combination of white peach rosemary with raspberry sage. The flavor combinations were amazing… If you are in Rome, I would highly recommend this place. Before we leave, we may visit that place a couple of times..
Some more walking and a bit of shopping later, we found our selves in Piazza Novona, in a cafe with a glass of Prosecco. We lounged for an hour and headed back to the hotel to rest up our achy feet for dinner.
Dinner was at an amazing pizza place called Pizzarium near the Vatican. It came highly recommended and we eagerly walked out of the metro to find this restaurant. We were meeting some friends there and were worried about getting a table for all 8 of us. Turns out it was a take out place- the saving grace was that there was a bench right outside the place where we parked ourselves for several hours sampling all kinds of delicious pizza including onion and anchovy- piles of soft, cooked onions were covering the pizza with drops of anchovy sauce- it was amazing. Sparkling wine complemented the meal and we were all happy….
Tuscany Day 5 & 6- Montalcino and Hello Rome!
The large group decided to divide up and do a few different things. Two groups left early morning to visit Florence. One group was staying back and exploring locally. I was part of the local group and we decided to explore a town called Montalcino– about an hour and a half from Monticiano. Montalcino is known for it’s Brunello wine.. that is what got me interested. We made our way through the beautiful windy roads and got to the most beautiful town with hills and grapevines everywhere. We walked around, enjoying the quaint stores filled with wines and specialty items. We found a delicious restaurant called Il Pozzo. We ordered the most yummy dishes including carpaccio of zucchini, panzanella salad, spaghetti with ragu, pappardelle with mushrooms and gnocchi with ragu. I washed it all down with a glass of Prosecco and Brunello wine.
Zucchini Carpaccio
Panzanella Salad
- Gnocchi
Pappardelle with Mushrooms
The last day was filled with food, family and some more delicious wine. We made our way back to Rome mid morning. After a few hours of struggling with the gps, we found our way to the hotel, unpacked and made our way to the Spanish steps- but before that, there was a critical stop at a gelato place for some delicious pistachio and hazelnut treat topped with whipped cream. I remember having whipped cream on my gelato on my first visit to Rome 14 years ago. It was a memorable experience I was able to replicate… it was delicious…
Yummy Gelato!
The next two days continued filled with pizza and delicious pasta…
Spaghetti with Mussels
Day Eight- Part Spello and Part Rome
Day eight was our last in Spello. The day before I was busy shopping for things to take home. While I was at the local supermarket, I found these cookie like confections. We had tried them earlier through the week and I wanted to eat them one last time before we left. I bought them for breakfast on our last day.
I woke up the next day and got ready and did some last minute packing. I was sad to leave Spello but very excited to be in Rome and ultimately home. No matter where we go I am always very happy to be home. Nothing like your own familiar surroundings and your own bed!
I came down to the kitchen and started breakfast. I made coffee in the similar contraption as what I have at home. This was the first time I didn’t travel with mine. I remember walking into the kitchen the first time in the Spello apartment and smiling as I saw the coffee maker.
I had my coffee and the delicious cookie like cakes covered with sugar and stuffed with a chocolate marzipan filling. They look like mini doughnuts but taste a lot better. I wanted to pack some and take home but I settled on two for breakfast.
After breakfast we headed to Rome. It took us a while to drop our luggage off to the hotel and then return our car. As we drove into Rome, I realized it had been almost 10 years since I had been to this lovely old city. It made me nostalgic as I looked around- it reminded me of Delhi.
We finally got everything done and took a bus to the old part of Rome across the Tiber- Trastevere. It is a section that is a mix between Soho and old Barcelona. It has small cobblestone streets full of restaurants and funky, upscale shops. We walked around and settled on a Trattoria with seating outside. Dinner consisted of lasagna, pasta primavera which was unlike the one we get in the US. This was mostly tomato sauce and pasta, topped with fresh arugula and chunks of fresh mozzarella cheese. It was delicious! I had a rigatoni with sausage in a cheese and cream sauce- very yummy!
After dinner we walked some more and took a bus to the colosseum. What a beautiful structure- especially at night.
It was a very brief stay in Rome- I am glad we did it. It reminded me how I really enjoyed visiting this city last time and how I would like to come back very soon.
Day Seven- Without Big Plans….
Day seven began a little different. We decided to go out for breakfast instead of eating in. We went to a local cafe- Tullia. I think we were looking forward to something savory with our tea and cappuccino but we soon found out they only served sweet pastries and croissants. I settled on marmalade croissant and a cappuccino. The croissant was okay but the cappuccino was out of this world.
We then walked around Spello some more and went back to another cafe with great views of the town. There we shared sandwiches and pizza and some white wine.
The plan was to go to Gubbio and possibily Orvieto. Both towns seemed very interesting and lovely from the descriptions. We took small roads there instead of the highway- beautiful hills and valleys. We drove into the outskirts of Gubbio and saw as usualy, no one was there- we always end up visiting these towns between 2 PM and 4 PM- siesta time. Anyway, we walked around a bit and decided to go back.
I wanted to go back to Spello and buy things to take home. I bought white and black truffle paste, honey, pecorino and parmesan cheese and a blasamic glaze. 
We also bought 3 wines from the Sportoletti winery and a bottle of organic extra virgin olive oil.
I am so excited to come home and try some recipes and use these ingredients.
Laziness was the word of the day. We headed back and shared a bottle of white wine and anticipated dinner. The winery owner had recommended a restaurant in another town. We found the place after a lot of driving and searching. We were very excited and hopeful of the food but were quite disappointed. I think this was our first mediocre meal in Italy. We had ravioli, gnocchi and a few meats. It was nothing special at all. We were quite disappointed since all our other meals had been above average.
We drove back determined to make the next day- our last day- a good one. We leave for Rome this morning and stay the night before we head home to Maplewood. I will report on our Rome adventures tomorrow- stay tuned!