On Friday afternoon, Elena and I started off travel week 2 by taking the train to Rome to meet my mom! Since we didn’t get in until late, we just hung out in the room catching up with mom. The hotel we were staying at was close to Trevi Fountain, so after breakfast on Saturday we walked there and to the Spanish Steps where we happened to meet this nice man from Rome. Franco is an art professor at a 7 year program that concludes with a month in the United States where he takes the students to art museums in NYC, Washington DC, Charleston, SC, and Savannah, GA. When we asked him about good restaurants for dinner, he told us about this fantastic place called “C’era una Volta” which translates to “Once upon a time”. Franco even called the restaurant and made a reservation for us! When we went to dinner that night with Vanessa and her mom Linda, all the waiters were so happy to see the “friends of Franco”. Our waiter Ricardo picked out a fabulous meal of fried vegetables, pasta, pizza, and an assortment of deserts.
Sunday morning we slept in a little bit before walking to the Colosseum. The Rome Marathon was going on all morning, so thankfully we missed most of the congestion around Ancient Rome. We met up with a tour group that took us through the Colosseum then to Palentine Hill and the Roman Forum. It was incredible to see the old styles of architecture and the views of Rome from the Hill.
We loved our tour guide Fi so much that we booked a tour of the Vatican Museum with her for Monday morning. The artwork in the museum was amazing to say the least. From paintings to marble statues, this huge museum offered a glimpse of thousands of years of Roman history.
Tuesday morning Mom and I left Rome and flew to Barcelona. Emmita met us at the airport and helped us navigate the train and metro stations to get to the apartment we were staying in. She had to go to work at 4 so after Emmita left we had a late lunch at a mediterranean restaurant before taking a siesta. Once Emmita was back from work we went to the Gothic Quarter to look around and get tapas. The culture in Barcelona is vibrant yet laid-back; it just has a cool vibe to it. Walking around the Gothic Quarter was really fun because, like Venice, there are so many narrow alleyways to explore. Before going back to the apartment we stopped by a bar to get a drink and chat.
Emmita took us to a cafe for breakfast Wednesday morning before showing us around the city. The first stop was La Sagrada Familia, a large Roman Catholic church designed by Gaudí and began construction in 1883. It has progressed slowly over the years and should be completed in 2026. It is astonishingly huge and definitely the most unique and interesting churches I have ever seen. After a quick metro ride we arrived at the Port where Emmita had to leave us and head to work. On our own, Mom and I walked to the water and just enjoyed sitting by the shore. It wasn’t warm enough to swim but there were a few surfers braving the cold and wind.
After a delicious lunch at an Irish pub, we rented bikes and peddled around the port before visiting the Picasso Museum. While he is very well known for his abstract art, his early work is absolutely breathtaking. As a child he painted scenes of Barcelona seascapes, Málaga landscapes, and portraits of various family members. The museum itself is really neat since it’s set in 5 palaces on Carrer de Montcada.
Mom and I had an early flight back to Italy on Thursday morning with Ryanair. Their customer service is awful and it was by farm the most miserable flying experience I have ever had. Once we landed in Treviso, we went to Paderno to drop some stuff off and get re-situated before taking the train to Venice. Prior to now, I had only been to Venice one day for Carnevale. It was less crowded a much calmer atmosphere this time.
I have a lot more to update on from this week but I’m headed to Lake Como tomorrow morning, so the rest will have to wait :)
Ciao!
No comments:
Post a Comment