Started the
day with cornetti from the local bakery then set out to meet family members who
are in Rome en route to Tuscany to get married.
We are a little early so have
coffee at Collo Oppio. It is more expensive than the local neighbourhood bars
but the coffee is good and the view priceless.
We meet up
at the metro & head out to Circo Massimo. Well that is the plan but we are
so busy talking that we get on the wrong train & end up in the wrong
direction! This doesn’t bode well as we are supposed to know what we are
doing!!!
Eventually
we reach Circo Massimo & make our way up to the keyhole that is a ‘must
see’ for the family. Suitably impressed, we move on to the Orange Garden with
another spectacular view. After family photos we each go our different ways. We
are going to Testaccio market. We eventually reach here after waiting an hour
for a bus. Public transport in the city is great – just don’t believe the
timetables!
The old
market has been replaced with a brand new building. It is light & airy – we
are impressed.
Once in the
market we head to Morda Vai for Panini. We know we are at the correct stall by
the queues. We choose chicken meatballs in a tomato sauce – delicious.
After
shopping for supplies we make our way to the riverside to pick up a bus to take
us all the way back to Via Nazionale, a short stroll from the apartment.
We are
meeting up with the family again tonight but first we take a look at the Pozzi
corridor in the rooms of St Ignazius Loyola. Yet another amazing example of the
use of perspective in art and, best of all, free to enter. A hidden treasure in a corner of the city.
We make our
way to Campo di Fiori, passing through the delightful Piazza Mattei & the
Turtle Fountain. Not so hidden but a treasure all the same.
In the
corner of the tiny piazza is the door to the apartment of Tom Ripley as featured in the film
‘Talented Mr Ripley'. Normally the door is firmly closed, today the door is open. I resist the urge to
peep in to check if the staircase is the same as in the film.
We are
meeting the family at their hotel & have taken Prosecco along to toast the
forthcoming nuptials. We then head out to Trastevere and Da Ivo for pizza. Not
only is the pizza delicious but the staff are so good with the little, almost
two year old, in our party.
After
dinner we take the soon to be newlyweds out to the Trevi fountain – not only to
throw in their coins but to drink from the Lover’s Fountain.
We say
goodbye & wish them luck.