Rome with Noah, Troy and Momma

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Visiting Italy and Rome

Direct flight from Atlanta to Rome
Troy, Momma, Me
Yes, those are my reindeer antlers.

I have been to Italy twice in my life over just the past few years and Rome on both trips. The first trip in 2016 was for several days from December 26, 2016 through January 1, 2017. That trip ended poorly with my brother, mother and I missing the fireworks for New Year's Eve and my brother ending up in the emergency room. The second trip covered just two days, 12/26/17 and 12/27/17; but they were well spent. My brother, mother and I all love the country and the city. We all intend to go back soon for another visit. Here is our story, pictures and travel tips.

One Night in Rome for Three Tourists

Annette, Troy and Noah
Trevi Fountain (Fontana di Tevi)

A single night in Rome is far too short of a stay in such a grand city as Rome, Italy. When visiting Rome, you should stay an entire week, two weeks, a month - or longer if you can. This Italian city has enough history, architecture, music, entertainment, night life, drama and excitement to last anyone longer than a lifetime. I've had two vacation trips to Rome. The first trip was for a little over a week. The second trip - the one I am writing about here - was only for one night, but even one night in Rome is memorable enough to add to your journal.

One Night in Rome Pg2

Once our hotel room at the Pantheon Royal Suite hotel was available, we were able to put up our luggage, freshen up, rest just a bit and head back out into Rome after dark. The map above shows our small walking loop starting from the Pantheon Royal Suite hotel, over to the Piazza Navona with its Fontana del Moro and a Christmas market, dinner at Osteria Pizzeria Di Agrippa and then back to Piazza della Rotonda and the Pantheon.

Morning in Piazza della Rotonda | Pantheon
View from hotel room balcony at Pantheon Royal Suite

After one night in Rome, we had to leave the next morning for Venice. This is our adventure that morning leaving Rome (it always seems to be an adventure for us).

Noah's Travel Blogs

Yes, I have traveled a good bit. I've been very fortunate. These pages give me a chance to organize my thoughts, share them with others and look back on them as I get older. Here are my other travel blog sites:

Noah's Travel Blog Sites

Saturday, December 31, 2016

Our First European Vacation to Italy

Troy, Momma, Noah
Vatican City 2016

My first European vacation to Italy was in the last week of December 2016 with my brother, Troy, and our mother, Annette. Christmas Day (12/25/2016), we flew Delta from Montgomery, Alabama (MGM) to Atlanta, Georgia (ATL) and then across the Atlantic to Rome, Italy (FCO). We were only in Italy for one week and flew back to the United States on January 1st (01/01/2017) with a pretty rough ending,

Learning to Speak Italian

Our European vacation to Italy did not just start with flying to Rome. There was much more to the beginning than just that. After we decided that we were going to Rome for our trip, we started researching airfare, hotels, tours, Rome attractions, historical sites, language, currency, weather, history and whatever else we could find.

Troy, Momma, Noah and the Colosseum
Via dei Fori Imperiali

Our first day in Rome was a really impressive and inspiring day. After arriving at the Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino International Airport (FCO), catching a taxi to the Hotel Opera Roma and then another taxi to the Via dei Fori Imperiali, we were in the middle of everything. It was already afternoon by the time we took the photo above.

Earbuds and Stickers for Guided Tour of Florence, Italy

After a good night's sleep, we got up early to catch an express train to Florence, Italy for a guided tour. We used https://graylinerome.com/out/florence/ and had an excellent excursion on the 'Full-day Florence by high-speed train at your pace'.

Our favorite tour company.

Wednesday, December 28, 2016 - This day did not start exactly as planned. The plans had been to have a guided tour of the Roman Colosseum in the morning and then a guided tour of Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum in the afternoon. Both of these guided tours were again booked through Grayline and the problem was not with them at all. In fact, they went above and beyond to accommodate us. The weather was great so that was not the reason. Our problem was jet lag. On day three, we all slept late... like really late into the mid-morning. So late, that there was no possible way of making our morning tour of the Colosseum.

Our favorite tour company

Thursday, December 29, 2016 - Naples is over two hours south of Rome so we had to get up very early to make our 7:30am bus departure. That was fine. We had slept late the previous morning due to jet lag and gotten to bed pretty early the prior evening after touring the Colosseum that afternoon. We were ready.

St. Peter's Square

Friday, December 30, 2016 - We toured Vatican City the next day. Vatican City is not very far at all from our hotel and the Colosseum area. It is just across the River Tiber. We took a taxi there from the Hotel Opera Roma and met our Grayline Tour outside the Vatican (Under the watchful eye of the Pope, I'm sure).

Friday, December 30, 2016 - After touring Vatican City, we came back to the other side of the Tiber River and walked the many, many streets and piazzas of Rome. We started at Trevi Fountain with its replica of Las Vegas' Trevi Fountain - just kidding. Las Vegas has the replica. Rome has the original.

Saturday, December 31, 2016 - Our last full day in Rome was spent close to the hotel. We took our Grayline tour of Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum like we had originally tried to take on Wednesday, but jet lag had made us oversleep. The weather was great so we had a good tour for weather. It was pretty easy to get on a tour as well despite missing the one on Wednesday and the tickets clearly saying there were no exchange dates.

FCO > ATL > MGM

Sunday, January 1, 2017 - We got up early Sunday morning for our return flight to the U.S. Troy and I both felt very poorly and we knew this was going to make the 11+ hour flight home a lot worse. As soon as we got in our tiny taxi and shut the doors, our body heat from our combined fevers fogged up every window in the car. We had about an hour drive to the FCO airport. I can't imagine the taxi driver did not get sick from riding with us.

Helpful Travel Items for Rome and Italy

Are you heading to Rome or just Italy in general anytime soon? Here are a few items that you might find useful before you go.