THURSDAY, April 4 – Friday, April 5, 2024

benvenuto a Roma, and art history’S greatest hits

Text about coming to airport and getting my cheap Delta One fare

Had my little charcuterie plate and last night’s Top Chef and then made my way to the gate.

For the meal…..

Arriving in Rome, I got my luggage and was met by a driver sent by Flash Pack, and it was about a 45-minute drive to our hotel.

On the drive it was the first time I heard the song “Un ragazzo una ragazza” by The Kolors on the radio, which is/was clearly the song of the moment in Italy. It is such an earworm that I got it stuck in my head pretty immediately, only strengthened by hearing it all over the place in shops, cafes, the tuktuk tour we did in Polignano a Mare, and (I laughed) the taxi that took me back to the airport in Bari on the last day. I was also proud that I sort of immediately knew what the chorus meant since I happened to learn those two words in my like one week of Italian Duolingo haha. (Un ragazzo = a boy; una ragazza = a girl.) Listen at your own earworm risk, but also the video does not disappoint.

It was too early to check into my room so I refreshed and changed clothes in the hotel bathroom, had them store my luggage, and set out to explore the city around 1:00.

I originally had a whole specific plan for the day, but we landed later than expected, and I just wanted to leisurely walk around a little and hit a few highlights before a late afternoon reservation at the Borghese Gallery, so took my time and walked to the city center to have some lunch. It was a beautiful, warm day, perfect for strolling.

My walk took me past the Trevi Fountain, which was a pretty spectacular intro to Rome, and also, as expected, very crowded (!), so I just took a few minutes to admire the art before continuing on. That bright blue sky is not edited!

For lunch I headed to a little place near the fountain called Pane e Salami to enjoy the first of many rounds of bruschetta I’d have in Italy. it’s always been one of my favorite snacks, so I was excited to have the Real Deal.

I ordered the tomato + mozzarella + basil option as well as a zucchini + eggplant + pesto option, and it was a perfect first Italian meal, sitting outside and enjoying the nice weather and fresh air. (Well, mostly fresh air haha – it was also an introduction to the fact that Italians smoke a lot.)

Feeling satiated, I started walking to my first destination, the Chiesa San Luigi del Francisi, a small church in the city center that houses a specific Caravaggio painting I wanted to see.

The walk took my past the Pantheon, one of the great architectural accomplishments in world history, built by….

I had originally planned to go inside and thoroughly explore the Pantheon and its famous oculus, but I was running short on time so it would have to wait for a return trip to Rome.

In the Piazza della Rotunda, looking at the Pantheon

I found my way to the XXXX church, which was pretty unassuming from the outside.

Walking in, however, took my breath away!

These Baroque churches are no joke! Every possible corner is ornamented with elaborate details, from gilded archways to paintings covering every inch of ceiling, marble columns, skylights, stained glass, the works. I had seen pictures of these throughout a lot of years of studying art history, but was unprepared for the visual impact it had in person. Really spectacular!

I was here to see the Caravaggio Matthew series…

About The Calling of St. Matthew

You have to put in a few Euros to see the art!

Very satisfied after that personal art history bucket list moment, I strolled over to the nearby Piazza Navonna, one of Rome’s most famous, and home to Bernini’s Four Rivers monument

Leaving the Piazza, it was the perfect warm day for some gelato so I swung by the nearby Giolitti, one of Rome’s most famous gelato spots. There was a decent line, but it moved really quickly.

I ended up with a combo of black cherry and almond, and it was really delicious – though also learned my lesson about getting a cup as it was hard to eat with one hand while also needing to look at my phone to navigate in the other. Next time, cone!

I try not to be a weirdo taking pictures of other people's kids, but she was too cute to ignore!

Text about walking back, uphill!

Arriving back at the Hotel Savoy, I was able to check into my room and quickly freshen up (I was so beet red from that walk back up the hill!) before heading out to the Borghese Gardens.

Borghese Gardens

About the Gallery…

Stepping into the first gallery, I immediately understood why this place is special.

Bernini’s Rape of Proserpina…

Caravaggio, paintings

Scandalous!

I’m terrible at faces, but this woman on our tour said her name was Silvia and I’m pretty sure it’s Silvia Barban from Top Chef Charleston. Too chicken to bother her!

At the end of the gallery tour we reached the main reason for my museum visit: Bernini’s sculpture of Apollo and Daphne. I’ve been….

As you walk around…

Took a spin through the gift shop

After the museum….

I then went to the Gardens and…

Leaving the Gardens, I started to walk to my dinner reservation at Il Fellini, about an 8-minute walk from the museum. It was Golden Hour, and I passed some pretty lemon trees as well as a fruit stand selling mini orange trees. Wish I could’ve taken one back!

For dinner I headed to Ristorante Il Fellini, a little place with good reviews about halfway between the Borghese Gallery and my hotel.

The decor is a sleek homage to Roman-born filmmaker Federico Fellini, with giant prints of him and his effortlessly cool leading ladies.

I never love dining alone, but the staff made me feel at home, and I ended up striking up a conversation with the two women next to me (one pictured in my stealth photo on the left) who were visiting from LA.

The meal started with a little bruschetta and enough bread for a table of six haha, along with a glass of red wine that the server recommended. (No clue what it was, but it was good.) For an appetizer, I had the artichoke flan with pecorino cheese fondue and chili flakes. It was delicious!

Then for my meal I got calamarata pasta with pistachio pesto, king prawns, and burrata, along with a side of grilled vegetables. The pasta was so rich, so I had to leave a lot in the bowl, but the flavor was excellent!

By the end of dinner I could barely keep my eyes open and I know I had a very early morning the next day, so I walked back to the hotel (thankfully about 5 minutes from the restaurant), quickly prepped for the next morning, and fell right asleep. Wonderful first day in Rome!