One Day Out of Ten in Rome

Exploring a city, or part of it is always a challenge.

I find that when I am arriving in a new place it always surrounded by curiosity , discomfort and excitement.

Rome was no different. We had decided that we would get a taxi to our lodgings as it didn’t seem to be much different in the cost to trains and buses.

Our taxi driver was another best find as he loved to talk about His Rome, pointing out the particular structures of significance as he drove us to our spot. He did say that we were staying in a great area with easy access to the best of Rome.

We left him with his directions of where to walk to to get to our lodgings and 5 minutes later as we stood outside the door of number 14 Vicolo delle Grotte, Sam realised that he had left his hat in the taxi! Oh well, an excuse to buy a new one!!! Then around the corner runs the taxi driver with Sam’s hat. We couldn’t believe the generosity of that man to do this for us. He didn’t stop. Just took off again before we could do anything. No contact. We hadn’t even got a receipt for the ride so we couldn’t do anything to thank him. The owner  of the apartment we are staying in said that he had never herd anything like this before in his WHOLE life!!

Now for ‘one’ day.

We had booked a restaurant on the recommendation of Bryan Fitzgerald to have lunch. It was 5kms away and an hour’s interesting walk. Except that when we checked it again this morning it seemed as though I had got the spelling wrong (surprised!) He had told us ‘Scilla e Carridi’ and I had booked ‘Scilla e Cariddi’ After a long half hour research it appears that the restaurant has changed its name when it changed location. So after all I wasn’t wrong!!!! And it now does lunches which under its other name it didn’t .

We were out early this morning as we wanted to get our breakfast supplies for tomorrow. A visit to the market brought an interesting discussion with a fruitier. I was picking up kiwi fruit and asked where it came from. New Zealand. I put it down saying that it was too many food kilometers. He did have some Italian ones which we bought. From my comment he suggested that there was a rivalry between Australia and New Zealand as there is between the European countries. He said that everyone; England, France, Germany all hate Italy because of the mafia!

On to the bread shop. We had seen this place yesterday but it was closed. Today we were able to buy some delicious bread from ‘Roscioli’ www.roscioli.com  a bakery since 1872.

Off on our walk to the restaurant. It was a little like ‘Rosie’s Walk’

Down the alleys, across the busy road, past the Pantheon, past the Trevi Fountain with its million viewers. (you can understand why, it is so spectacular). Across another busy road. Up and along another street, past the U.S Embassy with all its security, past a mixed architecture that doesn’t work visually, along beautiful tree lined streets with the oldest trams running, past the gallery of decorative arts and on to find the restaurant.

Another downstairs experience.

There was no one else there when we arrived but it quickly filled with workmates enjoying 10 euro eat what you can.

We were not offered a menu, nor a wine list. Food and wine were brought to us. We decided to go with the flow. Let it happen. Sometimes language can be a deterrent. This time it was not! We ate octopus in a lovely tomato sauce, followed by pasta with beans and mussels in a fish stock,  then prawns with orange and pistachio followed by mixed pastries. All so delicious and if we had been given a menu we would probably not have chosen the same!

The waitress brought us a prosecco to finish the meal and some for herself to toast with.

On our walk back to our place we called into the gallery that we had seen on the way. Another treat. This gallery originally was the house of the Swedish Ambassador.

Now it is the Decorative arts Museum. Quite tiny compared to others and I would call it a House Museum. We were the only visitors

No entry fee and the most wonderful tapestries, wall papered rooms as well as having beautiful costumes and collection of millinery pieces.

We made a special connection in one room which housed some huge wall paintings of  Galileo Chini who had been commissioned to provide these to  support  Ivan Mestrovic  (whose sculptures we loved in Croatia last year.)in the Venice Biennale’s Hall of Honour in 1914.

On to the apartment and rest.

A delightful day exploring another side of Rome.