Rome

Rome day 1 Our flight to Rome was at 840. The gate closed at 8, so we were planning to get there around 7. We got a shuttle at 530 from our hotel, then had to take a different bus to the airport. We got there at 7. We go in line to check in, and the lady said "this is for Marco polo. Your flight is not here". We stood there in shock. We were so screwed. So we ran around trying to find a taxi and only saw one and the driver was no where to be found. I almost gave up and figured we should find another flight because some lady told us its almost an hour away. We ended up finding a cab and the guy said 25 mins. We paid $68 but we made it just in time. Crazy. Got to Rome center by shuttle. We paid to go to termini station but once the other people got out the driver gave us a little tour of the city and dropped us off at our hostel. We dropped our stuff off and went to walk around the city. We were eager to see the colosseum so we went there first. It was less than 15 minutes walking from our hostel. I was checking my map and looked down a side street and there it was. So cool! We walked around it and the surrounding area with other ruins. We were starving so we stopped and got a caprese panini and some pasta with a butter sauce and mushrooms. The panini was on a hamburger bun and not very toasted, but it was good.  The pasta was delicious, as every meal has been. We looked at the map and figured out everything we wanted to do. We had been unsure whether or not to go in the colosseum because people had told us its a really long line. But we decided we had to and the line actually moved really quickly. The inside was amazing. The exhibit inside was really cool too. It showed some artifacts and explained the history of Rome an the colosseum. We walked a little more and then went to find the best gelato place. We had asked the cab driver and he told us Guilleti's. The place was chaotic and packed with so many people which is always a good sign. You couldn't even see the flavors because there was a mass of people and no line. I got Nutella, black raspberry, and mango. The nutella was more butella than gelato. It was so rich and smooth. The mango was real mango mixed with ice, those two were amazing. We went to the Trevi fountain and made some wishes, then  we went and watched a movie about Rome.  It was kinda like a ride- there were three big screens and the seats you sit on move and there were fake rats and stuff.  Learned a little bit about the history of what we'd been seeing.  Then we sat on the Spanish steps and relaxed for a bit. For dinner we went to a cute little place with really nice waiters. Some of the people in Italy are really rude, so it was nice to go somewhere with friendly people. We shared an okay salad and some eggplant parmesan. We went back to the same gelato place and I got pink grapefruit and raspberry.  Rome day 2 Woke up and headed for Saint Peter's basilica. We were on a mission to find the best pizza place in Rome, which we had googled, and was supposed to be in piazza Santa Maria, right near the basilica. No one knew where it was! It was very frustrating. We had so many people stopping us and asking if we needed a tour of the Vatican, so I asked some guy. He was really nice and brought us to some other restaurant down the street where he'd get us a deal. The place didn't look very nice, and the tour guy was chillin out front waiting for us to leave and try to get us to go on his tour. Nice little set up. We just kinda snuck by him and left. We had a list of the best restaurants in Rome, and we happened to be right near one. It was Monday, so it was closed. Not sure what the deal is with Monday's, but so much stuff was closed. Really dumb. We ended up stopping at a little shop with homemade pizza that was pretty good. Then headed to the basilica. It was cool. The line was long but luckily it went quick. The inside was really pretty. We then went to the Vatican. Not gonna lie, I didn't want to. We probably wouldn't have but Kirsten wanted to see the Sistine chapel. The line wasn't very long but it was packed inside. And we were exhausted. We trudged through the museum- alllll of it. Which is annoying. You can't just go see the chapel and leave. There were signs pointing to the chapel but it just kept going!! I hateee museums. I like interesting ones but this was boring and I was tired. The one cool thing was the hallway that was reallllly long and the ceiling was filled with a bunch of different paintings. That was really pretty. The Sistine chapel itself was way too crowded. We went and got gelato after. I got caramel fico, chocolate, and coffee. All amazing, but especially the coffee. Then we went to the Spanish steps and rested. Rough day. We went back to the hostel and picked a restaurant for dinner. One the top 5 cheapest delicious restaurants in Rome. I picked it because they had homemade gnocchi! We walked to the street, made it to the end, and didn't see it. As we were standing there complaining I realized we were standing right in front of it - it was closed! Apparently they close on Monday's. Ridiculous because online it says they're open everyday!! We ended up finding a great restaurant though. It was called Horno de Vaca, which means oven of the cow. We shared gnocchi and lasagna, which Kirsten picked. I'm not a huge lasagna fan so I wasn't reallly look forward to it- but it was the best lasagna ever. It outshone the gnocchi! It was amazing. The layers were so thin and there were so many and the cheese was sooo good. It had a little ricotta but I also think there was whole parmesan cheese in it. The gnocchi was really good but it was a little doughy and maybe undercooked. Or maybe I'm just used to having the best gnocchi so it didn't compare!  We went for round four of gelato (when in Rome).  I got banana, caramel, and pistachio. They were all great, especially the pistachio, but the coffee remained my favorite. Thank God we did a lot of walking.