October 14 - Rome

Today was supposed to be a down day, where we did nothing but sit back and enjoy the good life here in Rome.  But after a six hour walking marathon, I’m ready to down several bottles of wine until I fall into a coma.

We started the day by walking to the Campo de Fiori, one of Rome’s favorite flea markets. Mckenna would love it there with all the jewelry and purses.   I can’t say I was impressed though,  as it was very small and there was not a lot of variety in the stalls.  I guess the redeeming feature is that there are a lot of restaurants and cafes in the square, so it is a trendy place to meet on a Sunday. As a side note, I found out that the square was histotrically used for public executions.

Marg shopping at Compo de Fiori

We then went to Trevi Fountain, so that we could throw a coin into the water.  Tradition has it, that if you throw a coin into the fountain then you assured that you will return to Rome.

Brian throws a coin into Trevi Fountain

We decided then go to Borghese Gardens.  This is a green space in Rome that is similar to Central Park in New York City, or Stanley Park in Vancouver.  We didn’t realize it from the map, but it was a good hike and mostly up hill.  The park was very nice and restful, and we took in a demonstration of rollerblading, which was quite impressive.

Roller Blading in Borghese Gardens

The return trip to the hotel took us down the famous Via Venito, this is where all the exclusive hotels are found in Rome.

Via Venito

I love the Italian dinning habits.  Again we had a long supper at an outdoor cafe, complete with sidewalk entertainment.  We finished eating at 10:00pm.  That’s living.

We have to admit that we all “touristed” out.  I don’t care if we see another church, museum, painting, spectacularly designed building or collection of rubble that used to be someone’s friggin' house 2000 years ago.  We're longing for Mackies fries and Orange drink.  I can honestly say that after 16 days we're ready to come home.