Our European Adventure, Part 1 - Chicago & Rome!

It's the strangest thing. The entire time we were on vacation it felt surreal. I loved every single moment of our trip to Europe but it was hard to believe we were there. Now, though, when I'm sitting around at home, or in the car, I drift off. I flashback to our trip and all of the amazing memories I have...and it finally feels real.

Chicago Memories
I will never forget...running in the rain.

The Giant Bean!

Before leaving for Rome, we stopped in Chicago. It was both of our first times there and I have to say, we absolutely loved the city. Our only mistake was dressing for the plane (jeans and short sleeve shirts) on an incredibly hot day! Luckily, Chicago has people like us in mind. They have a lovely little river in Millennium Park for passerbyers to stick their feet in and they have huge water features for people to run through. Of course, we didn't want to get to wet so we just walked beside the fountains and felt the mist. It didn't stop my jeans from getting wet though and turning my white tennis shoes blue!

For lunch, we enjoyed a lovely picnic in the park, with duck prosciutto and three delicious cheeses we picked up at a local cheese shop. Afterwards, we wound up walking along the Chicago River and on a whim, kayaking on the river! It was really fun, although the wind made it pretty challenging! We were slowly pushed into the wall a few times.

Our favorite memory of Chicago though will always be the rain. That night, after dinner, we stepped out of the restaurant to walk back to the hotel, and it was raining. We of course decided, "This isn't so bad, we can make it back to the hotel in 20 minutes." We had to get back before 7:30, when the Hilton's bag storage area closed. As we were walking though, the rain began to pour! So much for not walking through the water features earlier that day. We were completely soaked in a matter of seconds. We kept running short sprints and grabbing shelter every chance we could get. Finally, we were running out of time and tried getting a cab. Not a single cab would stop for us. Luckily, we grabbed shelter next to an apartment complex and the doorman was nice enough to turn on the "cab light". We finally got a cab to stop and we headed down the street to the hotel.


Rome Memories
I will never forget...the longest walk in the history of man kind.

There are so many stories to tell. So many incredible moments to share. So I don't ramble on for too long (this is a blog after all), I'll try to stick to the highlights.

Our first night in Rome, we were lucky enough to have an amazing restaurant right next door to the Star of Rome B&B we were staying at. Of course, we couldn't go to the restaurant without managing to have a mini adventure. When we got to the door of the B&B to leave, Gwith grabbed the door handle to open the door and the handle fell off. Screws and all. Luckily, he managed to fix it and we headed into the small manual elevator (where he couldn't resist playing with the doors and almost getting the elevator stuck), and then went to the restaurant. We were staying about a 30 minute walk from the Vatican so our location wasn't touristy at all...which made the food beyond incredible. First of all, the most remarkable thing about Italy is how healthy I felt from the food. Everything is cooked with olive oil, the flavors of the dishes aren't overpowering, and most importantly, for the first time in years, I felt good when eating. I didn't get the stomach aches I've grown accustomed to over the years. Now, we are well aware it's because the Italians don't use corn in most of their dishes or canola oil and their food is 100% organic. Coming home and switching to pure olive oil and organic food has already made a huge difference. So thank you Rome, for helping me finally figure out my diet issues after all of these years!

Me, trying espresso, and hating it.

Our first full day in Rome is to blame for our sore legs the rest of the trip. That's right. I'm pointing my finger at you, First Day. Originally, we were planning to spend the day in Pompeii, so we took a cab to the Termini Train Station. Once we were there, we discovered we had to get a ticket to get a ticket. Kind of like at the local deli. Except way more confusing and way less organized. The numbers would pop up at random and after an hour of waiting, we decided to skip Pompeii and walk around Rome instead. And walk we did. For seven hours. SEVEN HOURS. This from two people who pant walking to Jamba Juice, which is only a 15 minute walk from our house. I don't know how we survived this day but somehow we did and honestly, we had a blast! From the train station, we walked to the Colosseum and then stopped at a local restaurant for a bite to eat. We wandered the streets a little to find this place and avoid the tourist traps. The food was tasty but honestly, the real highlight of this stop was definitely the bathroom. I know that sounds weird but after I used the bathroom, I went to wash my hands. I couldn't figure out how to turn on the sink and instead, saw the soap container, not realizing it was soap, and spun it, assuming it was the water handle. The metal container spun straight into the sink, making a clattering sound that apparently rung throughout the entire restaurant. Lesson learned: Italian sinks sometimes turn on by foot pedals.

Tiber River

After eating a quick bite, we headed back to the Colosseum. We loved walking around and it was definitely an awesome sight to see. But in all honesty, the walk after the Colosseum was what I'll always remember. I'll always remember walking along the bridges, against the picturesque Tiber river. I felt like I was in a fairytale amongst the ancient buildings & bridges, the water, and the hovering trees. Clearly during this part of the walk, I was avoiding staring at the graffiti!

We continued our walk and detoured to a tourist free district called Trastevere in search of gluten free pizza. The GPS on my phone put us on the wrong street and we almost couldn't find the pizza place. With a little persistence though, we did find Ristorante Mama!, which will forever have the greatest gluten free pizza known to man kind. I'm so used to my gluten free pizza in the states having the consistency of a cracker. Thin crunchy crust. Not here. For the first time, I was able to enjoy a gluten free pizza with a thick, soft, crust. Gosh. Just typing about it is making my mouth water. Want to know the secret? They let it rise for 24 hours! That's probably why no pizza place does that out here. I don't think they'd have the patience. But seriously, if that's how long it takes to make something that tasty, they should have the patience. Because seriously, Ristorante Mama! needs to come to California, like ASAP. While sitting outside at the restaurant, a group of young school kids came walking by jabbering away in Italian. It was so cool to see a part of real Rome. We even saw a group of locals playing soccer in the street on our walk leaving Trastevere. By the time we got back to the B&B, we seriously thought our legs were going to die. With no will to walk more than a few feet, we decided to go to the restaurant next door again.

Gwith at the Vatican

The next day, because we're insane, we decided to go to the Vatican. Oh wait. Not just go there, walk there. And yes, our legs were still practically numb from the day before. By the time we made it to the Vatican, we were already exhausted and ready to call it a day. It didn't help that the Pope had apparently given a speech that morning so St. Peter's Square was as crowded and claustrophobic as San Diego Comic Con. It was actually scary trying to get around the crowds. Luckily, we booked a tour and got to skip the lines!

Because neither Gwith nor I are religious, and therefore the Vatican has no significant meaning to us, we got to enjoy just walking around taking pictures with the many statues. Gwith's photos were the best. He was really able to nail the expressions!

The Sistine Chapel was an interesting place to go in mainly because everyone was supposed to be quiet and the priests kept shushing the crowd. They had a panic attack when someone dropped their tour guide listening device. It was so loud, they all began frantically rushing over to stop the noise. I'm not gonna lie, it was crazy to see. The real highlight to me though was St. Peter's Basilica. It was incredibly beautiful and definitely worth seeing.

That night, when we arrived back at the B&B, we felt like we could barely move. We were eager to go back to our trusty restaurant downstairs but our host at the B&B informed us that they were fully booked that night. He suggested another restaurant that was a 15 minute walk up the hill. When we mentioned needing a cab, he went beyond his host duties and offered to drive us there himself! It was so nice of him and something we will never forget about our last night in Rome.

For those of you traveling to Rome and reading this blog, I would highly recommend just walking around the city and adventuring off the map. We only had two full days so we had to squeeze in all of the touristy stuff, but if you have more time, try to get the tourist stuff out of the way and really just experience the city. Watch out though for the pickpockets. Every tourist site says this and in our opinion, if you look out and are aware they exist, you'll be fine. I kept my large purse over my shoulder, with the zip facing me, and my arm tucked underneath. Gwith, when we were in a crowded area, kept his hand in his pocket over his wallet. Together, we survived the entire trip without getting anything stolen or an attempted pickpocketing. It also helped that we used the phone app, MapsWithMe (no internet necessary), throughout the trip. Instead of pulling out a giant map and looking like a tourist, we pulled out our phone and stared at it like every local Italian does.

Quick Tips for Tourists in Rome

• Drink Red Orange Juice (even if you hate orange juice like I do, you'll love this, trust me).

• Explore the Outskirts of Rome.

• Get your Eurail pass stamped somewhere else on the trip if possible. Termini Train Station is just too insane.

• Do not stop and talk to the many people trying to sell you items.

• A little extra walking outside of the tourist spots will take you to some of the best restaurants in Italy.

• When crossing the street, put up your hand at the cars. The drivers will actually stop, for the most part. Basically, pay attention and cross when you can!

• Scooters may zoom past you on the sidewalks...so pay attention there too.

• Pickpockets are out and about and some try to sell you items. Always buy from shops or market stands if you need something like an umbrella.

• Use your phone map if you can, walk like you know where you're going (even if you sometimes don't), and always say no when someone approaches you to sell something. Pickpockets want to con you. If you can't be convinced, they'll give up and try someone who can be.

• Keep your hand covering your wallet and your arm around your purse when in crowded areas.

The castle we stayed at in Gaiole in Chianti.

Keep an eye out for my upcoming European Adventure blogs! The next one will be covering our drive around Tuscany, including Lido di Tarquinia, Siena, and a castle in Gaiole in Chianti!

Our European Adventure Blogs

Part 1: Chicago & Rome! (Now Reading)

Part 2: Tuscany - Our Drive to Chianti!

Part 3: Tuscany - Pisa & Florence!
Part 4: Venice & Milan! (Coming Soon)

Part 5: Switzerland - Zurich & Lucerne (Coming Soon)

Part 6: The Magic of Paris (Coming Soon)
Part 7: Why the Hilton in Belgium Can't Get Customer Service Right (Coming Soon)