I slept well and long, other than being being WIDE awake for a while after 2 am. Sigh. Our hotel was very quiet - there was no noise from the airport or adjacent train line. We woke to a blustery grey day, with a chance of morning showers (that never materialized). There was a great breakfast selection - eggs, yogurt, granola, cheese, cold cuts, pastries, and a Nutella dispenser. Sadly, no decaf coffee for me.
Today will be a short day. I’ll bike, but Sue won’t get her rental bike until Sunday morning in Sardinia.
Sue and I departed the hotel at about the same time, around 10 am. Her by train, me by bike through the Blade Runner neighbourhood, then on a forgotten bike path along the Tiber River. At the start, the path seemed half built by someone who wasn’t great at using a bulldozer. Then it turned into good quality single track through bamboo and farmland. I’d have questioned Komoot’s routing based on the trail conditions alone, but the entire route was well-signed by faded stencilled wooden signs. There were hardly any people out and about today, and the path seems like it gets very little use anytime. Before I reached the Rome city limits, I saw only 4 other people on the trail. Even in the city, the path wasn’t busy.it was delightful being away from the cars. The last couple of kilometres were in the madness of Rome traffic, mostly walking on the sidewalk. No photos because it was already scary enough.
The airport hotel area is a bit post-apocalyptic. But very handy, with good services and restaurants. Nicer inside than out.
Sue and I are staying in the Trastavere neighbourhood on the west side of the Tiber. Trastavere translates to ‘Trans Tiber’. While it’s now in the heart of Rome, it was originally outside of the city boundaries.
We walked to the Campo de Fiore market area for a light lunch, then explored more on foot. We returned to claim our hotel room, and to have a quick break.
It hadn’t occurred to me beforehand. But of course we did see priests and nuns walking around.
In the evening we went on a 3 hour food tour, which was lots of fun and included tastings of multiple Roman specialties. For me, the highlights were porchetta; pizza al taglio (Roman takeaway pizza with a crispy crust) that was topped with eggplant, tomatoes, and cheese; and gelato made fresh today by a guy who won the gelato world championship. I chose mandarin flavour and pistachio. We also ate cheeses, suppli (deep fried risotto balls), and saltimbocca (thin veal with prosciutto and a sage/butter sauce).
Food tour stop number one. Cheese and porchetta. Yum!
