Honeymoon

Spain & Italy - finally all sorted out

that sounds amazing!!! have a great time!

Thanks hon! How's your wedding coming along? Guess i should check your page huh?

watch out around the Coliseum area at night. The area can be a bit dicey during high tourist season which you will be in. One huge piece of advice...outside of the Coliseum you will see tour groups forming. JOIN ONE! It doesn't cost but around 11 euro per person but the tour is a lot of fun and you get to skip the long lines! (there is a seperate tour entrance) that you get to go through.

also, you'll see people selling roses near the Trevi fountain and when you refuse they will somtimes try to "give" you one for free. dont take it! they will keep on hounding you for money and then eventually take the rose back when you refuse to pay them for something that was supposed to be "free". it gets very annoying and they are at all the main sites.

If you want any info or suggestions on Rome just let me know :)

YES! Give me any tips/suggestions you got! This is our first time to Italy (we've been to Spain though..so we pretty much know what we wanna do there) and any help is totally appriciated! Thanks so much. These tips are very helpful :)

you can read my trip report from rome on my website. www.heartofthesouth.org


the best food i got was honestly some of the street side vendors selling paninis! They were sooo yummy! Just make sure the stand looks clean then you are good to go. The best vendor was at the top of the Spanish Steps to the left of the Trinita Dei Monti.

Don't go to the cafes right around all the tourist attractions. you will spend a fortune on food! Take some of the side streets and look around for cafes, the food will be 1/4 of the cost and MUCH better!  

Don't buy souveniers inside of the attractions..every souvenier shop in Rome has just about the same thing and it will be a lot cheaper outside of the attraction (i learned this one the hard way.)

Make sure to visit Campo De Fiori. It is between Trastevere and Piazza Navona. It was one of my favorite piazzas in all of Rome...second only to Piazza Navona!

You honestly wont be able to see 1/10th of Rome in 2.5 days. The main sites I would NOT miss are as follows

The Coliseum and the Roman forum (right next to each other)
Piazza Navona (has the fountain of the four rivers by Bernini..a MUST see!) Walk from Piazza Navona towards the Pantheon and then on to the Trevi fountain. It's a very easy walk and very beautiful along the way!

St Peters basilica and the Vatican...You must get up VERY early in the morning to be able to go see these unless you book a tour in advance. The lines can wrap all the way around the Vatican during the time you will be going so if you really really want to see this then you need to get in line at the butt crack of dawn. Once inside the Vatican head straight for the Sistine Chapel. You have to go quite a ways through the museum before you finally get to it but you will want to get there asap because it fills up quickly and the lines get VERY long once again. Take a minute though before going in to the Sistine chapel to admire the Raphael rooms. They are some of the most beautiful paintings in the world and imo out shine the Sistine chapel.  DO NOT take pictures in the Sistine chapel. You are allowed through most of the museum but NOT in the chapel! You will get in to ALOT of trouble for doing so.

Out of the Vatican and St. Peters, if I had to decide between the two on which to go to I would honestly pick St. Peters. The baladachin that sits atop St. Peter's tomb is abslutely breath taking (also by Bernini) Don't forget to wait in line to rub St. Peters feet on his statue near his tomb. The feet of the statue have been rubbed smooth from so many pilgrims coming to rub and kiss the feet of the statue. Also, the Pietra is in St. Peters. It's a very famous statue by Michelangelo. It sits behind bullet proof glass because some psycho tried to destroy it. There are many many works by Bernini in St Peter's Basilica and it is NOT to be missed!

also, this is common in other parts of Europe but just in case you haven't run across it yet...

You have to ask for ice in most places, you pay usually for condiments, they charge for bread and napkins at the cafe...

If you want water with your meal the waiter will ask if you want gas. I thought they asked if I wanted a gLass and said yes...woops! They serve a lot of carbonated water so unless you like it (i think its disgusting) ask for water no gas.

YOU MUST GET GELATO! As many times as you can! It's rule in Rome....at least it was my rule lol.

I can't thank you enough. That's some great info! Thanks sooooo much!!!!!!!! I LMAO when you said do you want water with gas? I remember the first time i heard that (i was 12) and was so confused...what, do i want gas in my water...why the hell would i want gas in my water...LMAO!!!! It finally clicked in what he was talking about...and yeah, i had carbonated water too. I know we wont have enough time to see everything, but i really wanna get out of the big cities, even if it's just for a couple days. We'll be in Barcelona and Rome - two big cities...and i live in a big city...so i'm making my husband take me to Positano/Amalfi (where they filmed the talented mr ripley & part of Under the Tuscan Sun)...i wanna see the little towns. I need to take a longer trip back to Italy in the future...i still need to see sardinia, Tuscany & Florence, Venice, etc...ohh so much i want to see, so little time.

Thanks again chica! You rock!!!!

Oh ya, did you go to a restaurant called Dars Poeta in Rome? Someone told me it was the best Pizza they've EVER EVER had. And i read reviews - amazing...on one site, everyone rated it a 5/5.  And i'd like to see the Crypt of Capuchin Monks...you been?

*i meant  i HATE carbonated water..not had, lol

I was there for 8 days last time and did not even come close to seeing everything I wanted to see! We are going to Paris for 7 days and then on to Rome for 10 days for our honeymoon just to see ALL the sites I missed lol. I didn't eat at the place you mentioned...I like trying places no one else has mentioned..you usually find really good food that way. My favorite place to eat was Anima Sapori. About a block away from Piazza Navona. Take the west entrance in the middle near the Fountain of the Four Rivers and go about a block or two up the street and you will see it on your left hand side. I ate there many many times during the trip and was sooo happy with the food and the prices. The pizza there is abslutely mouth watering! Along with the lemon fried chicken.

You also need to try a hot chocolate while you are in Rome. It is soooo thick! I had Baileys Irish Creme added to mine at Anima Sapori and still had to eat it with a spoon. Warning though....don't have it before bed...you will not be able to go to sleep!

Thanks hon! Got any tips on night life there?

Piazza Navona and the Campo De Fiori areas are going to be your best bet for night life. There wasn't really a lot going on when I went because I was there during the super low tourist season.

Thanks for all your help :)