when in Roma

Over the next few weeks I will be posting travel journal entries from our anniversary trip to Italy. I will also be photo dumping the best of our hundreds of photos (yay!). Enjoy!

8.5.14 Istanbul 

"Right now we are sitting and waiting for our flight to Rome in the Istanbul airport after telling the Morgan's farewell. We left home nearly a day ago and still our adventure is only beginning. Turkish Airlines was great - free wine, great food, Turkish delight, and personal TVs. There was an elderly couple on our flight that probably shouldn't have been flying at all, or ever again. He passed out and hit his head causing an uproar and the lights on our side of the plane to be left on all night. It so happens that the frail diabetic thought not eating all day would be a good idea before his journey. Getting out of the airport was a bit of a hassle, but Madame Elderly made it interesting and even more uncomfortable by soiling herself in line for customs. The poor old woman was leaking down her pant leg and leaving a trail. Once we got our passports stamped (first time, whoop whoop!), we were greeted by Honey, Gramps, Heather, Luke, and baby Simon. We are inside an airport restaurant and visited. Luke was adorably charming and much more verbose in his own country. I got to hold sleeping Simon for a long time while listening to Luke and visiting with the grown ups. My corkscrew was confiscated coming back through security. So it goes."

9.5.14 Rome

"On our first morning in Rome, we woke early to beat the crowd at the Vatican. Our B&B was clean, lovely, and had impeccable service. After dressing, we were asked if we wanted cappuccino the moment we opened our door. While she fixed our coffee, we helped ourselves to brioche with Nutella

, bologna and cheese, and yogurt. Italian breakfast is just my style, and the coffee puts Folgers to shame. As we walked to the Vatican, we noticed that the Italians were bundled in scarves and coats. The weather must still seem quite chilly to them, though it was hardly long-pant weather for us. We booked an audio tour, but quickly lost our group after entering. We wondered, admiring the art, architecture, and history around us. We then had a lovely lunch of wine, bruschetta, and pizza margherita (all for only £5!). It was marvelous. We then started towards the ruins. The Colosseum was truly incredible. As a whole, it is a mind-blowing feat of engineering, but the details were astounding! Broken columns littering walkways, capitals as tall as Bobby's shoulders. The sculptures recovered and presented all around were unexpected and so detailed. Our next destination was Trastevere, but navigating the ruins was quite the challenge. Once we finally made it, we stopped at the first cafe in site for gelato and water. We chose wisely, his pistachio and my limon were delicious and the piazza was charming, surrounded by old buildings with open shutters and rooftop terraces. We explored the area and crossed over the Ponte Palatino. At this point we were fading fast, but quite far from our hotel. We set our sites on Piazza Navona, where we rested at the fountain, listened to a Pink Floyd tribute band, and watched a juggling unify list. We then found our way home through the metro, and cleaned up for dinner. We weren't particularly hungry, but when in Rome... We are nearby, but it wasn't very good and I regretted it later a little after midnight I awoke very ill."

 

the positives - anniversary edition (better late than never)

I'm really getting tired of the slump that I'm in. I mean, over the past couple weeks that I've missed my happy-blog, so many incredible once in a lifetime adventures have occurred. And yet I've put this post off all day long because the negatives are so forefront in my chemically imbalanced mind. So, as a mental compromise, many if these positives have a "but."

1. We survived a year. It should have been a sign, I suppose, when things went awry just days before our planned elopement (tip: if you elope, keep it secret, run away with friends at a half moment's notice, and never ever give anyone a chance to spoil the giddy joy). A sign that this year would be so very much more challenging than nearly two years of long distance love, with surprises unfathomable to a couple seven long years in the making. But we've made it so far. 

2. I couldn't write an anniversary brag blog because we stuck to our arrangement. Instead of gifts that we fret over or forget each year, I requested a getaway to a place we've never been for anniversaries about six months ago when we considered cancelling our second quicky honeymoon after the big white wedding. I was straightforward for once in my life, telling him that after months of wedding planning from hundreds of miles away and keeping our marriage a sad, little secret from family, I wanted a break- not a family reunion. So yeah, we just got back from our Italian Adventure. I'll be posting about it all week, a city each day. Keep an eye out ;)

3. PB&J: Pam Beasley and Jim. They're inspirational. 

4. The mini pack of Nutella I stole from our B&B in Roma. It made a great breakfast with my strawberries. Now it's gone, boo. 

5. At the very worst, next weekend will be an awesome girls weekend, and at the best a super fun friend reunion. Win-win, right?