3. relaxation is the cavalieri

after spending days walking rome, we were in need of some relaxation.  our hotel was the perfect place!

the night before we left, we decided to finally take advantage of our surroundings.
after getting some quick refreshments (aka bite sized gourmet cakes, finger foods and wine) from the beautiful lounge, and lying by the pool outside for a bit, we went inside for a swim in the indoor pool...

followed by a (long) dip in the fragrant "amethyst turkish bath," a sitting in the amazing sauna,  

and, because we could, a few minutes in the "relaxation room"

3. roma

after mission planning for the day

and the most amazing breakfast that i have EVER had

          3 entire rooms of every type, including every specific variety, of food you could imagine for breakfast, all gourmet served in a room entirely made of marble and silk, with tables set amidst fragrant flowers and the most lovely terrace ever)

we set off for another day of happy sightseeing.

today's itinerary:

*trevi fountain

*spanish steps

*santi ambrogio e carlo al corso

*column of marco aurelio

*piazza navona

*famous Giolitti gelato

*(a political protest next to parliament that we somehow found ourselves in the middle of)

*pantheon

*hadrian's tomb  & castel sant'angelo

*the vatican & st peter's cathedral

 

 

2. roma at night

rome is gorgeous at night- all the buildings and monuments are lit up and our hotel overlooks it all

the most incredible thing happened our second night in rome

as we were sitting on our balcony, enjoying the lovely weather, beautiful scenery,  and serenade by a romantic italian singer playing the piano below us... fireworks. fireworks over the city. it was breathtaking. one of the most incredibly romantic, out-of-a-movie things that has ever happened to me.

what a great memory.

:)

such a good memory, in fact, that we have no pictures. i decided to just enjoy the moment.

here, instead, are photos of rome at night from the hotel.

2. roma

a quick overview of what we saw on our first day in rome:

*trevi fountain

*piazza del popolo

*villa borghese (we got to drive through this amazing piece of property everyday!)

*trajan's forum & column

*national monument of victor emmanuel

*roman forum

*arch of titus

*ancient ruins

*colosseum

... a million things in between!

that night, exhausted, we walked around the neighborhood that our hotel was in and found a quaint little pizza place. we ate our first real italian pizza (yum) sitting in a little table on a beautiful patio with a few italian families and a group of bodyguards (who was staying at our hotel!?). it was perfect.

1. roma

we are in italy! 

first stop: roma!

after a long trip, we are finally in country. we made our way to the hotel we'd booked... only to find out that it was the most amazing hotel on the planet! what a treat! our room wasn't ready so we happily walked the grounds, exploring all we had to enjoy, and taking full advantage of the lovely lounge and its snacks

once in our room we quickly discovered that we could see the entire city from our balcony and windows! every major monument and building. it was breathtaking, to say the least.