My husband and I traveled to Rome with our teenagers, then 15 and 16 years old, in July of 2019.  I was not looking forward to this trip at all.  I typically prefer to go out into the country to explore, rather than staying in the capital cities, and going to Rome in July just sounded hot, crowded, and miserable. When you are traveling with kids, however, summers and breaks are the only time you can go.  Well guess what?  I LOVED Rome.  I mean, I loved it so much that when I retire, I want to get a little apartment there so I can really get to know this city even more.  I anticipate many hours learning Italian on Duolingo in my future. 

We arrived in the morning after our overnight, direct flight from Chicago.  I had previously ordered a shuttle to take us to the heart of the old city where we were staying in the Piazza Barberini at a small boutique hotel called Palazzo Caruso. I had reserved two rooms, one for me and my husband, and one for the teens, and our rooms were ready at 10am! They overlooked the piazza and the Bernini fountain – Fontana del Tritone. Not only that, but they gave us adjoining rooms with a sweet living room in between them, so I felt like we really lucked out. It is really tough to get adjoining rooms in Europe! I loved this hotel and cannot sing it’s praises enough, though it has been too long since we have been there for a proper review.  The manager was excellent and showed us places to go, and they never had a problem calling to make restaurant reservations for us.  The price was mid-range, but the hotel felt luxurious.  Please check them out if you are thinking of a trip to Rome in the future. 

We did all the typical things that you do in Rome – the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain, the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Vatican.  We marveled at the sheer number of tourists, like us, everywhere.  The city was totally jammed. We lucked out and it was only in the mid-high 80s for our trip, so not as sweltering as I was imagining it would be.  We had private guided tours at the Vatican and at the Colosseum/Forum which were excellent and totally worth the price. We booked through Presto Tours, and both of our english-speaking guides were knowledgable and interesting. The history of the city, and the vibe was really really cool. I loved the fountains everywhere from which you can refill your water bottle! Even though the city was packed with tourists, you could still hear Italian being spoken everywhere – on the streets, and in the restaurants and cafes. There was a hustle around typical rush hours that made the city seem like a normal place where people live.

We also did some atypical things.  My husband is very much into the 16th century artist Caravaggio, so part of our trip turned into seeking out many of his paintings.   This brought us to a bunch of small churches that we otherwise would not have seen including San Luigi de Francesi and Santa Maria del Popolo.  We also went to the Palazzo Barberini and the Borghese gallery, both of which house several Caravaggios.  The teens and myself got involved with the search as my husband’s excitement was contagious, and we were all wowed by the paintings.  My favorite was Boy with a Basket of Fruit which was hanging at the Borghese Gallery and just absolutely captivated me.  I stood there staring for a while, until I cried.  I have never cried while looking at art before, but the boy’s look of desperation and desire affected me to my core. I purchased a refrigerator magnet and microfiber glass cleaner with the painting on them to memorialize the moment. A tip for Borghese Gallery – you must get your tickets in advance, and I highly recommend getting the audioguide as well, because there are next to no descriptions or anything written about any of the sculptures or paintings there. This was one of our favorite spots on the whole trip, and well worth the effort to prebook and arrive early.

The food in Rome is excellent.  We did not have a bad meal, and even in the small trailer that reheated pre-made food, they added special touches like garnishes and truffles to bring it up a notch.  We did a food tour one evening through The Roman Guy tours which took us to some delightful places in Trastevere, a hip, foodie area in Rome. The dinner highlights of our trip were Osteria Barberini and Colline Emiliane.  Both of these restaurants were only a few blocks from our hotel, and the service at each place was excellent and the food was devoured quickly. There were so many truffles at Osteria Barberini! Literally everything including dessert was covered in them! We also had great lunches at Caffe Roscioli and Dilla’s.  We actually loved Dilla’s so much that we ate there twice! I do not think it’s possible to have a bad meal in this city and we ate so much pizza, pasta, and dessert that we were fully carbo-loaded by the end.  

Every moment of my memories from this trip are filled with joy, delight, and awe.  Rome is a very special city and it is set apart in my mind from all other European capitals due to its epic and eternal vibe, combined with the perfect mix of ancient history and modernism.  It is a delight for all the senses, and I cannot wait to go back and explore more, not to mention find those last few Caravaggios that we didn’t get to see last time . . . and maybe do some apartment hunting!