Day Two: All Roads Lead to Rome
Our day began with an amazing array of food at the breakfast buffet in the hotel’s restaurant -- and with the best coffee I may ever have tasted! I’d go back to Rome just for that. We then met up with our Adventure Guides, and also with our local guide, Fabrizio, for our walking tour of Rome. Fabrizio would be a familiar site (and voice) for the next few days, and we became very accustomed to his, “Andiamo, my friend, Andiamo,�? (“Let’s go!�?) as we moved from place to place. We were all given individual headsets and lanyards, so that we could hear Fabrizio from a distance -- so much better than the olden days of guides shouting to large groups of tourists, and those like me, who lagged behind to take photos, missing most of what was said. We were also handed cold water bottles and snacks to pack up and take with us -- a thoughtful touch!

(Before leaving, we received our first lesson on crossing the street in Rome. “Do not stop. Do not hesitate. Do not make eye contact with the driver. Do not look - just WALK!�? Whoosh!)

Our walking tour began in the Villa Borghese gardens, a short stroll from our hotel. The villa was built in 1616 by a nephew of Scipio Borghese (Pope Paul V) and in 1901 the gardens became a state-owned public park. The views of these gardens, and from the gardens, were magnificent! From there, our tour took us to the Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain (where we all tossed coins to guarantee that we’d one day return!), the Pantheon, and the nearby Piazza Navona with its beautiful statues and fountains. By now the sky had cleared considerably and was dotted with white puffy clouds -- a perfect day for walking!

Lunch was at the Tosca Restaurant, where we had the entire back room and were served with salads and endless pizzas of all varieties. From this wonderful meal, we strolled a few blocks for our gelato tasting -- it’s a good thing we were walking most of this off!

After lunch, we were off to the Coliseum by motorcoach. This was our first meeting with Reno, our wonderful driver, who would be with us all the way until our departure to Venice later in the week. Along with being an expert driver (those roads in Tuscany are tough!), he was a kind a patient soul, as we were a loud bunch as we got to know each other. The Coliseum was as remarkable as I expected, but even more startling to me (even though I’ve seen the photos for all of my life) is how it sits there in the middle of this bustling modern city, a huge reminder of the past and how far we’ve come, but how little we’ve progressed. (Ignore me. I was sleep-deprived.)

Back at the hotel, we showered and rested and met up soon to depart for our Roman Feast. Being somewhat jet-lagged at this point, I honestly don’t remember the name of the restaurant nor where it was located, but the food and the company was truly memorable. During our many-coursed meal, we were entertained by dancers and gladiators, depicting what life would have been like at a Roman feast of old. Tony got to participate in a sword fight (helping to make room for the next course) and we were all made honorary Roman citizens. It was a fun evening!

Back at the hotel, I was asleep in minutes, but I hear that a few of our traveling companions (and you know who you are!) went out in search of some tasty Limoncello -- an Italian liquor made from lemon rinds, sugar, and… lots of alcohol. Judging by the pained looked on their faces the next morning, they found some. ;-) “Limoncello!�? became somewhat of a battle cry for the whole group as the trip progressed -- somehow these “Adventures�? take on a whole new meaning without children along!

Day Three: Let’s Be Civilized
We had a very early start this day -- breakfast at 6:30 a.m. with the restaurant opening early just for us, and a meeting time of 7:05 a.m. to board the motorcoach. Not much time to leisurely drink your coffee! (Whoosh!) This was our day to visit the Vatican, and leaving any later would almost insure that we wouldn’t get in -- or we’d at least have to wait for many hours to do so.

After a long but enjoyable (hey, I had 35 people to talk to!) wait in line, we were allowed in. It was also a time for another one of Adventures by Disney’s little thoughtful surprises, something that kept us occupied while we waited. One of the wonderful things about being on this type of tour is that the tickets are all purchased by one of the guides while you wait; when it’s time to enter, you just go through the turnstiles. This was our third day in Rome and I hadn’t yet reached into my wallet for anything -- even the coins for the Trevi Fountain were supplied by our guides! (Hmmm… does that guarantee that we’ll return to Rome or that they’ll return to Rome? No fair!)

Once inside the Vatican, even I was so overwhelmed it kept me quiet. There are truly no words to describe it -- the Gallery of Maps, the Gallery of Tapestries, the Etruscan Museum -- ultimately leading into the Sistine Chapel where just the ceiling would take a month of study and admiration. It is so jaw-dropping, overwhelmingly beautiful. And to leave the Sistine Chapel thinking that nothing could awe me in quite that way again, and then to walk into St. Peter’s Basilica where each and every section and alter and piece of marble was a work of art -- a better writer might be able to describe the emotions that this place evoked, but I’m surely not that writer. For those who know me, just saying I was speechless should be enough. ;-)

We had a little time afterwards to explore the Basilica and the Square on our own, and to do a little shopping. We were then brought by motorcoach to a lovely little restaurant near the Coliseum called Le Lanterne, where we had pre-ordered our lunches the day before. We started with a generous antipasto buffet, followed by a choice of vegetarian pasta, grilled chicken breast or Veal Saltimbocca (my choice!). Dessert was fruit salad and ice cream - yum! We then had the choice of exploring the area and wandering back to the hotel on foot, or going back via motorcoach, and as stuffed as we were (and tired!), we chose the latter.

Dinner tonight was on our own, and our Adventure Guides were in the lobby for any questions or recommendations. Tony had a name of a local place, only a few blocks away, that was recommended by a friend. We were to go to the Taverna Flavia and ask for “Rocco.�? After meeting up with some of our traveling companions, six of us headed there for dinner and had a wonderful meal -- albeit by questionable means. When Tony asked for Rocco (who was there, by the way), the owner came out to welcome us “back.�? He brought us champagne to start the meal, an enormous selection of antipasto, only charged us for some of the wine we consumed, and also brought complimentary Limoncello after our meal! From then on, we decided that “Rocco�? was a code word, and that we were likely mistaken for visiting Mafia! ;-)

And another wonderful day comes to a close -- tomorrow, Tuscany!