Our Anniversary Trip to Italy
In case you have been wondering why the blog has been quiet, my husband and I went on a romantic trip to Italy for our anniversary. We decided to leave cares, worries and work behind! I am so glad we did because one city was more amazing than the next - and the food!!!!!
We started in Rome where we first stopped at Trevi Fountain. We made our wishes and I am not sure if it is coincidence or not - but one of my wishes has already come true!
Sunday morning, June 1, was our first full day in Italy and our anniversary. We started the day in Piazza Navona sipping a cappuccino and eating biscotti. Then we spent our anniversary exploring the Roman countryside. We had lunch at a restaurant that was actually someone’s country house near the Appian Way. The food and wine were unbelievable and composed of relatively few ingredients that were perfectly orchestrated for a delicious fresh taste. The woman who owns it doesn’t want to advertise in any way, shape or form. She cooks for the locals who are like her extended family and we were lucky enough to have someone recommend it and let her know we were coming. It was like going to my Grandma Olympia’s house for Sunday dinner.
That night we were back in the city of Rome and had a romantic meal at Mirabelle Restaurant that had a rooftop view of Rome, the Vatican and the Roman countryside. Paul had a beautiful bouquet of my favorite flowers peonies delivered to the table. We arrived when the sun was still up and we watched Rome as the sun set and it became night. It was the perfect end to perfect day.
Over the next few days we visited the Vatican, the Coliseum and the Spanish Steps to name a few things. Seeing the Sistine Chapel gave evidence to Michelangelo’s genius. How he planned and executed the narrative in fresco and fit everything perfectly with amazing detail, color and detail actually made me a bit weak in the knees to contemplate how he actually accomplished this.
The Coliseum had tremendous presence and leaves you wandering if some of our more dangerous sports are any less barbaric than battles of the Roman gladiators.
Everywhere you go in Rome, the buildings have beautifully carved embellishments or there are statues, monuments and fountains. We stood at Le Grand Hotel de la Minerve (Where else would The Chocolate Goddess stay but at a hotel named after a goddess?) that even had a sculpture of the Goddess Minerva by Rinaldo Rinaldi in its lobby.
The streets are narrow everywhere in the city and every single one is cobblestone. Any street offers a wide variety of charming places to dine, simply buy a Panini, gelato, Espresso or a cappuccino. One place we had our afternoon cappuccino offered the lightest lemon cheesecake I ever tasted. I have already tried to duplicate it and before I tell you about Florence next week, I will blog about my new quick and light Lemon Cheesecake.
Talk to you soon!
BE Goddess
