We started our day with a walk to Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, a cathedral just around the corner from our hotel. It is a beautiful church with gold plated ceilings, mosaic floors and Rome’s tallest belltower. We checked the hours for Christmas Eve mass, and are excited to be spending tomorrow night here. We took the Metro to the Spanish Steps area to hang out for the afternoon. The area is surrounded by street after street of expensive stores like Prada, Fendi and Louis Vuitton. We also found one of our favorite places, Cafe Gina. It was probably the first healthy meal we had in Europe. This afternoon was our tour of the Colosseum. Marshall was pumped that with our guided tour we were permitted to walk into the limited access portion to overlook the floor of the Colosseum. We finished off our long day of walking and stairs in what Marshall called ‘Roman Torture’ as we walked even more around the Palatine and Roman archeological area. This evening, we explored the neighborhood across the bank, Travestere, and had authentic Italian pizza and local beers at Bir and Fud. Lots of walking today!
Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore
Where we'll be celebrating Christmas Eve...
Metro to our next place. It is rare to find a train that doesn't have graffiti decorating the sides.
The Spanish Steps
At the top of the Spanish Steps
Street shopping surrounding the Spanish Steps
More shopping.
One of our favorite cafes in Rome, Cafe Gina
Chic Cafe Gina
Views of the outside and inside of the Colosseum
Our sweet tour guide, Frederica
Arco di Constantino outside the Colosseum
Views of the Palatine Archeological Area
Archeological Area
Long wait for the "H" bus. So long, that a bird pooped on Marshall's head!
Dinner at Bir and Fud in a back alley of Trastevere
If you don't have access to a motorcyle to park in small places...
...just park your smart car any way that you can.