Rome

Friday, August 30, 2013
Caio! It's vacation-eve for the Atlanta Pettorini's. We are just checking off the packing list (with a glass of vino in hand, of course) and preparing for the trip of a lifetime. We thought that creating this blog would be a great way to share memories, photos, and stories of our trip as we eat, drink, and laugh our way across Italy!
A few members of our trip are currently airborne, heading to the motherland as we speak. I'm sure tomorrow will bring some strong feelings of FOMO (google it) as we head to the airport and prepare to join the rest of the crew who will arrive tomorrow morning.
We are so excited to be able to share this amazing trip with our awesome family and friends! The cast of travelers includes the Pettorini's of NC/GA (Ann, Rich, Kate and Emily), the Pettorini's of FL (Jim and Paula), the Pettorini's of ME (John, Gay, and Marisa), and the Honorary Pettorini's of NYC (Tom & Mary).
We plan to update this blog throughout our trip so check in often and prepare to be jealous! Andiamo!

Saturday, August 31, 2013
We made it!! I think we may have set a record for getting to the airport and through security in Atlanta! After a

quick bite to eat at the airport Qdoba, we were off and on our way to Roma! The flight was great and after a glass or 3 of complimentary box wine, we were both sound asleep. Before we knew it, breakfast was being served (yuck) and we were here. Once we arrived, the line to get our passports stamped was a little painful (scombussalata!), but we made it and our driver was waiting for us at baggage claim. Gotta love seeing that little sign with your name on it :) As we drove past those wonderful storefronts like Gucci, Fendi, etc, we quickly pulled up to our new home for the week! Gorgeous! Gotta run, but we'll tell you all about our first day in Rome very soon. Stay tuned!

Kate and Em

Sunday, Sept. 1, 2013

Sorry for the delay everyone. Busy few days! Let's catch you up! So upon our arrival to the casa, we took a quick tour, changed, and headed out in search of an espresso. Campo Marzio, our apartment, is in a great location just a few blocks from the Spanish Steps. Emily, Dad, and I found a perfect little café tucked in a side street right near the Spanish Steps. The caffeine was just what we needed before we began our sightseeing for the day.
And we're off.......but first we must eat! The first restaurant of our trip was Spago and although we had nothing to compare it against it was fantastico and will be tough to beat. Great appetizers and incredible pasta dishes, washed down by glasses of red and white wines. Before we left the owner, Lamberto placed a bottle of icy cold Lemoncello on the table for all to share......and we did!
Piazza Navona was one block from the restaurant. Large crowds gathered around the Four Rivers Fountain that contained an Egyptian Obelisk surrounded by sculptures of ancient Romans.

The theme of the day was Churches, Cathedrals and Basilicas. Across from the fountain was the Church of St. Agnus, which was spectacular. From there were in and out of Churches and our last stop before heading home was the Pantheon.
We wrapped up the day by sippin' and snackin' on our roof top patio - Awesome Day!!! Tomorrow- the Coliseum et. al.

Monday, September 2, 2013
Day two. Another fun/beautiful day, although slightly less successful. We walked over to the Colosseum and Roman forum. Our next stop was supposed to be the Roman bath house, however, upon arrival we found out that it had closed an hour before we got there. Access denied.
We kept walking from there, but got slightly turned around and ended up eventually back at the Colosseum. We certainly got our exercise!
After our stroll, we did eventually find the tourist center where we bought Roma passes (entry into the Colosseum/forum/buses/etc). We also had a minute to sit and drink an espresso. By this point we were all getting quite hungry. Wandering around Rome really works up an appetite. Unfortunately we did not time our hunger well with the restaurants. Most of them did not open for another hour or two, so we did what we do best... went home and made snacks :)
After snacks, of course, came dinner. Our restaurant of choice

was La Lupa, a great little place around the corner. The pasta was great and the wine was plentiful. We topped off the night with some gelato followed by a few shots (ok, a bottle) of lemoncello. Buona sera!

Tuesday 9/3/13
Another good day to sleep in (thanks Limoncello). After drinking a cup or two of espresso, we were off to tour the coliseum!
A big thanks to Rick Steve's Audio Europe App for giving us a personal tour of the Colosseum! Unfortunately, we were not all able to make the downloads, so we shared earbuds and walked the grounds tethered together. It is pretty crazy to think that this place has had such a gory history and has been standing for almost 2,000 years.
Next stop: The Roman Forum! Throughout this tour we walked the cobblestone streets that were once walked by Caesar himself. The end

of the forum tour brought us to the government building, an enormous white architectural marvel, covered with statues and decadence. Somehow we found the energy to climb the numerous steps to a cathedral tucked away in this large compound, taking in the view once we made it to the top. It continues to amaze me the intricate churches that can be found behind the most unassuming doorways.
By this point we had worked up a sweat and an appetite.As we made our way back to the Campo, a small cafe caught our eye, so naturally we had to stop in for a snack and a beverage.
Following our snack, we made our way back home to rest our feet until it was time for dinner. Gay had gotten a restaurant recommendation years ago and remembered it was not far from us. Ristorante alla Rampa was our destination and there was no disappointment! A few of us tried various versions of veal that populated the menu, but Emily's veal parmesan (*cough* -tourist...) was quite a sight!
Keeping in mind that tomorrow will be an early day (we're off to see the wizard Pope!), we retreated to the rooftop porch for a nightcap and headed to bed. Tomorrow: Papa Francesco!

Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Early to rise this morning! We have tickets to see the Pope! We all got ready as quickly as we could and began the journey to the Vatican. We joined the thousands of

people waiting to see Papa Francesco. The process of exchanging our vouchers for actual tickets, guaranteeing us seats, was quite involved, but Ann pulled through...eventually (thanks Mom!) We didn't realize that although we were guaranteed seats, most people had already been there for hours! We attempted to make our way up front but a slightly annoyed guard told us that we could not stand in the aisle. After getting bounced by security at least 2 more times, we were herded into the back of a section about halfway back (in St Peter's Square). We were probably 100 yards back from where we first tried to claim our seats. Slightly disappointed, we started gearing up for Papa Francesco. Little did we know, we had actually been bounced back to the best seats in the house! The Pope was making his rounds through the crowds (in the Pope Mobile!) and made a pass right next to us! Seeing Papa Francesco was quite an experience.
We knew we still wanted to see the Vatican and the Sistine Chapel,

but we were very hot and we thought it might be a good idea to come back later, after some of the crowd dispersed. So we made the hike back to Campo Marzio and went to see our favorite waiter, Lamberto, at Cafe Spago. Once again, Lamberto delivered an amazing meal, but by the time we finished everyone was pretty much comatose. We retreated home for a much needed nap (1 hour. timed.)
Up & at 'em. Off to the Vatican to finish our touring. We walked back across the river to the walled city and made it into the Vatican museum with about 15 minutes to spare. Incredible. There is absolutely no square inch of this place not covered in marble, gold, paintings or statues. We made our way through the museum, which lead to the Sistine Chapel. Again, thanks to Rick Steve's Audio Guide, we heard the history of Michelangelo's masterpiece. Apparently he painted the entire ceiling standing up (my neck hurt after about 5 minutes... ouch!). We met up with the rest of the crew (now including Tom Scally, the late entry from NYC) and headed over to St Peter's Basilica.
Heading out on foot, Tom said he knew of some good wine bars not far from our place, so we followed right along. The route took us along Campo de' Fiori and Piazza Navona and was filled with some great antique and vintage stores that we made note of for later.
Still walking around, we were getting a little thirsty, so we found a little cafe with fresh, cold sangria!
Thirst quenched we pressed on! Turns out the wine bar we were searching for was only about one

more block away, so instead we looked across the street at the market selling fresh formaggio and salumi.
Meat and cheese in hand, we went home and headed back up to the rooftop patio... Goodnight! Buonanotte! Caio!

Thursday, September 5, 2013
Another leisurely wake-up. The only thing on the agenda for today is a tour of the Borghese Gardens and Museum. We have been extremely lucky with the weather so far on this trip and today is gorgeous. As the group finished getting ready, we trickled over to the cafe across the street for a cappuccino to start the day.
The day's journey began with a stroll to the Spanish Steps, which is just at the end of our street.
We climbed the steps and took in the view from the top, which kept getting better as we walked toward the Borghese Gardens.
The Gardens were gorgeous, pretty much a huge park in the middle of the city. Our destination was the Borghese Museum, located right in the Gardens.
The Museum was built by a Cardinal in the Borghese family who was given the position because his uncle was the Pope at the time. Apparently, his funds were endless and he filled this space with masterpieces from Caravaggio, Raphael, and Titian, just to name a few and amazing sculptures from Bernini. After making a quick pit-stop in the museum cafe for a birra, we followed our new tour

guide, Mr Tom Scally. First stop: Harry's Bar Roma for a martini and a snack.
The martinis were delicious. Just what we needed to continue touring.
We headed down the street to a rooftop bar, but decided to head back to our side of town for a glass of wine instead. Tom suggested a restaurant called Osteria Ar Galletto, so we made a reservation and wandered around the area for a little bit, stopping in a great family-owned leather store where several purchases were made. My feet thanked me when we finally sat for dinner, which again, was delicioso! We headed home but on the way, stopped for just one, OK, two more glasses of vino at a local mozzarella bar. Buona notte!

Friday, September 6, 2013
Everyone split up and did their own thing. Emily, Marisa, and I headed over to a neighborhood in Rome called Trastevere, where we did a little walking, shopping, eating, and drinking. We were a bit aimless at first, but found a great place for a "snack" (mussels, clams, grilled bread, and vino. yum.) and continued on to find a great leather shop where we probably spent about an hour trying to narrow down our purchases. We all left very happy. We wandered a bit more but, as it was getting close to happy hour, we found a trendy little bar outside of Campo Fiori for one last stop before heading home. The group re-convened at our favorite cafe right near our place in Piazza Borghese. We recounted stories from the day- the rest of the group

went to Ferentino, the town that the Pettorini's are from (more to come from a guest-blog soon). Since it was our last night in Rome, we thought that we should head to our favorite restaurant, Spago, one last time. Lomberto was very glad to see us and the meal was once again amazing. Walking home, we heard some music coming from the Piazza Borghese, so we went and listened to a great band playing outside of our cafe. It was the perfect ending to our week in Roma!

GUEST BLOG FROM REECHARD- DAY TRIP TO FERENTINO

Day Trip, Day Trip.........
A 12:15 southbound train brought John, Ann and Rich from Roma to Ferentino to visit the hometown of the Pettorini Patriarca, Levino. The 90 minute scenic ride ushered us through some beautiful countryside that featured vineyards and olive groves. Ferentino is located about midway from Roma and Napoli.
Armed with nothing more than a map we departed the train in Ferentino and asked a collective, "now what?" Fortunately there was a bus at the train station that drove us to the center of Ferentino. The 15 minute ride took us straight uphill and dropped us at the square. Another town that time forgot. Our first stop was D'Agostini Maria, a small café / bar. We stepped in and declared, "Siamo di fuori citta" (we're from out of town) to which the barista replied, "Non merda" (no shit). We went in for an expresso and left an hour and a half later.

We couldn't pass on a beautifully prepared lunch of salad (family size), cheese plate and prosciutto sangwiches - washed down by a handful of fresh Birra Moretti.
Ann had done some Pettorini research and discovered that there was a street named Via Pettorini. She asked the beautiful cameriera (waitress) if she knew of the street and she replied, "ecco dove io vivo" (that's where I live). A short walk down the hill and there it was, Via Pettorini! It was more of an alley than a street but residents on both sides.
From there we continued down the hill and came upon a bus stop....ten minutes later we were on our way to the train and back to Roma. A half day well spent!!