1. Take good walking shoes. Rome is a town you see on foot. Be prepared, train. Work up to it.
2. Go in February or March. This advice came from someone whose gone to Rome a lot. The big crowds in the summer make everything a lot harder to see. We were there the first week of March and the weather was a little dicey (cool 40's to 60's, and misty rain) but it kept the crowds down and it's easy to layer up and carry an umbrella.
3. Lose weight before you go, you'll gain weight while you're there. Embrace Italian food. Don't listen to anyone who tells you, "there's a good Chinese restaurant down there..." These people are not your friends.
4. Plan your days. If the weather is nice, the Romans will be out in force. Save your busy 'museum days' for weekdays, when most folks are at work.
5. Plan your meals. Any place that you can walk into at the last minute is probably not great food. Most places require reservations. Think about where you'll be, or pop in and ask for a reservation for the next day. A little pre-planning will net you some great meals.
6. Never assume that folks speak English. We took a friend who speaks fluent Italian and I think it was the smartest thing we did. He argued, haggled and joked with everyone. I think we got well taken care of everywhere we went.
7. Recognize that you can't see it all. I think it would take a month of full time tourism just to get to all the sights in Rome. If you include the places nearby, add another week. Sometimes you have to pick the high points and just be okay with that.
8. Throw coins over your shoulder into the Trevi Fountain so you can be guaranteed a trip back to Rome. It's that good. You'll want to go back.
-- Sandee Wagner
4 comments:
Love your travelogue, Sandee!
Erm, you can almost say the same thing for Disney World! :-)
--good shoes
--get in 'walking' shape (one day we walked 13 miles according to my pedometer, but then I lost it in a toilet in the Japan pavilion at 4 PM.
--plan to return--otherwise, you will make yourself and the fam cranky by pushing too hard.
--you will gain weight even with all the walking.
--yep, it's the same checklist. ;-)
HA!! Magolla, leave it to you to insert a Disney reference. Do you vacation anywhere else?? spw
Here's my ideal vacation:
-- walk to the restaurant fifty feet from my door
-- walk across the street to the beach and stake out a chaise
-- walk back to restaurant for lunch
-- walk back to beach but don't get surprise if you detour to the pool five feet from the restaurant
-- back to restaurant for dinner
-- back to room for bed
-- repeat
Seriously, Sandee, sounds like you had a fabulous time. I (and my feet) enjoy traveling vicariously through your blog.
Marilyn,
I think you and I might have the same idea about vacationing, but mine includes a oil rubbed servant named Raoul to fetch me frosty adult beverages while I sit in the shade...
Seriously, I knew this would be a walking trip. I told Bert to pack for a 'forced march through Rome' and that's kind of what it was!! spw
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