Florence & Cortona, Italy

We caught a quick train from Rome and arrived in Florence a few hours later! After a quick taxi ride, we arrived at one of my favorite hotels ever - Hotel Davanzati. Between the free breakfasts and happy hours each evening and the amazing customer service, we were very happy with our 3 nights here. 

Florence is such a walk-able town that we basically hit all the big sights our first afternoon. We had our daily gelato at Perche No! and continued exploring. We walked all around Piazza della Republica, the Duomo, the Ponte Vecchio, and up and down the Arno! That evening, we picked up a delicious sandwich at Osteria All'antino Vinaio and ate on the steps in Piazza della Signoria!

The next morning, we decided to go to the Bargello Museum to avoid the crowds of the Accademia and Uffizi. It was a great choice! We saw tons of beautiful works of art with hardly a soul in sight.

We grabbed lunch at Mercato Centrale and then explored the nearby Mercato di San Lorenzo for leather goods. We didn't end up finding anything besides a few small trinkets, but it was still nice to smell that beautiful leather!

That evening we went to my favorite meal of the trip at 4 Leoni. Everything we had was fabulous - from the fried zucchini blossoms, to the pear pasta (my FAVORITE!), the spaghetti vogole, to the cheesecake. On the walk back to the hotel, we crossed the Arno and listened to a street performance for a while. A perfect night!

The next morning, we jumped on a train to Cortona. This town was literally only one stop past the town where I studied abroad at, but I never went! I'm glad we finally made it here. We took a quick bus from the train station up to the town. The views were incredible, so we took them in for a while. 

We popped into a few shops and made our way to the center of town. The town square was so adorable! Right off the main square was a little place called La Grotta which ended up being a fabulous choice. We started with bruschetta and for the main dish, my mom had some prosciutto and I had the truffle pasta.

We finished exploring the town (it's tiny, so only takes a few hours) and caught the bus back down to the train station.

Since we had a hearty lunch, we decided that picking up some picnic items and heading up to Piazzale Michelangelo was perfect. We called a cab and took the easy way up - ha! We took in the music and the sunset for an hour or so. 

We honestly couldn't have asked for a more beautiful sunset! As it started to get dark, we made our way leisurely back downhill into town.

Our final morning in Florence, we went to the Duomo before checking out and getting a car to take us to the train station.

Florence was such a breath of fresh air. It always feels like slipping back into a familiar place when I go back and it was wonderful to show my mom around!

Up Next: Our final stop in our Italy trip - Venice!

Rome, Italy

My mom and I decided to take a girl's trip together, so we headed to one of my favorite places in the world - Italy!

We arrived in Rome a little jet-lagged, but hungry. Our first stop was Campo di Fiore to find a restaurant for some lunch. We definitely indulged a bit - it was our first meal in Italy after all! Cheese and spinach ravioli, bruschetta, and house wine were all on the table.

To help us push through the first day slump, I actually booked us a free walking tour of Rome! It ended up being fabulous as our guide Matteo was very engaging. He took us from the Spanish Steps to the Pantheon to St. Ignatius church and everywhere in between. It was a good intro history lesson into Rome and kept us moving.

We ended the evening at the Trevi fountain, made a pit stop for gelato at Fatamorgana (a favorite!) and pizza at Antico Forno (a NEW favorite!).

The next day, we had a Vatican tour booked bright and early, so we made our way there. The Vatican was absolutely bonkers. We were happy to have booked a tour, but there were honestly just far too many people in there with little to no A/C. 

I hadn't mentioned yet, but the weather was in the mid/upper 90s our whole time in Rome. It was pretty unbearable in the mid-day heat, but we took our time and stopped for gelato or went back to the room to cool off periodically.

Back to the Vatican! We explore the museums, moved on to the Sistine Chapel and finally, saw St. Peter's as well. It was a jam-packed morning for sure!

We stopped at a place called La Zanzara for lunch, which was great! We got a spot in the shade outside, I had an Aperol spritz, and we got 4 small plates to split between us.

After a rest in our room, we actually went back for a small dinner at the same pizza by the slice (pizza al taglio) place we had been the night before. Followed up by another gelato at Fatamorgana next door!

The next morning, we had breakfast at our hotel and then wandered around the Jewish Quarter. It was a very good place to get away from the hustle and bustle of Rome as well. It's the oldest area in Rome that has been continuously inhabited and you definitely get a sense of the history as you walk around seeing the ruins everywhere.

So, the next part of the day was a bit of a mess, but we got through it! Between bus mishaps, routings due to protests, and not being able to find the entrance to the Colosseum because of said protests - we FINALLY made it inside.

We had an audio guide, so we spent the next few hours exploring the exhibits and the Colosseum itself. Also included in our tickets were passes to the Roman Forum, so we checked that out as well.

That evening, I booked a food tour for us with Eating Europe. Jason and I have done 3 tours with them and enjoyed them all immensely! This tour of Testaccio was no different!

We started with a spritz and some small bites, got meat and cheese (and wine) at the next stop, discovered my new favorite dish (grecia), ate trappazinos, and finally, gelato. It was way too much food, but totally worth it!

Testaccio is a neighborhood that's far more local. It's right below where the typical "tourist" maps of Rome end, so it's remained off the grid so to speak. It's a great area to come and enjoy "aperativo" which means drinks and FREE food. 

Some places just have snacks, but others go all out. I would totally suggest looking into this if you're coming to Rome!

Our last morning in Rome, we had time to grab a cornetti and a cappucino, see the inside of the Pantheon (it was closed on our first visit because it was a Sunday), and see Bernini's fountain at Piazza Navona.

Then we caught a bus to the train station to head to our next stop - Florence!

Rome was beautiful, but I definitely don't recommend coming the time of year we did.

Rome is one of my favorite cities, but I told my mom that I can understand why you wouldn't like it if you'd never been before. It's a "difficult" city. Public transit is completely unreliable, the heat is overwhelming, and the main sights are WAY too crowded.

That bring said, Rome is still incredibly charming. I just think it's easier to see the charm when it's not peak tourist season.

Up Next: Florence and Cortona!