Weekend in Rome

In what has been our most last minute get-away yet, the Saturday after Thanksgiving we headed up to Rome for a one-night stay. We decided at 1pm on Saturday to book a last-minute deal at a hotel in Rome, hopped in the car and arrived about two hours later! We checked in, valet parked the car for the weekend and were ready to explore the city on foot. 

First we stopped at the Spanish steps, which were crawling with visitors in the late afternoon warmth of the sun.





Then we proceeded to Trevi fountain, which was also very crowded, but we managed to push the girls through the crowds to get a photo and let them throw coins in over their shoulders.

On the way to Piazza Navona, we stopped in the ancient Roman Pantheon, where Brian gave us a quick tour (he had visited Rome when the USS Nassau stopped in Italy in 2010.)

Finally at Piazza Navona, the Christmas market had just begun. I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting, but it was a little cheesier than what I had imagined, what with the fluorescent lighting and carnival type booths. Clearly most things being sold were junk made in China. I guess I was hoping for some Italian-made Christmas ornaments and decorations, etc. But it was fun nonetheless! 

The girls enjoyed the carousel the best!

Brian encouraged Miranda and Sydney to enjoy drinking the fresh water carried into town from higher ground by the ancient aqua ducts. Although I'm always worried about drinking the water in Italy, we saw other people drinking it first, so when in Rome...

On the way back to the hotel, we walked by way of Campo di fiori, quickly past the busy intersection in front of the Victor Emmanual monument (nicknamed the "wedding cake,") and by way of Trevi fountain one more time to see it lit up at night. We slept well after all that walking!

But Sunday morning, we were (read: I was, at 31 weeks pregnant) still a little tired! So, after our hotel's buffet breakfast, we set out to visit some famous artwork in the Borghese Gallery (within the Borghese Gardens) and then caught a Hop On/Hop Off bus to see a few more sights. We ended our trip with a stop into Hard Rock Cafe for a little taste of "home" (nachos!) before we headed back home to Naples. 

Herculaneum (Ercolano, Italy)

On Veteran's Day, we ventured with Nana and Aunt Laura to nearby Herculaneum, a fascinating ancient Roman town destroyed when Mt. Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, despite having been inactive for more than 800 years prior. The town was buried under approximately 50 feet of mud and ash and remained undiscovered for more than 1600 years. Then, in 1709 it was accidentally discovered by workers digging a well.

Pompei, a neighboring city, is bigger and more famous for having been destroyed by the same volcano eruption, since it received the brunt of the initial volcanic ash destruction. However, Herculaneum (pictured here) appears to be more well preserved since it was covered later and mostly by a type of volcanic mud and ash mixture.


It was long thought that most inhabitants of Herculaneum had escaped, since it was a relatively small city, more wealthy, and there was more time to evacuate as compared to Pompei. However, since 1981, 300 skeletons have been excavated from near the seashore, which is most notable because Romans generally cremated the dead and this was the first time Roman remains had been available for scientific study.

Mt. Vesuvius looms in the background

Ancient Roman snack bar

It was amazing to see how much of the original structures, wood, marble, and even paintings were preserved for all these years, encased in the volcanic mud. My personal favorite, of course, was the snack bar seen here--an ancient type of fast food and the original Mediterranean diet. How very modern!

Original marble flooring

Original painting