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.