After one amazing week in Sorrento, Ann Taylor and I packed our bags and made our way up to The Eternal City. As expected, it was sad to leave the Hotel Bristol after such a fun visit, and we heard many “congratulations!” upon checking out. Aside from the omnipresent 80s American pop, one of the most interesting things that I have discovered about Italy is the near-ubiquitous embrace of TripAdvisor. More than half of the restaurants that we have visited have a TripAdvisor logo near their entrance, and the Hotel Bristol front desk staff specifically asked if we would write a review after returning home. While TripAdvisor has been a great source of inspiration for restaurants and activities (as evidenced by our dinner spot this evening), the reviews have not always hit the mark (as evidenced by our meal at Inn Bufalito, the 15th ranked restaurant in Sorrento). As I have mentioned a few times, though, Ann Taylor and I could not have been happier with our experience at the Hotel Bristol, and I expect that we will, in fact, author a positive review for future visitors. After one last breakfast looking out over the Bay of Naples, the driver picked us up at 11am and we began our trip to Rome. While we could have taken the train from Sorrento to Rome (transferring at Naples), we greatly appreciated being picked up and dropped off directly in front of our hotel.
The drive itself was fairly uneventful, and we felt fortunate to be heading out of Sorrento, as the traffic was backed up for miles as Neapolitans had flocked to the Amalfi Coast beaches. Including a quick stop for lunch at a service station, we were in Rome in about 3.5 hours. Thanks to a full year of business travel to Boston, we were able to save enough Starwood Preferred Guest points for a room at the St. Regis Rome. While the views aren’t quite as nice as the Hotel Bristol, we were surprised, and very grateful, to have been upgraded to a junior suite. Looking back, I suspect that including a note in our reservation that we were celebrating our honeymoon may have also helped. The room is absolutely gorgeous, with amazing frescoes and antique furniture (complemented, of course, with two flat-screen televisions). Actually, Ann Taylor and I were surprised to recall that we had not once turned on the television in our room at the Hotel Bristol. Once we had settled in and unpacked, we stepped outside to explore the local area, including a stop at the local supermarket to stock up on Coke Light, water and iced tea. The Despar service was somewhat underwhelming — the cashier practically flung the “bag it yourself” plastic bag in our direction — but the prices were far easier to swallow than the St. Regis minibar.
As mentioned before, we turned to TripAdvisor for dinner recommendations near the hotel, and the reviews did not disappoint. We ended up at Piccolo Arancio, a small restaurant located just a few blocks from Trevi Fountain. A few of the reviews had suggested the fried zucchini flowers, and while they were not quite as good as those that we had prepared at “Villa Ida” on Thursday, they were still quite tasty. The house white was also good, and Ann Taylor and I both enjoyed the tagliatelle pasta and lamb ragù. Combined with the service station sandwiches that we had eaten for lunch, this was the first day in Italy that we both felt that we had eaten reasonably-sized portions. Either the warnings about European vs. American portions are unfounded, or we have been eating in the wrong places, because it’s nearly impossible to finish an entire course served at an Italian restaurant. After dinner, we walked over to Trevi Fountain and mingled with the crowd. On my previous trip, I had thrown a coin into the fountain, and the legend appears to have come true. This time, I captured a photo of Ann Taylor tossing a coin over her shoulder. Perhaps a return trip to Rome is in our future? If nothing else, return trips to the gelateria are in our future, and we stopped for a chocolate cone and mint chocolate chip cup on our way back to the hotel.
Tomorrow, we will have a full day of exploring ancient Rome, with tours in the morning and afternoon. The weather in Rome is (somehow) even nicer than in Sorrento, with temperatures in the low 90s and sunny skies scheduled for our entire week. Ann Taylor and I are so excited to learn more about the ancient sites, and to continue to explore the modern cuisine. We are looking forward to a fabulous week in Rome!
Take care,
– Dan