I can hardly believe that after nearly two weeks in Italy, today is our last day before heading home. To pick up where the last post left off, yesterday evening started with a drink at Le Grand Bar in the lobby of our hotel. The atmosphere was fantastic, which can be especially attributed to the amazing musician playing the piano just a few tables behind us. Dressed up for the opera, Ann Taylor and I savored one of the most relaxing moments of our trip thus far. We could have easily stayed there all night, but the performance started at 8:30pm, so we finished our drinks and strolled over to the Teatro dell’Opera. I had purchased tickets about one month ago, using the Italian version of Ticketmaster (LisTicket.it). While it was one of the most confusing websites that I have ever used, we did manage to get seats in one of the boxes at the back of the opera house. Now, as mentioned yesterday, I was already unfamiliar with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, having read only the first quarter of the play, and having forgotten to read the summary on Wikipedia. What may come as no surprise is that, as of yesterday, I was also unfamiliar with the opera, having never before seen a live performance. When booking the tickets, I looked at the evening as a new cultural experience, rather than as another opportunity to enjoy a favorite pastime. Thankfully, Ann Taylor was much more knowledgeable about both, and she was able to guide me along. Still, we were both surprised that, as the performance started, the singing was in English! I was expecting Italian or Latin, but, apparently, this opera had been written in The Bard’s native tongue. Unfortunately, I still understood only one of four words, and the director’s modern interpretation made it difficult to connect the quarter that I had read. At nearly four hours, the performance really seemed to drag at times, but the singers were all quite talented and the opera house itself was stunning. In the end, while the opera may not have been my cup of tea, Ann Taylor seemed to really enjoy the performance, and we both experienced a far different side of Italy than we found during the afternoon food tour.
Our final day in Rome started early, with breakfast at the hotel, and a 9 to 11am reservation at the Galleria Borghese. To control crowds, the art museum, which sits on the grounds once owned by Cardinal Scipione Borghese, allows a few hundred visitors at one time, with the day divided into five two-hour periods. The museum’s collection is divided into two floors, and contains a blend of classical and Renaissance art. While I had not specifically recognized any of the works, one of the most impressive pieces was Bernini’s statue of Apollo and Daphne, depicting the scene where the former turns the latter into a tree. Our two-hour visit passed rather quickly, and we decided to explore the rest of the Villa Borghese gardens. With a Coca-Cola Light and an iced tea, Ann Taylor and I enjoyed what was easily the most relaxing walk of the week. With no narrating tour guide, and no time limit, we finally had an opportunity to savor Rome’s natural — as opposed to historical — charm and beauty. It was a great way to unwind, and to begin to prepare for the long journey back to the real world. After almost two hours, we left the gardens and walked to Mamma Angela’s Trattoria — another TripAdvisor recommendation — for lunch. We shared another bruschetta appetizer, Ann Taylor ordered rigatoni all’ amatriciana and I had my last plate of Italian lasagna. With our past two lunches taking place near Vatican City and on the food tour, it was great to enjoy a more relaxed meal, especially in an air-conditioned room.
Returning to the hotel on the last long walk of our vacation, we used the afternoon to relax in the room and pack for our flights tomorrow. Earlier in the week, we had asked the hotel concierge to recommend a romantic restaurant for our last night in Italy. He immediately suggested Antica Pesa, located in the trendy neighborhood of Trastavere (which I had mistakenly heard as Testaverde). Around 7pm, we hailed our first Roman taxi — actually, we used the taxi line at the hotel, as taxis don’t look for passengers on the streets in Rome — and headed to the restaurant. We were one of the first couples to be seated in the backyard area, which was dimly lit and the perfect setting for our last night in Rome. The service was outstanding, and our waiter was thrilled to learn that we were from Brooklyn, as they will be opening a sister restaurant in Williamsburg this October. Ann Taylor and I also met the fourth-generation owner, Francesco, and we later learned that Ann Taylor had been captured in a photograph that Francesco took with a few friends and then posted to Twitter. More important than social networking, though, was the food, which was outstanding! Ann Taylor enjoyed an eggplant and gazpacho appetizer, and a main course of lightly-seared tuna, while I had a salami “slider” and pasta with zucchini flower and clams. The presentation and the taste were both amazing, and we, thankfully, saved enough room for dessert. Needless to say, Ann Taylor and I were very happy with our spiced peaches with chocolate ice cream, and dark chocolate mousse with a Bailey’s center, respectively. At the end of the meal, we left our contact information with the hostess so that we could learn when Antica Pesa was open in Williamsburg, as I expect that the food will be worth a trip on the L-train.
As busy as our two weeks in Italy have been, it was perfect to have a relaxing day at the end of the trip before we head home. While I suspect that we will still find ourselves tired after the long flight tomorrow, we felt refreshed to have one last opportunity to enjoy Rome at our own pace. The people and the food and the history of Rome have made our week here so much fun, and we will return home with so many good memories. Oh, and pictures, too. There are many more captured than were posted to this blog, and I am sure that we will have them up on Facebook soon. We will be checking out of our hotel mid-morning tomorrow, for a 1pm flight that is scheduled to land around 5pm ET. As I mentioned at the beginning, I can hardly believe that today is our last day in Italy. More importantly, though, I can hardly believe how much we have loved our time here. We could not have asked for a more perfect way to end our Italian honeymoon.
Take care,
– Dan