We packed up our stuff and decided to have one last breakfast by the sea before we caught our train to Rome. I'll be the first to admit that my knowledge of proper coffee etiquette is lacking beyond the guidance of a starbucks menu. When we wanted to be adventurous with our roast, we would order randomly from the menu, never to be disappointed. When we just wanted a cup of coffee-before-I-die-or kill someone, we stuck with the 'Cafe Americano' or the 'Cafe Creme'.
Well, on Day 13 one of us wanted to be adventurous and one of us just wanted caffeine in any form. I cannot even remember what it was that we ordered from the menu, but our waiter gleefully brought out two teeny ceramic cups. One was about the size of a child's toy tea set. It looked to be the equivalent of a mini espresso. The other cup, while slightly bigger, was less full to make room for the hot milk also provided on the tray. We politely waited for the waiter to leave and then carefully watched each other to see which cup the other would reach for. We had no clue whose was whose. Fortunately, both were delicious, although short lived.
We realized that at home, we might have to drink that Venti Macchiato to get our caffeine fix or multiple cups of coffee, but our experience in Europe was that good things come in small cups. We tended to sip and enjoy our coffee in the morning rather than rushing out the door with the biggest to-go cup we could find. Quality over quantity, my friends.
The rest of our day was spent on a high speed train zipping down the coastline of Italy. The scenery out of our window was beautiful! This was our longest train ride and we forgot to pack a lunch. As enjoyable as the trains are, I don't recommend their food cart for anything more than snacking.
We arrived in Rome with plenty of daylight left to knockout a few things on our itinerary. So we checked into our Airbnb and set out on the ancient streets of Rome. First stop, Trevi Fountain! It was even more amazing than I had anticipated. This thing is seriously HUGE. We snapped a few photos and fought our way through the crowd to toss our own American penny into the crystal blue water.
Rome was very walk-able and we found that everything we wanted to see that evening was in close enough proximity to do so. After all, the more you walk, the more you can justify eating all of that gelato! So, as the sun began to set, we decided to check out the Spanish Steps. They were also beautiful and quite a sight to see, unfortunately, the steps were under construction and completely blocked off. This is one item that I just don't feel right about crossing off of my bucket list. Perhaps we will meet again, Roma.
The pantheon was our last stop for the evening. Equally incredible. Our first night in Rome was turning out to be a success. It was amazing that you could be walking through this amazing city, passing 'modern' business and apartments, then turn a corner and see this right in the middle of it all:
To be continued on Day 14...
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