11 October 2012

An open letter home about Rome

To all the other visitors to the blog other than my mum, hello, I hope you enjoy my letter home. I felt the whole 4 days in Rome the very best way to describe our experience is how I would tell my mum about it so I wrote her a letter sitting in our Rome apartment with the intention of her reading it when you all did, on the blog - everybody has heard everything there is to know about tourist attractions in Rome & Rome itself so this is my different take on this beautiful city .... So here is my open letter to Mum xx. 


{ I just felt this was 'so Rome' ma - Vespa, red no less, in a bustling Rome ally way }

Dear Mum,

Can you believe we've been gone 2 months already? We can't quite work out if we believe it or not. It's the strangest feeling when you're over here, like time is as slow as you'll ever experience it in the best way possible but that it's also whizzing past. We still have another 2 & a bit months ahead of us and I have just hit a bit of homesickness - I think mainly for our coffee dates & long chats, plus Nate's Sunday Roasts - I'd say yours but in all honesty Morgs & I are now well aware Nate is the chef behind them! 

We have just had 4 of the most awe inspiring days of our trip to date in Rome ma & I am bringing you back here one day without a doubt. 

Our apartment has been amazing, really huge & literally on the doorstep of the Colosseum  I didn't realise just how cool that really was until at the start of every day, and at the end of every night, when we got to walk past it & were seriously wowed every.single.time. The whole area where we're staying as well is FULL of these gorgeous restaurants, cafe's & bars so in our family terms it's "soooo us". We have this cafe as our neigbour & got to try out our first Italian sentence in there! "Due cappuccino & cornetto Grazie" which is simply '2 cappuchinos & croissants thanks' - we had ordered in English the first day & on the 2nd day when we did it in Italian they cheered us & we got our stuff cheaper from then on in. Brilliant. Pretty sure we think we're Italian already just from learning about 5 words. 

We have been THE biggest tourists in Rome & if you were here you'd tell me to slow down, but there is just too much to do & to see & to take in. 

Our first morning we ventured to the Vatican early to start our sight seeing & when we arrived realised it was the day the Pope comes out & gives his Palpal blessing - can you believe it?! You will be pleased to know I was in jeans & a tshirt so my knees & shoulders were covered as is the correct dress for the vatican. No legs or boobs that day no siree - & don't worry, you'll get to watch the whole experience when we're home as Morgs managed to get me on film yelling "oh gosh Nanna & mum would be so proud!!" remarking about my appropriate dress. The polish people next to us loved it don't worry. As luck would have it as well - or Nannas work from above - Morgs & I somehow got seats close to the front AND right near the barrier where we had no idea, but the Pope drives passt, so one minute we were sitting gawking at the crowds & debating why religious people are so happy, next minute, along plods the Pope in his Pope mobile right past us. We just looked at each other like 'is this really happening'?? It really is like Hollywood for religious people ma, and although we didn't plan any of it, we had the time of our lives!!

The Vatican itself along with the Museum & Sistine chapel were also really cool experiences but it's VERY touristy & you are just pushed through it all. Morgs & I love all that stuff more so to find symbols and regularity with all the historical pictures - there are so many stories in all the paintings over here it's unbelievable. We've been googling some of the hand symbols that keep popping up in all the religious paintings & you wouldn't believe the things you can find on it. 

Speaking of the Vatican, or more specifically the Sistine chapel, don't get mad, but we totally took photos to show you. You're not meant to take photos in there but we figured God wouldn't mind - if his the one that even made the rule but to be honest I don't think it was. It is quite surreal to be in there. I didn't find that because it felt holy or anything, I felt it more because I could feel Michaelangelo's pain in his paintings. He seemed like a tortured man mum. We learnt he almost went blind & cripple from the 4 years of painting the roof as the position he stood in. The one drawing I was intrigued by was a picture of a giant with it's head cut off. The head was being carried out on a platter but the giant's head was in actual fact a self portrait of Michaelangelo himself. It's said he did that as he had lost his soul by finishing the Sistine chapel and I just thought it was so sad. 

A highlight for me in terms of sight seeing though, apart from the Italian food & wine, & ice cream..anddd croissants, which might seem strange,  was, or is, the Pantheon  There wasn't anything specifically jaw droppingly amazing about it - apart from everything - but I was just really drawn to it. I think for you, you would just love the streets themselves, and the people & really, well...everything. 

We of course did the Trevi fountain & I got to throw my 3 coins in! One for luck, one for marriage, & one to return to Rome - I actually threw a 4th one in and that was a 2nd 'return to Rome' for you. 

Catching up with Uncle Dale & Auntie Pauline was literally the biggest highlight of all and I adored going for dinners & drinking Italian wine with them - we seriously had THE best time with them. 

I forgot to say as well - one of the restaurants we went to on our first night after turning down an ally way turned out to be a restaurant from the movie 'Eat, Pray, Love' - how fabulous I know. I naturally made Morgs take photos of the whole experience while I oohed & ahhed that we were really there. Morgs ended up loving this particular restaurant & night as well as a random 'busker' if you will came right near our table and started to sing the most beautiful opera song in the deepest voice you've ever heard - truly a pinch us moment. I was genuinely surprised at how much Morgs loved the Opera busker experience - it was adorable.

Really though ma, everything you hear about Rome, is true. I had SO many expectations, hang on no. Wrong word. I had so much excitement? Hope? Whatever, about Rome. I'd heard amazing things I suppose and knew of ALL the things I suspected I wanted to see, and the great thing is we did. And we loved it. It really is very touristy though so when we come back, it's early starts and long days I'm afraid but it makes the experience all the more fun & seriously adventurous. To nutshell it in a non what you'd expect / exactly waht you'd expect way ... It's big, it's beautiful, it's busy, the food is the best we've ever tasted - we doubt we'll ever be able to eat Italian food in Perth again - & the wine is delicious. Basically, our family is meant to be from Italy. I knew it all along!

Travelling together so far has been perfect - well, nothing in life is perfect so I can't say that but I suppose we're surprised at how much we don't fight. We thought we'd have at least fake broken up 3 times by now but you'll be happy to know we've been Fine with a capital F. We'll still call the occasional time out but generally within half an hour we're both wondering what the other is up to and venture back to each other wondering why we wanted the time apart.

Dead set missing you though mum and can't wait to have beach dates (with your cups of tea) over the Summer when we're home. 

Give ALL my love to the boys & B (and the biggest cuddle to Delilah)

Miss you most & love you millions.

xx

{ Staring up at the Sistine Chapel mural & some of the roof - this was the last mural he painted in his old age }


{ Left: Our very first Italian food in Italy & we were like excited kids on Christmas Eve mum you SHOULD have seen us. Just a simple Bruschetta & red wine but it was the best Italian 'stuff' we'd ever tasted! Right: The best ice cream we've had on the trip - just next to the Trevi Fountain. Ice cream is primarily to blame for my growing belly, I'm not going to lie }

{ The Colosseum by night, this was us walking back to our apartment after dinner - our apartment was one of the top floors in the buildings you can see in the left of the photo mum! }

{ Outside the Vatican - chuffed as cheese - is that the saying? Probably not - at my respectable shoulder & leg coverage }


{Left: The roof as you are walking through the Vatican Museum - our guide said it's so lavish through each Pope's vanity. Her words not mine. Rather interesting if true, but definitely beautiful. Right: A photo I snapped walking out to adventure one day of two nuns walking past the Colosseum, I loved it }

{ Inside the remarkable Colosseum - we did the guided tour just with audio mobile hand held things ma & do I have stories to tell you when home that we learnt that day - so amazing }

{ Dinner with Auntie Pauline & Uncle Dale - yes we're boozed, no I haven't emailed it to them yet, Yes I will  shortly }

{ Us at the Trevi Fountain - by the by, there is a Gelare place on the other side of the fountain that we had the best ice cream of the whole trip at }

{ Relaxing & enjoying people watching at the Spanish steps. We googled why everybody sits on them and there is absolutley no significance! ha! The steps are however the widest in Europe, so that was interesting }


{ Being silly at the Pantheon - it really is such an amazing city - ALL of these tourist attraction type places are literally in back allys, it's just amazing }

7 comments:

  1. Wow u r so lucky ....m somewhat hoping for a getaway like this...love all the pics n how happy u look...

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    Xoxo

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  2. As always, the photos are just beautiful, and the architecture stunning. Your letter to your mum is so sweet, I love the banter in it! I feel like I know you and like we've met, so I'll just say I look forward to meeting your mum next year! xoxox

    New Giveaway on the Blog!

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  3. I have loved your experiences everywhere before but I love the roman ones even more :) Rome is definitely on my to visit list and you´ve just made me wanting to go there much more. I also like stories behing famous works of art that´s what made me studying the history of art at uni. And ice cream or italian gelato is the love of my life as well I think :D Btw you look so beautiful, I like all your outfits so much. Especially your big necklaces. Have you bought some piece of clothing or accessory on your journey?
    xx Eve.h

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  4. Look at your hair, it's getting so light! cannot get over how glowing you look! I think this is by far the best post because it's so open & honest & straight from the heart. Would love to see one more of these before you fly home ;)

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  5. Oh, Anna - I loved Rome and you've captured everything about it so beautifully in your letter and photos. We had such an amazing time there and I'm reliving it a little now when reading this. Can't believe you've been gone two months already - but there's still so many incredible adventures ahead of you - can't wait to see what comes next x

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