Back and missing it already!

Well, I'm back and I didn't blog at all from my holiday, but I am going to give you a run down of the things I noticed about Rome, all of the gorgeous art and sights and about the things I have mentioned briefly in my last few blogs.

Of course I really should have blogged whilst I was out there, however I couldn't get as much access to Uncle's Internet as I thought and the holiday turned out to be so much more relaxing than I had originally planned, I sort of floated through it...also it was about 40 degrees most days and so the amount of time we spent outside being active were lessened. But really I preferred it to last year, as we caught the I Love Rome River Festival, which was ace and seeing all the beautiful sights for the second time round gave me a chance to really appreciate them.

So today, I am going to show you a few pictures of the apartment and of the streets surrounding it. I think that although the appearance of Rome seems a little grey and grubby on the outside, nothing can outweigh the atmosphere of easy going life that oozes from everywhere.

Most of the accommodation comprises of apartment buildings. Every one has a balcony of some sort. On the ground floor, you probably get a garden. What I loved about this was that after siesta time, when practically everyone shuts shop and chills for the hottest part of the day (approx 2-5pm) you see everyone out for an early evening stroll, then a little later, you can hear everyone preparing and eating their dinner. It is an incredibly humbling and comfortable feeling to be within that side of the culture. Eugene and Katia live pretty much in the centre of Rome and so there are no Tourist areas. We were right in it.

Before 11.30 am you can comfortably sit in the garden (unless you are used to raging heat) and after that it gets hot hot hot. We did make most of our trips out after that, but we did spend alot of time in the shade, indoors or sipping espresso. We found it very important to make time for breaks. The heat does zap your energy a little and there are plenty of places to stop, although I must make it clear that you really need to be wary of prices in tourist areas. You can grab an espresso (Cafe) standing at the counter for around 80 cents, but sit down, or decide to drink right outside the pantheon or the Colosseum and you could be paying about 3 euros. Our world does like to suck every last penny out of each other!!

Here and there throughout the city are the odd slice of history, as you can see above. The ancient world completely runs into the modern, and even in decor and house fittings, the Romans seem stuck in the past. Not that that is a bad thing...there are beautiful original 1930s marble floors, beds, cupboards and shelving units. All of the kitchen paraphernalia is retro or kitch. I am so going to kit my own place out with similar items and themes...in fact, Dom and I found three mint condition Denby casserole dishes in a charity shop today for...wait for it...£3.50...crazy...anyway...here are a few pictures of inside the apartment.

I'll carry on tomorrow or the next day with the Colosseum...