The Scroop's European Holiday: Rome

Well, today has been the polar opposite of yesterday and this is our frustration with Rome. It seems here its either awful or amazing. This morning we didn't have a plan apart from wandering around Rome. Sometimes we get caught up in having to see the major tourist attractions when the tourist attractions are the simple things. We started off walking down past the Pantheon to a coffee shop, Sant Eustachio il caffe. This was a coffee shop that we went too last time we were here because it had massive wraps as the best coffee in Rome. Unfortunately we got all flustered with the ordering system last time and retreated and didn't get to sample the coffee. This time we know this system and we complete the transaction without a hitch. We stand at the bar and drink our coffee, Kris has a cappuccino and I had an espresso. The coffee was awesome and it was a great experience. We continued on to Piazza Navona and sit and listen to the buskers and relax by the fountains. We continue walking toward Campo de Fiori because we remember a bakery, Il Fornaio, which sold amazing cakes and biscuits. Kris calls it the Salami shop because they have a huge roll of Salami or some type of meat in the shop front window. The service at this place is the best and the woman that served us 2 years ago is still there, we assume she is the owner. We buy up big and eat as we walk to Campo de Fiori. When we get there the place is buzzing with market stalls filling the square. They are selling some amazing produce and all sorts of amazing things. We wander around for a while, buy a few things before continuing on down the road where there are more shops which delights Kris and Mia because they are able to enjoy their passion, handing money over to shop keepers. By now we are starting to get hungry for some lunch so we decide we will head back to Il Forniao to get some food to eat back at Piazza Navona. We walk around the block and back in that direction when we pass a church, The Basilica of Sant' Andrea Della Valle and Tyler asks if we can go in an have a look. This is a church on a main street that has a wonderful facade but you wouldn't think it would be anything special. We walked inside and are blown away. We saw a church yesterday that we considered the best church we have ever seen but this one has possibly surpassed that. Rome is full of these amazing hidden treasures and it baffles me why places like the Pantheon get all the kudos. And that is not slagging off the Pantheon because the Pantheon is an amazing structure and one we love but this place beats it hands down. Just sitting in this church, which dates back to 1595, you find it hard to leave. At the Pantheon you will be surrounded by hundreds of people all being disrespectful with the noise they make and snapping photos and this is confirmed by the constant announcements over a loud speaker in 5 different languages asking people to be quiet. At the time we were sitting in this church there were 5 other people there. You cannot hear a sound. The noise of Rome is non-existent. What we see on the walls and ceilings of this church rival the Sistine Chapel and the Pantheon put together and it is in pristine condition, probably because it is funded by the Catholic Church and not the Italian government? Not sure. Not to mention this church and the one we saw yesterday are about 200m apart and only about 400m from the Pantheon. This for me has been one of the highlights of the holiday and I'm going back tomorrow. After dragging ourselves out of this church we continued on to the bakery and then on to Piazza Navona. This is a fantastic place to sit and eat lunch with artist, painters and buskers to watch. We spend a while there before walking back to Sant Eustachio, the coffee shop we went to this morning for another coffee. This time we both order an espresso, which is not what Kris would normally do. She didn't like it but managed to collar an Italian woman having some other contraption that has convinced her that that will be tomorrows purchase. After that we head back to the apartment and head out onto the terrace for some drinks before getting ready for our cooking class. We head down to the restaurant just before 5 and meet Monica, the lady that will be taking our class. Tonight we will be learning how to cook the perfect pizza.....from scratch. Monica starts us of by giving us a wine (cool drink for the kids) and after that takes us to the tables where we learn how to make a pizza base. Monica is lovely and tells us everything we need to know. We are having a ball and we can't get the smile of the kid’s faces. Once we have the bases sorted we put the toppings on. The class includes dinner so while we are waiting for our pizza Monica brings out starters. After that our pizzas arrive with mine and Tyler's looking a bit rough around the edges but Kris and Mia's look perfect. Clearly the girls are better at this than the boys and it looks as though the girls will be making the pizzas when we get home and Tyler and I will just have to watch the cricket while they are doing it! The night included all our food and drinks and it was a fantastic night. Everyone at "That's Amore" made us feel so welcome which really added to the experience. After dinner we wandered the street doing some shopping before dropping in on Valentino's for gelato. This has been one of the best day we have had on this holiday and most of it did not cost a cent. Tomorrow we think we will do something the same for the last full day of our 6 week European adventure.