Our second day in Rome we were on our own to explore, find the best gelato,
and get the boys a much needed haircut.
We weren't planning on getting in trouble, but we did. Here's how it all started.
Our apartment was not far from the Villa Borghese park.
We planned a loop that took us to the park, over to see the Spanish steps,
past the Trevi Fountain (drained of water because of repairs),
and then over to the gelato district - which has the bonus benefit of being near
the Pantheon and other great sites.
As we approached the park, we spied something spectacular - mini cars for rent!
We couldn't pass it up! We had walked our feet off and this seemed like a great way
to keep the boys happy and see all the places we had planned.
The rules are loose with these cars. They are allowed anywhere.
Roads, sidewalks, walking paths. It's the craziest thing!
We must have asked the guy we rented from at least three times if the boys could drive once we were in the park. He enthusiastically agreed, "Yes - in the park."
So Grandma and I were at the wheel as we headed down the Via del Corso, one of the main
shopping streets in Rome and the route we needed to take to enter the park.
I wish we had pictures, but there was simply no time. This street is packed with
pedestrians who seem to have no comprehension that they are to stay on the sidewalks to make
room for the cars on the streets. Taxis, garbage trucks, bicycles, and us - all weaving, beeping,
and dodging trying not to take out pedestrians.
Spanish steps? Whoosh - there they go!
Trevi Fountain? Even when it's closed there is no place to stop!
Finally, we reach the park and each of the boys gets their turn.
The next thing we know, these Italian men are chasing us down.
They are throwing their arms around, yelling at us, and reaching in to grab the steering wheel
on our cars! It caught us totally off guard.
Finally, we understood that they were upset that the boys were driving.
I told them that the man we rented from said they could drive in the park.
They were insistent that this was against the rules.
So, we switched back to adult drivers and headed onward.
When we got back to rental place, we started to tell the guy what had happened,
but he already knew. The guys in the park had called his cell.
"Why would you let the boys drive?" he asked us.
In disbelief we replied, "because you said we could."
In the end we discovered that there was a communication gap between,
"in the park" and "in park." We thought we were asking if they could drive on the
walking paths in the park, he was giving permission for them to pretend to drive
while in park. Two VERY different things. Oops!!
We did eventually make it to the Pantheon.
Dating from 125 AD, it is the oldest, in tact, building in Rome.
It still operates as an existing church. In fact, there was a church service taking place
when we arrived so while we got a good peak, we didn't take any pictures.
Near the Pantheon is gelato heaven. A different gelateria can be found at every turn.
We had a few tips on some hotspots, braved the massive crowds, and tasted a few of these
so-called "best," but we're going to go out on a limb right here and declare that
by far, the best gelato we found in Rome was a place called Mo's near our apartment.
Mo's gelato is made in a top-secret kitchen in the back of the store
using only fresh, organic ingredients.
There was nothing else in Rome that even came close to making our tastebuds sing like
they did at Mo's. We will definitely be back!
As the sun was setting, we took some time to wander through a favorite spot of mine,
the Piazza Navona. It was as I remembered -- musicians out playing, artists painting and selling their pieces, and two brothers wrestling over who would appear taller in the picture I was taking.
One memory we wanted to be sure and document?
The boys finally got their haircuts.
NoFear's hair came out much the same as before.
The Optimist got we now call, "the Roman swoop."
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