We tend to stay in Rome for at least a week, whenever we visit.  We have many friends who make the city their home, and so, we spend a large part of our time there, socializing with those friends, catching up on all that has occurred in our lives, over the past few months.  Not as much actual “sight-seeing” takes place when we do this, but after traveling around like we do, to have some time in a beautiful city like Rome, and not be thinking about having to run around, is a welcome respite.  Some days we simply spend taking a walk, and then, perhaps, going out for a meal.  Sometimes, we cook at home ourselves.  This week’s post reflects a few of those days we spent doing nothing in particular, but which turned out to be full of rich, rewarding experiences.  Nothing can be better than a leisurely walk along Via Giulia.

No trip to Rome is complete without at least a glimpse of Saint Peter’s Basilica.

One of the landmarks not to be missed in Rome is Castel Sant’Angelo, and we will visit that in the future.

A nice drink, before dinner, never did anyone any harm!

When ordering a drink at a café, before 9:00pm, most places will give you something to snack on.  The snacks are usually included in the price of the drink.  They could range from a bowl of olives or chips, to small plates like the one pictured below, or even, in some places, a large buffet from which you can help yourself.  This is the case, not only in Rome, but in all of Italy.

I was very excited about dinner, as our dear friend, Giulia, was making pasta con la pajata, and had invited us, along with a few other friends, to La Botticella, to enjoy this typical Roman specialty.  La pajata is a dish you will not find on the menu in most neighborhoods of Rome.  To enjoy this plate, one must either travel to Testaccio, or to Trastevere, where it can be found a bit more often.  It is an offal dish, and so, it was considered the food of poor people, for quite a long time.  Most tourists in Rome would probably not even try it, but I find it to be delicious, and no trip to the Eternal City is complete without eating it at least once.  It is simply calf’s intestines, cooked with the milk from their mother still inside.  When cooked in tomato sauce, and put over pasta, the result is a rich, creamy dish, that is unlike any other you have ever tasted!  So, whenever Giulia says she is making la pajata, we go!

On this particular night, Giulia was pulling out all of the stops, for after we had filled ourselves with the pasta con la pajata, she brought out a whole roasted suckling pig.  The looks our table of six got from the other diners in the restaurant were quite amusing.  They were all wishing they were sitting with us, having that meal with us!

No meal is complete, without strawberry tiramisu and biscotti.

The next day, when we finally rolled out of bed, we felt the need to walk off some of our dinner from the night before, and so, we made our way across the river, to Piazza Venezia.

We walked around the area for a while, and then, once the sun went down, headed back over to Trastevere.

That night, dinner was at Glass Hostaria, a wonderful restaurant in Trastevere, on Vicolo del Cinque, whose kitchen is run by one of Italy’s best and most innovative chefs, Cristina Bowerman.  I love this restaurant!  Cristina’s food is not only beautiful to look at, but the flavors are both, unexpected and deeply satisfying.  It is no wonder the restaurant is Michelin-starred!

We ordered the tasting menu!  It was a delight, from start to finish!

 

Next up: We have one last day in Rome!

 

Note: This blog is written in English and Spanish, and the author takes no responsibility for the quality of any other translations that may appear.  If you have enjoyed this post, please, check out our archives for more posts from Rome, as well as other Italian destinations.  Grazie!