Rome

• We took a short trip to Rome; we stayed 3 nights. We had a direct flight from Toronto Pearson, but we, unfortunately, got stuck with a baby behind us. We were terrified to think that on our first flight out of the continent since Covid, we'd be stuck with a crying baby for the entire redeye flight. Despite the flight being very turbulent, the baby only cried for the first hour of the flight. We got food on the flight, which was nice considering our other flight to Hawaii did not.
• We stayed at the C-hotels Club House, which was at the west end of the city at the Cornelia metro station. I forgot how small European rooms could be. This one was slightly bigger than a queen size bed, with a bathroom where I could touch all the sides with my extended arms.
• Beside the Cornelea station (the closest station to our hotel), we found a nice bakery that we ended up going to every morning; it was cheap, quick, and compared to North America, good quality.
• On our first day we took the metro into the Trevi fountain and were surprised at how many tourists were in the city. Granted you could fit more people into the square, but it was at least a good 3/4 of the area filled with people shoulder to shoulder. We tried coming back here at 6 am to see the fountain before the crowds, which we got. But the fountain wasn't operational because they were cleaning it and removing all the money people would throw in it.
• The following day we woke up early to get to St. Peter's Basilica at 7 am and went straight up to the cupola. At that time, there was only a handful of tourists at the top, so we were lucky to experience an ariel view of Rome without the craziness of bumping into tourists every time you move; the view from the top was fantastic
• We walked through Capri Di Fiore, where they have a large morning market. From what I read, I got the impression that it would be a large farmer's market / artisanal-style open market. However, it ended up being a very tourist-focused market where the majority of the booths were selling variations of the same ware (i.e. pasta, balsamic, or some liquor).
• We had pre-booked a guided tour of the Colosseum plus the Arena with an Archeologist. We tried to ask for help but maybe it was the chaos of the number of people, or the language barrier, we ended up in just a regular guided tour of the Colosseum, minus the arena. In the end, it was nice to have a guide at least, and not have to line up to get a ticket. It was a bit disappointing that we didn't get to be in the Arena since we paid for it, but it was also okay since it technically wasn't a completely different place (i.e. you could see the Arena, we just miss part of the story around it). From there, we went to the Roman Forum & Palatine Hill, which was free with our ticket, and explored the ruins.
• We also had pre-booked entrance time for the Vatican Museum. We got to see the Sistine Chapel, and I wasn't too impressed. I suppose it has a lot of religious meaning since it was the first visualisation of the Book of Genesis. However, it was unfortunate that we heard the day after we visited, a North American tourist smashed two sculptures out of frustration of not being able to see the Pope
• Walking through Rome from the Trevi fountain to the Colosseum, then going to the Vatican Museum all in one day is a long day. We had over 30,000 steps that day
• We went to the Jewish Quarters a few times. The first time was on a Saturday, which was closed. I'm assuming it was due to their Sabbath. The second day we got there and it was more lively with patios and street performers. We waited in line at a Jewish bakery for some biscuits and burnt fruit cake. The line was quite long. After trying the food, I'm not really sure why there was such a long line, and why we even lined up for it
• We noticed in Italy that the Google reviews and blogs were all inflated with ratings. Every place we ate was 4.3 stars or greater, and compared to Canadian standards, I'd say they were good. However, relative to local standards, I felt like there was a large separation in quality.
• Buying tickets for the subway was interesting. It doesn't tell you when to pay. You just put money in it after you make your selection. It confused so many foreigners. The worst is that the subway system in Naples is the opposite where you have to put in money first and then purchase a ticket that you could afford.
• Luckily I did my research for Rome and got reservations for getting into the Pantheon. Because it was the first Sunday of the month, typically most government tourist attractions are free. But free does not mean you did not need a reservation. So many tourists and even tour guides were turned away because they did not have one.
• In the evenings, we went to Trastevere. This area seemed to be the hang-out area. They had a lot of nice restaurants, patios, and ice cream bars. People would just hang out by the fountain and drink a bottle of wine with their colleagues. The ambiance was quite relaxed.
• The first time we walked by the Spanish steps, it was crowded with tourists. So when we went again at sunrise, it was nice to see it being empty for a handful of Instagramers. It was interesting to see some of them 'work'; some would be more forceful in asking their partners to keep taking their picture but with different poses, adjustments, angles etc.

Food we ate

• Voglia Di Pizza: Had a pizza and seafood pasta here. Relatively speaking, compared to Toronto standards, this would be good quality. However, as we saw throughout our trip to Italy, this was on their lower end in terms of quality
• Secondo Tradizione: Had a sea urchin pasta and a Carbonara, and a Sambuca Tiramisu. The food was great, albeit a bit pricy, and the portions were small. I was still hungry after the meal.
• Bona Pizza: I thought it was a good pizza place in the Jewish Quarters
• Nannarella: We were lucky to get in before the line got long (and it got long). The food here was good and had a nice homely feel to it. We got a patio seat so we could sit there and people-watch during the evening.
• Otaleg: I forgot what made this place particularly special, but we saw a tour guide saying this was their favorite Gelato place, so we had to try it.