ITALY, GERMANY, AND MORE!

We love to walk. Unfortunately, the heat in Rome has made it more difficult, but we still put a lot of miles (technically, kilometers!) under our feet.

We stayed in the Vatican neighborhood, and walked across the river each day to explore. Some of what we saw was new to us, such as Castello Sant’Angeloand the Saint Peter in Chains Basilica, with what are said to be the chains worn by St. Peter when he was imprisoned in Romeand an exquisite statue of Moses sculpted by Michelangelobut most of our time was spent walking to and revisiting places we’ve seen before, such as Trevi FountainPiazza Navarona, with its amazing fountainsthe Spanish stepsthe Parthenonthe Vittorio Emanuele II “Alter of the Fatherland” memorialthe Coliseumand, of course, St. Peter’s Basilica.Each day we would have a nice lunchand each evening we would climb the nine flights up to the rooftop bar at the Atlante Star Hotel for some Proseccoand the view.It was a great visit to a wonderful city.

In the six days we were in Rome, we walked a total of 107 kilometers, or 64 miles.

Although Leslie Ruth begs to differ, Karl insists he is NOT obsessed with coffee. He does, however, admit to a (perfectly healthy) love of the beverage. At home he makes espresso for himself and caffé latte for Leslie Ruth on his shiny Expobar machine each morning, carefully weighing out 17 grams of freshly ground coffee for each shot from beans roasted and blended in Seattle. He knows this is not an obsession – he doesn’t weigh the water, like his son, Edward does!

One of Karl’s favorite things about Italy is that pretty much anywhere he goes, he can pop into a bar and have a quick shot of espresso.

On the one hand, there is no real need to search out the best coffee in Rome; it is all good to outstanding. On the other hand, Italians have opinions on everything, and love to argue about where the best coffee can be found. In Rome, one place frequently mentioned in such arguments is Caffé Sant Eustachio.This trip, as always, Karl made a pilgrimage there. The coffee was greatbut he was disappointed that even Caffé Sant Eustachio has succumbed to modern trends. The coffee they serve is the same wonderful extraction it has always been, but they now sell the dreaded capsules!What will be next, Karl asks? Instant Sant Eustachio? Where will it all end?

At Carolyn Gorman’s suggestion, we had lunch at Osteria Mario. At least, we think this was the place she recommended:

What a great meal! Sea bream for Leslie Ruthgrilled lamb for Karltiramisu for both of usall under the watchful eyes of the restaurant’s mascot.

So, if we found the right place, THANKS, Carolyn!

One thing we are always struck by in Rome is how the ruins are always way below street level.Over better than two thousand years, the city has kept tearing things down, filling in space with rubble, and building new structures. With this, the city has gradually risen. The beautiful Pantheon, the best preserved of any Roman temple, was built on a hill but is now in a bit of a depression:The ruins near Piazza Navona are over 30 feel below the current street. Here is Leslie Ruth standing at street level, nearly at the top of the remains of a high arch.Where the rise in street level is the result of a volcano covering everything with ash or lava, as in Herculaneum (this was a seven story building)this is easier to grasp. But it is hard to believe how Rome has simply risen up by human demolition and construction over the centuries.

The Basilica of St. Clement is a good example. A couple of thousand year ago, there was what was probably a private residence, next to a building which was associated with the mint. Some rooms in the residence were dedicated to a pagan god, Mithras, with a feast room (interesting how many religions have meals as part of their traditions) with an alter and an adjacent room where the remains of the feasts were, as part of the rituals, discarded.

In the late 300s, as Christianity became the official religion, the cult of Mithras was banned. The shrine area was filled in with rubble, and a basilica dedicated to St. Clement was built over the previous mint and shrine of Mithras.

Over the centuries, the basilica deteriorated. Its columns were embedded with masonry to strengthen them and the resulting walls were decorated with frescos.

In the early 1100s, the old basilica was filled with rubble and a new basilica was built on top of it. Historians differ as why this was done: some say the old basilica was damaged by a fire in the area which historians know of; others say the old basilica was associated with a contender for the papacy who fell from favor (the so called anti-pope). At any rate, the current Basilica of St. Clement is an edifice built in the 1100s on top of the original.

Over the centuries, the original basilica was completely forgotten, and everyone thought the current edifice was the original one built in the 300s (an error of about 800 years!) However, one of the Dominican priests at the basilica in the 1850s, Fr. Joseph Mullooly, was interested in archeology, and began the excavations which revealed the actual history of the site. He could only do so much work before he ran into drainage problems, but the work continued after his death, and today you can descend from the current basilica into the 4th century basilica and see its columns and frescos. You can then descend even further into the original Roman shrine of Mithras. It is amazing to see what lies under the current basilica, which is at today’s street level.

We visited there yesterday; our third or fourth visit. I’d post photos, but photography in St. Clements is not allowed, a prohibition we regret, but respect.

When we travel, we don’t often stay at fancy hotels. When we are walking, we look for convents and monasteries which will accommodate pilgrims, typically in a dorm with double decker beds. On the Camino de Santiago, there are lots of albergos, or hostels, also with bunk beds, typically for about $10 – $12 a person. In Italy, there are few hostels, so if we can’t find a convent or monastery, we stay in a simple hotel or bed and breakfast. We spend so little time in our lodging that we don’t really need much; typically we arrive, wash up, eat, sleep, and head out in the morning.

This is not to say that we never celebrate with a nice hotel (when we finished the 1,000 mile Chemin de S. Jacques /Camino de Santiago pilmgrimage in 2016 we stayed in a beautiful, luxurious, Parador, albeit one run by the Franciscan Friars, in Santiago) but all we normally want is a hot shower and a reasonably comfortable bed. Clean is good, too, we like clean, and, in very hot weather AC is nice. Having someplace nearby where we can eat is good, but not critical, as we usually carry a little food with us.

In Rome, in the past, we had been staying at a little facility run by nuns which is just down Via Vaticano from the Vatican museums. Not expensive, and they give us a comfortable private room. We love the Vatican neighborhood.

This year, to our dismay, the sisters had no vacancies. We were disappointed, as we thought we’d be paying a lot more money for not much more comfort. But then we found Villa Vaticano, right next to the nun’s facility.

It’s not exactly a hotel; there is no front desk or other on-site service. You need to let them know when you are arriving so they can send someone to let you in (and there is a $35 penalty if you arrive after 7:00pm), but for $50/night (plus city tax) it costs even less than the nuns charge, so we thought we’d give it a try. We paid two and half times as much for two bunk beds in Iceland once, so we thought the price was great.

It’s turned out to be an outstanding place to stay. We texted them on our way in from the airport, and someone was waiting to let us in. The property is completely fenced in and very secure. Our host led us down entry stairsto enter the building though a doorand into our room.The room is very large, the bed is very comfortablethe bathroom is large (certainly by Rome standards), the shower is excellent, towels are changed daily, sheets are changed each third day, and breakfast is included!

Breakfast, of course, is an Italian breakfast, but that’s fine with us. The room has a LavAzza branded coffee pod machine with LavAzza pods. Each morning when we get up there are two croissants or other pastries, still warm from the bakery (if we get up early enough) hanging from our door knob in a little bag.We also get packets of toasts, yogurt and juice.

Even the AC is great, Karl had to get up the first night and adjust it; it was too cold!

By our standards, this has been a fantastic find.

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind who contributed the tech genes to our sons Ed and Karl R. I am nearly helpless with making computers and phones do what I want. My husband Karl M is a master of communications and navigation tech.

I am lazy. I sign up for an AT&T plan that allows me to seamlessly use my phone for texting, email, data, and voice all over Europe. It works extremely well but it is expensive.

Karl M on the other hand pops the SIM card out of his phone and pops an Italian Vodafone SIM card into the phone as soon as we arrive. Karl’s Italian has gotten so good that the process of buying and installing the SIM is very fast now—just 5 minutes this year, a new personal best! The SIM comes with a ridiculously huge amount of data and local phone call minutes.

Installing and re-filling the Italian SIM can be a little tricky. The instructions come up in Italian, and sometimes weird things happen. For example, this time Microsoft Outlook did not recognize him with the Italian SIM. Karl could not get his email. Not to worry. Karl simply deleted his Exchange account on the phone and re-installed it. Bingo.

Each time before we visit Italy, Karl loads GPS tracks for the routes we will walk, maps, guidebooks, Italian dictionaries, schedules, tickets, and reservations onto our phones. These work offline so you do not need an internet connection to use them. This has been extremely helpful so far in Rome because our internet connection in our hotel is poor right now. Our host explained that there was a huge fire in the communications lines under the street in this Vatican neighborhood a few weeks ago and the repair is very slow.

One new trick Karl showed me this trip is how I can use his phone’s data by connecting to the personal hotspot on his phone. This helps me not to exceed my AT&T data allowance. If I exceed my allowance it is very expensive.

Karl uses What’s App to communicate with our teachers and fellow students at school in Siena, as well as hotels and hostels regarding our location and expected arrival time. We share photos with friends on Airdrop.

I don’t think I would know how to do any of this without Karl M. I really appreciate that he is so good with communications and navigation tech in ways that make our trips a lot easier.

Our favorite restaurant in Rome has been in the Vatican district, where we usually stay. It’s a little place, not very tourist oriented, and they’ve always treated us really well. Leslie especially enjoys their bronzino, which which she finished with gusto last yearand the year before thatand the year before thatand the year before that!Karl likes their pasta cachio e pepe, followed by grilled lamb chops.You can imagine our distress when we went by there yesterday and found that they were closed for most of the month! This confirmed that they do not rely on tourists for customers but left us to find a new favorite place.

Yesterday, we went to a place near our usual restaurant which Rick Steves recommended. He’s never steered us wrong, and this was no exception. The bronzino was in filets, roasted under a bed of julienned potatoes, rather than grilled whole, but Leslie Ruth enjoyed it very much. Karl had some of the best grilled vegetables he’s ever hadfollowed by a very good pasta cacio e pepe. The house wine was excellent.

Today we went to a Rick Steves recommended wine bar and again found his recommendation spot on.We had a meat and cheese platter and a bruschetta platter, with local (Lazio) wines.

We are happy to report that, although our usual favorite restaurant is closed, there are other great choices in Rome.

You can be a victim of crime anywhere, at home or abroad. You can reduce your chances of being a victim of theft by knowing your surroundings and being familiar with the tricks would-be criminals play. For example, when a stranger in Italy tries to shove a baby into your arms, don’t take it. You are about to have your purse stolen. If you are on a crowded train in Rome, watch the locals. They know who the pickpockets are, and they will warn you and point them out.

One thing you cannot protect yourself against is a mass shooting. They happen in places where you should feel safe: schools, stores, festivals that have good security like metal detectors and chain link fences. And how much damage a shooter can inflict with an automatic weapon. What chance does a citizen carrying a handgun have against an AK-47? Mass casualties.

Mass shootings seldom happen in Europe. Yes, terrorists have shot up Christmas markets in Germany, or a theater in Paris, or they have driven trucks into crowds in Nice or London, but those events are rare.

Mass shootings are now commonplace in the United States. I am so sick of flags at half staff, empty “thoughts and prayers”, Congressional and state lawmakers in committees who block even a discussion about common sense gun safety measures, citizens and lobbyists wrapping themselves around the cloak of the Second Amendment, twisting the words and intent of that amendment for their own purposes.

I am very happy to be in Europe right now. There are no Walmarts here, no garlic festivals. I am not afraid to walk into a large department store, wondering if I am going to be able to walk out again.

How long?

As our faithful readers know, we take great pains to well train for our treks in Europe. At home, this involves high intensity cardio intervals, weight training and group workouts with Brittany at Abilities Abound, the local physical fitness facility, swimming at the Y, and walking with our packs.

When we get to Rome, it is more difficult, as we do not have a gym or pool. Nonetheless, we persevere!

Most of our training here is at a facility we have discovered at the Hotel Atlante Star. The hotel itself is way out of our price range, but their rooftop bar is open to the public. It is on the ninth story of the hotel, and we dutifully climb up there each day as part of our training. This elevates our pulses and works our legs. Brittany would be proud of us!

As experienced walkers, we know how important it is to stay hydrated when you train, especially in the heat, so we faithfully drink just the right amount of Prosecco each time we visit. It’s tricky – we need to drink as much as we can, to stay hydrated, but not too much, or we will have trouble navigating the nine flights of stairs back down to the street! After many visits we’ve got this figured out!

And the views are awesome!

Finding a flight over to Italy is a bit difficult for us; we take a ship back, so we only need one way tickets. It seems the airlines don’t like that. The main airlines charge MORE than TWICE as much for a one way ticket as for a round ticket! You can cheat, sign up for a round trip ticket and just not come back, but the fine print on the ticket forbids this and it can come back to bite you if you ever use the same airline again, as we discovered once with Air France.

Anyway, this year, once we had confirmed that one way tickets were still so expensive on Air France and Lufthansa, we found very reasonable tickets on Air Portugal to Rome via Lisbon. It took a little longer but the cost was much less than half the cost of a direct one way ticket on the other airlines.

Shortly before our flight, though, Air Portugal offered us a opportunity to upgrade to business class by bidding for upgraded tickets. We’ve never flown anything but economy before (actually, when he was a law professor Karl’s new secretary once booked him first class to a conference – she said she assumed professors flew first class – which took some explaining). Karl hates flying (although Zanax eases the terror a bit) and he never thought first class would make much difference. Leslie Ruth is so slender she fits into an economy seat just fine. But, just as a lark, we put in a minimum bid to upgrade. Shortly before our flight the upgrade charge appeared on our bank statement and Air Portugal confirmed we were upgraded. While expensive, the cost was still less than booking a one way economy ticket on Lufthansa or Air France.

It turns out there is a difference! The seats were greatand they reclined completely to make beds.The food was excellent and the service was outstanding. We really felt like the cabin stewards were glad to see us and wanted us to be happy. We thoroughly enjoyed the excellent selection of Portugues wines.

Of course, Karl couldn’t help commenting that the seats and service were about what they used to be in economy class, back in the 1960s, but he suppressed these curmudgeonly feelings and enjoyed the flight. Well, maybe enjoy is too strong a word, but he certainly hated the flight a whole lot less than usual!

Not sure if we’ll do it again, but it was fun to see how the other half lives.