The eternal city is undoubtedly my favourite place in the entire world, bold statement I know but if you've been there you'll know what I mean. The street food. Do I need to say anymore? Fresh pizza on the go is the work of the gods. And obviously being a bit of a ancient history fanatic this is obviously the perfect place for me but you don't need to have any previous knowledge of the Roman Empire to enjoy the sites here. Entry into museums and monuments are generally really reasonable but if you're a student make sure you take your student card as it will get you discount - even better, if your degree is in historical studies you get in free. A recommendation of mine is Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary which isn't on the beaten tourist track. The Sanctuary does some amazing work looking after strays that live amongst the ruins where Julius Caesar was murdered in 44BC. You just couldn't make this stuff up.
I stayed at ARS Hotel which was truly amazing. The staff were unbelievably helpful and their English was a heck of a lot better than my Italian (learning Italian is definitely on my list, somewhere). Although it's a 20/25 minute bus ride to the centre of Rome the public transport is really good and reasonably priced, buses run up until midnight from central Rome.
Italian being my favourite food I was naturally in heaven here but my favourite restaurant by far was the Mercato Hostaria at Piazza Campo di Fiori. When I picture real Italian cuisine this is what springs to mind. The service was great, the food amazing and the wine reasonably priced. It wasn't the cheapest place I ate while I was there but the prices were reflected in the meal.
For me this was the perfect time of year to go, it was around 23 degrees most days which was perfect for a bit of site seeing as it can get extremely hot at the height of summer. If you have any tips for sightseeing in Rome, where to eat or way to stay please let me know - I'm already planning my next trip back!
Alice & Grace xo
