last Friday night
this past week has been mostly spent getting back into the rhythm of normal life -- walking Greta to and from school, catching up on laundry, unpacking, and trying to make sense of the girls' new sleep schedules. Cecilia is showing signs of being ready to drop her afternoon nap (please God, no!) or at the very least, to shorten it -- if she sleeps for more than 2 hours or wakes up from her nap later than 3 PM, she isn't ready for bed until 9 PM. meanwhile, Greta, who had been our resident night owl (fighting sleep until 10 PM or even later some nights), has been waking up around 5 AM and thus falling asleep on the couch by 7 PM. as wacky as it is, it seems to be working for her: she's happy, gets herself ready for school without protest, listens to correction without eye-rolling and plays nicely with Cecilia. and finally, Nick and i have some uninterrupted time in the evenings to talk or watch kid-unfriendly shows on Netflix, without fighting the bedtime battle every night!
last night, we ventured out for our first "adventure" in the city since returning to Rome. this weekend is the NAC Reunion, so alumni joined in with the priest faculty here to participate in a special mass at the Basilica of the Twelve Apostles (Santi Dodici Apostoli). Nick played the organ and directed the Schola. we decided that the girls and i would come to the 5:30 PM mass, and afterwards we'd get dinner at Abruzzi, a traditional Roman restaurant just half a block away from the church.
well, as per usual, i was running late getting the girls out the door. by the time they were successfully dressed in hats, gloves, and matching shoes, and i had packed snacks and quiet toys for mass, and stowed a bus ticket in an easily accessible pocket (not an easy feat when the belt of the Ergo is tightly clipped around my waist!), it was already 5:15 PM. as we headed down the hill, we ended up walking with two of our seminarians who were on their way to dinner at a nearby restaurant they told us has great food for cheap prices (after a little Google sleuthing, i think it must be Osteria Orbitelli -- we'll have to check it out sometime!). we reached the Acciaoli bus stop, about a five-minute walk from the NAC, and settled in to wait for the bus.
and the next twenty minutes really made me feel like we are no longer tourists. the Basilica is close to the Piazza Venezia, and now i know exactly which of the buses run past there, so i didn't need to consult the bus schedules. when the 40 Express careened up to the stop, i collapsed the stroller, grabbed it and the backpack, told Greta to hop on, and climbed aboard (with Cece in the Ergo). the buses have an open section in the middle designated for strollers, luggage, wheelchairs (although i've never once seen anyone in a wheelchair - i can't imagine how they would even get on the bus! the buses don't "kneel" or have a ramp to allow access from the street). if the bus is fairly empty, i'll just push the stroller on, still open, and lock the brakes. but at rush hour headed into the city, i knew that wouldn't be an option.
so i leaned the stroller up against the railing, wedged the backpack in by my feet, and Greta and i both held on to the railing as the bus started off again. a kind lady offered up her seat just across the aisle from where we were standing so that Greta could sit, and another one motioned to me, but there would have been no room for the stroller and backpack near the seat so i thanked her and stayed standing. suddenly i spotted a man in an ATAC jacket (the bus company) standing near the front of the bus. i have never seen a ticket inspector on the bus except for when the bus arrives at Termini station (including that fateful time we got fined for not having our ticket validated). the Rome bus system essentially operates on an honor system -- you don't have to show your ticket to anyone when you board, which is just mind-blowing to me, but of course if an inspector asks to see it you must produce a valid ticket or pay the fine. so i whipped out my blank ticket and tried to shuffle forward to the yellow validation machine at the front of the bus to stamp it. another passenger saw me struggling to get through the crowd, smiled, took my ticket and validated it for me, then handed it back. the man in the ATAC jacket got off a few stops later without asking to see anyone's ticket, so i don't know what that was all about, but at least i would have been in the clear!
we rode for about fifteen minutes, through the center of town and past the ruins at Largo Argentina. the bus we were riding was an older, gray bus that doesn't display or announce the stop names (the red buses are newer and have a working marquee, what a concept!), but the entire time, i knew exactly where we were and when to press the "fermata prenotata" ("stop request") button. the lady who had given up her seat for Greta was standing right behind me, chirping to Cecilia. another lady called "signora!" and pointed to her seat for me to take, and in my broken Italian i replied, "no grazie! [pointing to the door] we get off a prossima fermata". at this point the bus pulled to a stop past the Piazza Venezia. by this point the bus was quite crowded, but whereas at one time i would have felt nervous about making it out the door before the bus hurtled off again, this time i just said "scusi! scusi!" and the other passengers quickly moved out of the way, and also helped Greta make her way off the bus. we scrambled to the far end of the sidewalk where i opened up the stroller and got everyone situated. then Greta and i had a little heart-to-heart where i congratulated her for being brave and sitting apart from me. she told me, "i was scared that someone would steal me or that you would leave me on the bus!" poor, sweet girl. i reassured her that i was watching her the whole time and that the people on the bus were all helping us, and of course i would never leave her! mollified, she settled back into the stroller and we set off across the street. this is one of the busiest streets in Rome, and thankfully it does have a well-marked crosswalk, but you have to step out into the street first before the traffic will stop. so, gauging the speed and attentiveness of the approaching cars, i waited a few seconds and then strode out, waving to express my thanks and also to announce my presence to any drivers who hadn't been paying as close attention. the whole experience on the bus and now crossing this crazy thoroughfare made me feel as if i truly know the rhythm of the city now -- when to press my luck and when to hang back.
we passed by the wax museum (whose window display includes a slowly revolving waxen pope), and there, smooshed right in between the Palazzo Colonna and the Palazzo Apostli, was the similarly palatial facade of Santa Dodici Apostoli. the church dates back to the sixth century. Cardinal Raffaele Riario, nephew of Pope Sixtus IV, is buried here, and for a while, Michelangelo's tomb was located here before being transferred to Florence. interestingly, James Francis Edward Stuart, the "Old Pretender" to the throne of England, was laid in state here after his death in 1766, and his wife Maria Clementina Sobieski's heart is enshrined here. (both of their bodies are now buried in St. Peter's.)
but most importantly, and reflecting the name of the Basilica, relics of the apostles St. Philip and St. James are buried in the crypt. the church itself is massive and somewhat dark. we arrived about halfway through the mass, and quietly sat down in one of the back pews.
i was able to capture only a few seconds of the Schola singing, before a certain someone started asking questions.
as the NAC alumni are priests, they were all seated in the sanctuary, so there were only maybe a dozen people in the congregation. it became clear that some of these were Italians who were planning to attend the 6:30 daily mass immediately following this special mass. Cecilia spotted Nick sitting on the organ bench and excitedly whispered, "that's Daddy! hi Daddy!" and started waving to him.
after mass, we walked down into the crypt to say a prayer in front of the tomb of St. Philip and St. James. an inscription on the wall recounts that Pope Stephen IV walked barefoot from the Catacombs of Domatilla in 866 AD to carry other saints' relics here as well. we spotted a stack of black chairs in a little side chapel and had to shake our heads at the thought that one of these alcoves could be used for such a quotidian purpose.
then, it was back out into the frosty air (it's been in the upper 30s here at night!) to walk down the street to Abruzzi. this restaurant is famous for their carbonara, and it did not disappoint! the guanciale was perfectly crispy and we both agreed it was the best carbonara we've had (no peas, thank you very much). the girls wanted spaghetti and meatballs, which is -- shocker! -- not on the menu at most restaurants here. sometimes we've ordered spaghetti for the girls with meatballs on the side, but traditionally the primo (first) course is just pasta with maybe some bacon or guanciale thrown in (as with carbonara) -- the meat comes in the secondo. so we ended up ordering them the fettucine al ragù. Nick had the carbonara, while i had bucatini all'amatriciana. with the first slightly chewy bite, i knew i was back in Rome -- no one does al dente like the Italians!
then Nick and i split the veal saltimbocca, and, to round out our feast, we ordered vaniglia gelato for the girls (another word to the wise: vaniglia is not vanilla -- it tastes more like custard. delicious but not vanilla!). our own dessert was Sambuca d'Abruzzo, which has the same anise flavor of regular Sambuca but is much smoother, and green! when Nick ordered "due Sambuca", i was expecting to be served two shot glasses, but instead the waiter set down two tall glasses and the whole bottle. we weren't charged for it either -- so it was a complimentary digestivo, or else just an oversight on their part.
feeling comfortably full, we thanked the waiters, who helped us open up the stroller and get the girls situated. then we walked the mile and a quarter back home under the twinkling stars, feeling the familiar burn in our calves as we hiked up the Janiculum, and laughed as we traversed the new brightly painted crosswalk (road safety, who dis?!). and that, my friends, is a Friday family night out alla Romana.
last night, we ventured out for our first "adventure" in the city since returning to Rome. this weekend is the NAC Reunion, so alumni joined in with the priest faculty here to participate in a special mass at the Basilica of the Twelve Apostles (Santi Dodici Apostoli). Nick played the organ and directed the Schola. we decided that the girls and i would come to the 5:30 PM mass, and afterwards we'd get dinner at Abruzzi, a traditional Roman restaurant just half a block away from the church.
well, as per usual, i was running late getting the girls out the door. by the time they were successfully dressed in hats, gloves, and matching shoes, and i had packed snacks and quiet toys for mass, and stowed a bus ticket in an easily accessible pocket (not an easy feat when the belt of the Ergo is tightly clipped around my waist!), it was already 5:15 PM. as we headed down the hill, we ended up walking with two of our seminarians who were on their way to dinner at a nearby restaurant they told us has great food for cheap prices (after a little Google sleuthing, i think it must be Osteria Orbitelli -- we'll have to check it out sometime!). we reached the Acciaoli bus stop, about a five-minute walk from the NAC, and settled in to wait for the bus.
and the next twenty minutes really made me feel like we are no longer tourists. the Basilica is close to the Piazza Venezia, and now i know exactly which of the buses run past there, so i didn't need to consult the bus schedules. when the 40 Express careened up to the stop, i collapsed the stroller, grabbed it and the backpack, told Greta to hop on, and climbed aboard (with Cece in the Ergo). the buses have an open section in the middle designated for strollers, luggage, wheelchairs (although i've never once seen anyone in a wheelchair - i can't imagine how they would even get on the bus! the buses don't "kneel" or have a ramp to allow access from the street). if the bus is fairly empty, i'll just push the stroller on, still open, and lock the brakes. but at rush hour headed into the city, i knew that wouldn't be an option.
so i leaned the stroller up against the railing, wedged the backpack in by my feet, and Greta and i both held on to the railing as the bus started off again. a kind lady offered up her seat just across the aisle from where we were standing so that Greta could sit, and another one motioned to me, but there would have been no room for the stroller and backpack near the seat so i thanked her and stayed standing. suddenly i spotted a man in an ATAC jacket (the bus company) standing near the front of the bus. i have never seen a ticket inspector on the bus except for when the bus arrives at Termini station (including that fateful time we got fined for not having our ticket validated). the Rome bus system essentially operates on an honor system -- you don't have to show your ticket to anyone when you board, which is just mind-blowing to me, but of course if an inspector asks to see it you must produce a valid ticket or pay the fine. so i whipped out my blank ticket and tried to shuffle forward to the yellow validation machine at the front of the bus to stamp it. another passenger saw me struggling to get through the crowd, smiled, took my ticket and validated it for me, then handed it back. the man in the ATAC jacket got off a few stops later without asking to see anyone's ticket, so i don't know what that was all about, but at least i would have been in the clear!
we rode for about fifteen minutes, through the center of town and past the ruins at Largo Argentina. the bus we were riding was an older, gray bus that doesn't display or announce the stop names (the red buses are newer and have a working marquee, what a concept!), but the entire time, i knew exactly where we were and when to press the "fermata prenotata" ("stop request") button. the lady who had given up her seat for Greta was standing right behind me, chirping to Cecilia. another lady called "signora!" and pointed to her seat for me to take, and in my broken Italian i replied, "no grazie! [pointing to the door] we get off a prossima fermata". at this point the bus pulled to a stop past the Piazza Venezia. by this point the bus was quite crowded, but whereas at one time i would have felt nervous about making it out the door before the bus hurtled off again, this time i just said "scusi! scusi!" and the other passengers quickly moved out of the way, and also helped Greta make her way off the bus. we scrambled to the far end of the sidewalk where i opened up the stroller and got everyone situated. then Greta and i had a little heart-to-heart where i congratulated her for being brave and sitting apart from me. she told me, "i was scared that someone would steal me or that you would leave me on the bus!" poor, sweet girl. i reassured her that i was watching her the whole time and that the people on the bus were all helping us, and of course i would never leave her! mollified, she settled back into the stroller and we set off across the street. this is one of the busiest streets in Rome, and thankfully it does have a well-marked crosswalk, but you have to step out into the street first before the traffic will stop. so, gauging the speed and attentiveness of the approaching cars, i waited a few seconds and then strode out, waving to express my thanks and also to announce my presence to any drivers who hadn't been paying as close attention. the whole experience on the bus and now crossing this crazy thoroughfare made me feel as if i truly know the rhythm of the city now -- when to press my luck and when to hang back.
we passed by the wax museum (whose window display includes a slowly revolving waxen pope), and there, smooshed right in between the Palazzo Colonna and the Palazzo Apostli, was the similarly palatial facade of Santa Dodici Apostoli. the church dates back to the sixth century. Cardinal Raffaele Riario, nephew of Pope Sixtus IV, is buried here, and for a while, Michelangelo's tomb was located here before being transferred to Florence. interestingly, James Francis Edward Stuart, the "Old Pretender" to the throne of England, was laid in state here after his death in 1766, and his wife Maria Clementina Sobieski's heart is enshrined here. (both of their bodies are now buried in St. Peter's.)
but most importantly, and reflecting the name of the Basilica, relics of the apostles St. Philip and St. James are buried in the crypt. the church itself is massive and somewhat dark. we arrived about halfway through the mass, and quietly sat down in one of the back pews.
 |
| the schola (in white and black) are standing on the right hand side. it's hard to see in my photo, but check out those insane candelabras on either side of the altar! |
i was able to capture only a few seconds of the Schola singing, before a certain someone started asking questions.
as the NAC alumni are priests, they were all seated in the sanctuary, so there were only maybe a dozen people in the congregation. it became clear that some of these were Italians who were planning to attend the 6:30 daily mass immediately following this special mass. Cecilia spotted Nick sitting on the organ bench and excitedly whispered, "that's Daddy! hi Daddy!" and started waving to him.
 |
| Greta pointing out the Schola to Cece |
after mass, we walked down into the crypt to say a prayer in front of the tomb of St. Philip and St. James. an inscription on the wall recounts that Pope Stephen IV walked barefoot from the Catacombs of Domatilla in 866 AD to carry other saints' relics here as well. we spotted a stack of black chairs in a little side chapel and had to shake our heads at the thought that one of these alcoves could be used for such a quotidian purpose.
 |
| "Tomba dei SS Apostoli Filippo e Giacomo" |
then, it was back out into the frosty air (it's been in the upper 30s here at night!) to walk down the street to Abruzzi. this restaurant is famous for their carbonara, and it did not disappoint! the guanciale was perfectly crispy and we both agreed it was the best carbonara we've had (no peas, thank you very much). the girls wanted spaghetti and meatballs, which is -- shocker! -- not on the menu at most restaurants here. sometimes we've ordered spaghetti for the girls with meatballs on the side, but traditionally the primo (first) course is just pasta with maybe some bacon or guanciale thrown in (as with carbonara) -- the meat comes in the secondo. so we ended up ordering them the fettucine al ragù. Nick had the carbonara, while i had bucatini all'amatriciana. with the first slightly chewy bite, i knew i was back in Rome -- no one does al dente like the Italians!
then Nick and i split the veal saltimbocca, and, to round out our feast, we ordered vaniglia gelato for the girls (another word to the wise: vaniglia is not vanilla -- it tastes more like custard. delicious but not vanilla!). our own dessert was Sambuca d'Abruzzo, which has the same anise flavor of regular Sambuca but is much smoother, and green! when Nick ordered "due Sambuca", i was expecting to be served two shot glasses, but instead the waiter set down two tall glasses and the whole bottle. we weren't charged for it either -- so it was a complimentary digestivo, or else just an oversight on their part.
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| Saluti! |
feeling comfortably full, we thanked the waiters, who helped us open up the stroller and get the girls situated. then we walked the mile and a quarter back home under the twinkling stars, feeling the familiar burn in our calves as we hiked up the Janiculum, and laughed as we traversed the new brightly painted crosswalk (road safety, who dis?!). and that, my friends, is a Friday family night out alla Romana.
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| all the Christmas lights are still up in the city |
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