As the final international trip in Europe during my time studying abroad I had not a care in the world at this point. Rome was the perfect way to put a pause to all my journeys. This day is where my solo venture begins. On this day I did two things I retraced my steps and double visited places that I had wanted to see again that I felt like I didn't give proper attention to the first time and I also wanted to get over to Vatican City. I made a stop at Piazza del Poppolo which is where I think I fell in love with the city. I could live here for sure. The perfect waiter at Mama Angela's Trattoria, David, told me about Gianicolo, the highest hill in Rome where you can see the entire city at its summit. So I took it upon myself to ensure that I scaled this hill and it is really, really steep. I figured, If I see nuns taking this trek then I'm gonna make it up here too no problem. Gianicolo is also where all the rich people or at least some of them live so I did a little bit of house peeping at the same time. Not in a creepy way though. Other than that, I really thought it was cool that they have a little park right outside of the children's hospital for children to play in overlooking the city of Rome. Gianicolo will take your breath away not only because it will induce an asthma attack climbing it but because once you reach the top the trip was more than worth it. I can only imagine how it would have looked if the sun was raging but it was a little cloudy for me. I began descending the hill and as I did I saw this man running. Instinctively, I began running too. I didn't know why in the hell I was running but I just ran just because I thought it was the right thing to do. However, I heard a voice. No, I am not about to create another religion like others have done but I heard the voice of a man and realized ...the Pope is talking! So I ran with intention and made it to the Vatican and there our buddy was talking out of the window. It was one of the most exciting moments in the whole trip for me and I can laugh at my wild instincts and thank them for getting me there in time. Cool days. I got back to the center side of everything and decided to have some more gelato for like the 80th time on the steps in from of the Parthenon. The rest of the day I thought, "This is my last dinner in Rome..You betta make it damn good!" So that's what I did. I went back to Le Segrete because I believe for me they have some of the best food in Rome and spent more money than I have ever spent in my life on food at one time. Thankfully, Le Segrete is right around the corner from the Parthenon and Piazza Navona so it didn't take long getting there. Let me show you. Dish #1 Lasagna
Dish #2 This baked fish and roasted potatoes (can't remember the fish name ugh)
Dish #3 Dessert
= 44 euro and I batted my eyelashes and got dessert for free!