Going back!

As the saying goes,

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We are excited to announce that we will be traveling back to Italy shortly, with a quick trip to Malta and a week long visit to Spain!

I can’t wait to share our journey with you. We have many exciting things planned, including visiting Barcelona, seeing the Mille Miglia in Rome, racing down to Malta for a early morning, late night two day trip, and the boys running with the bulls at the Festival of San Fermín in Pamplona.

We cannot wait to share, and I am thrilled to be blogging about our travels again! Thanks for joining us!

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Rome Travel Tips: Luggage

Rome travel tips, Madrid, Paris, France, Italy togetherinitaly.com

In this next installment of our Rome Travel Tips, I thought I’d cover luggage, where to buy, what to buy, and what to bring for a trip to Rome (or Paris, or Madrid, or really this can be modified to fit anywhere)

First, where to buy. We bought all of our luggage at a combination of Marshall’s, TJ Maxx, and Ross. We spent a few weeks just checking different stores in our area. You could definitely enlist the help of some friends/family to help.  Because of the quick turnover at these stores, we bought bags that we thought would work and then took the ones that didn’t work back after we brought them home and examined them a little more closely.

We were able to acquire 9 suitcases over a few weeks. Because Marshall’s TJ Maxx and Ross are all “off price” stores, one is able to get London Fog, Swiss Gear, Michael Kors, kate spade, Tumi, Coach, etc. for a fraction of their original price. And these are brands that can stand up to the wear and tear of getting thrown around by the air carriers.

So keep your eyes open at Marshall’s, TJ Maxx, and Ross, and don’t be afraid to buy, and then take them back. (Preferably on a credit card, rather than cash so it just goes back in your account, and you don’t get stuck with store credit.) And be sure to keep the receipt so it’s an easy return.

Next, what to buy! Well, that obviously depends on how long you intend to go for (A weekend? A week? 3 weeks? 9?), and where you’re going (Beach? Skiing?). But to start, check the restrictions of your airline carrier. US Airways/American Airlines gives you 1 checked bag, 1 carry-on, and 1 personal item (purse, computer bag etc.) for free. but it differs with each airline. Generally when we go, we’re going for an extended period of time, so we use all the allotted free baggage. But if you’re going for a week, a carry-on + personal item would suffice.

Our recommendations (adapt to fit YOUR style of travel) are as follows:

3-7 days, a carry-on and personal item.

2-3 weeks, a checked bag, a small carry-on and a personal item.

4+ weeks, a checked bag, a carry-on, and a personal item.

These are our suggestions, but again, you’re going to have to adapt to your own personal mode of travel.

As always we are happy to accommodate any questions!

 

 

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Rome Travel Tips: Eating well!

Rome Travel Tips

I am starting a new series called “Rome tips” and it will be Rome travel tips for those visiting Rome. I hope to help anyone visiting and optimize their time there! Our first post in this series is going to be on food! When and where to eat in Rome.

Eating in Rome is one of our favorite things. We all love food and love to cook. Rome offers a variety of food options. And while Rome does provide many handmade fresh things, at some of the big tourist traps the food is less than ordinary, let alone extraordinary. They can be overpriced freezer options that don’t accurately represent Italy’s incredible cooking heritage. Because we love Rome’s cooking culture and all it has to offer, we have compiled a list of some of our favorites below.

Click on the links to be given directions. Also, gelato is one of the main food groups in our family, so of course, it is included.

One last thing. Dining in Italy is not like in the USA in many ways. But I’d like to point out a few of the main differences. Drinks are not refillable cups. You buy water (bottled–natural or sparkling) or wine or soft drinks for the table. Liter size bottles are the norm. Milk is not drunk at meals. Furthermore, in the US, it is typical to have a waiter/waitress buzzing around ones table constantly. In Italy, they don’t. So don’t feel like you’re being “ignored” by the staff. They’re letting you control the tempo of the meal. Lastly, meal times are completely different. Lunch is usually at 1 or 2 pm, and dinner doesn’t start (most restaurants do not even open) until 7:30. In general, dinner is eaten at 8 or 9 pm.

Wanted €€€-€€€€

Yes, it has an English name. But this place has incredible Roman style pizzas, their salads are delicious (especially the “insalata mista”) and they have a pasta dish made with pears, Gorgonzola cheese, and walnuts that you have to try. Wanted also has A/C which in the summer can be a real bonus.

Directions to Wanted from the Colosseum

Directions to Wanted from Cavour Metro Station

Trattoria Vecchia Roma €€€

If you have one meal in Rome, this is the restaurant to go to. Don’t get me wrong, all the other restaurants mentioned are tasty. But Vecchia Roma has something that we haven’t found elsewhere. All of the food is tasty, but their specialty is the “Bucatini all’Amatriciana flambè.” Bucatini all’Amatriciana is a classic Roman pasta dish made with a tomato sauce with pecorino cheese and smoked pork jowl. At Vecchia Roma they don’t just grate the cheese in your pasta. Instead they wheel out the rind of a round of pecorino. They light the interior of the rind on fire and throw in your pasta and the sauce. The cheese melts onto the pasta as it is on fire and mixes the sauce in. At the end you have the best Amatriciana in Rome, along with an incredible show at your table.

If you go at around 7 pm you can get in without a reservation. Otherwise, there is a line out the door and down the street to get in. They are open for lunch from 12-3 pm. They are closed Sunday.

Directions to Vecchia Roma from St. Mary Major’s Basilica

Directions to Vecchia Roma from Vittorio Emmanuele Metro Station

Velavevodetto €€€€-€€€€ Velavevodetto is a rather out of the way restaurant, not especially near tourist traps. As a result it is frequented mainly by locals. They have awesome fried artichokes “Carciofi Fritti” or the zucchini blossoms for appetizers. Some notable pasta dishes are their “Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe,” a pasta with cacio (a cheese) and pepper, and their “Carbonara” is delicious. Also, don’t miss their Saltimbocca.

Directions to Velavevodetto from Ottaviano Metro Station

Directions to Velavevodetto from Lepanto Metro Station

Trattoria Cadorna €€€€-€€€

Cadorna is a little family run place, also not very tourist-y. A few generations of the family work there, including an extremely old grandpa. I warn you, he loves being friendly and taking orders and talking to you, but he will most likely get your order wrong. However, no matter what you’re served, it’s sure to be flavorful and well cooked. Some that you may want to look into are their “Spagetti alle vongole” the “Osso Bucco” (veal shank) and their “Coda alla Vaccinara”(oxtail). Their appetizers are a smorgasboard of tasty bites. A note, the Antipasto for 2 feeds many more than 2, especially if you would like to eat a pasta and a meat, so order accordingly.

Directions to Trattoria Cadorna from Barberini Metro Station

Directions to Trattoria Cadorna from Repubblica Metro Station

Sketchy Kebab Place (okay, that isn’t its real name.) Istanbul Pizza-Kebab €€€ 

If we’re honest, this place looks sketchy. And DO NOT use their bathroom if possible. It’s scary. However, they have kebabs (Middle Eastern sandwich/pita/deliciousness.) that are like no where else. They have huge spits of roasting, crisp meats that they shave off for each pita. They shave your meat and then go through a line of various toppings, stuffing as much in as possible. They pile on tart, crunchy, marinated cabbage, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, and random french fries. The options are really endless. Those are what we usually got, plus their spicy pickled peppers, their hot sauce, and make sure you ask for extra white sauce. The best part, these are extremely portable and VERY inexpensive. (As in €3.50) One kebab feeds 2-3 children or 1 really hungry adult. Skip the pizza here, just go for the kebab. There is also a little bakery a few doors down that has nice bread and little sweets to complete a lunch on the go.

Directions to Istanbul Pizza-Kebab from St. Peter’s Basilica

Directions to Istanbul Pizza-Kebab from Ottaviano Metro Station 

Pizzeria Amalfi €€€€

Pizzeria Amalfi has great pizzas around the Vatican. They are relatively reasonable for being in such a high tourist area. Their Margherita pizzas are quite tasty, and they have a nice range of appetizers.

Directions to Pizzeria Amalfi from St. Peter’s Basilica

Directions to Pizzeria Amalfi from Ottaviano Metro Station

 

Pizza, Cave Canem Restaurant, Rome

Cave Canem €€€-€€

Cave Canem is a lovely little restaurant in Trastevere. Trastevere is a highly underrated nightlife area (more on that in a later post) and whenever we would go, we always ate at Cave Canem. They have wonderful pizzas, great beer and Dad always got the carbonara here. The waiters and waitresses are very friendly and their prices are definitely reasonable. Also, they have a great patio that is fun to sit out on and watch folks go by. Cave Canem was one of our favorite restaurants to go to when we lived in Italy, and we still love it.

Gelato from Old Bridge, Rome

Old Bridge €€€

Old Bridge is the best gelateria in Rome. Period. They have gelato that is authentic, tastes incredible, is constantly being made fresh and they are very reasonably priced. Their mango tastes like you are biting into the best fresh mango ever. When you combine their mango, coconut, and pineapple? It’s incredible. We are so enthusiastic about Old Bridge it has merited its own tag. And Alex and Andrew are friends on Facebook with the dude we always ordered from.

It is a bit of an unspoken rule in Italy that one does not combine “cream” based flavors with “fruit” flavors. For example don’t combine nutella, espresso and coconut. Some combinations we’d like to suggest; Coconut, Mango, Pineapple; Dark Chocolate, Espresso, Pistachio; Lemon, Strawberry, Banana; Bacio, Nutella, Nociola (Hazelnut); the list goes on and on. Finally, at Old Bridge get a cone, and get the €1.50 cone. Because to be honest, anything more is just absurd. They load the cones up. And besides in the Roman heat you’re going to be dripping in gelato before you are halfway done with your 3 euro cone. And no one wants to walk around with gelato stained clothing.

Della Palma €€

Della Palma is famous for its selection of over 150 flavors of gelato. They are definitely an interesting experience. While Old Bridge is the place to go on a daily basis, it would be unfortunate to miss out on Della Palma. It is truly a gastronomical experience. All of their flavors taste astoundingly fresh. One of our all time favorites was the grapefruit. It had everything good about a fresh grapefruit and it was gelato.

NOT San Crispino 

If you have ever read a guidebook on Rome, San Crispino was almost certainly mentioned as the place to go to for gelato. We have to say, it is good, but has become mostly a tourist trap and isn’t anything extraordinary. Della Palma has the range of flavors if that is what you’d like, and both Old Bridge and Della Palma have the quality and taste to rival, if not beat it.

Finally, it isn’t necessary to only eat at restaurants while in Rome. Many small bakeries have pizza by weight (you tell them how much you want cut off and then they weigh it and charge you accordingly). And the grocery stores always have yummy meats and cheeses. Grab a loaf of fresh bread from a bakery, some cured meats and cheeses from a grocer and a bottle of wine or some beer for a tasty authentic meal. There are always small fruit shops around to get seasonal produce that is hard to beat.

Thanks for reading, I hope this may help those planning a trip to Rome. I am going to continue updating, and will have another post including some general tips and maybe one for lodging. Any suggestions are welcomed in the comments! And we are always happy to help, if you’d like to get in touch, there is a “Contact Us” page or you can email us directly at contact@togetherinitaly.com . We’d be happy to help in any way possible.

 

 

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Last Post… Sort of!

First off, I’d like to thank each and every one of you that have followed this blog. We have made some incredible memories and have loved being able to share them with all of our friends here. The comments you guys have left have been heartwarming to read. Thank you so much for everything.

Secondly, if you missed anything, you can start at my Welcome Post or my First Day Post and continue reading from there. Also, the Gelato Post is pretty remarkable. 😉

Thank you again for your interest. When we go back I will certainly try and keep this updated, and in the meantime, I will be updating it with advice and tips for traveling Italy, especially Rome. Check back for more info on where to stay, what to eat, and where to go!

 

All the best!

 

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–The De Piante Family

 

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Cars in London

Photographs courtesy of Andrew and Alex. When they were in London alone they took over 6,000 photos. Obviously I am not going to post all of them, but in the meantime, here are a few! 

If you aren’t interested in cars and would like to jump to the travel section, go to my Flying Back post, Madrid post or Gelato post and go from there!

Aston Martin DB9

Aston Martin DB9

Hamann BMW M5

Hamann BMW M5

BMW M3

BMW M3

Audi R8

Audi R8

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 458

Zagato Perana Z-One

Zagato Perana Z-One

Audi R8 GT Spyder

Audi R8 GT Spyder

Ferrari FF

Ferrari FF

Ferrari 355

Ferrari 355

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Ferrari FF

Ferrari FF

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Aston Martin DBS

Aston Martin DBS

Lotus Exige S

Lotus Exige S

Audi R8

Audi R8

Lamborghini Aventador and Gallardo

Lamborghini Aventador and Gallardo

Ferrari F430 Spyder

Ferrari F430 Spyder

Aston Martin Vanquish

Aston Martin Vanquish

Maserati GranTurismo Sport

Maserati GranTurismo Sport

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Jaguar F Type

Jaguar F Type

Gucci Fiat 500

Gucci Fiat 500

Original Mini Cooper

Original Mini Cooper

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano

Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Steve McQueen's car

Steve McQueen’s car

Rolls Royce Phantoms

Rolls Royce Phantoms

Ferrari F430 Spyder

Ferrari F430 Spyder

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Italia

Porsche Boxster

Porsche Boxster

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Audi R8 Spyder

Audi R8 Spyder

Bentley Continental

Bentley Continental

Ferrari 458 and Ferrari 599

Ferrari 458 and Ferrari 599

Jaguar E Type

Jaguar E Type

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 599 and Audi R8 GT

Ferrari 599 and Audi R8 GT

Ferrari 599

Ferrari 599

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra and Andrew

Fiat 500 Abarth

Fiat 500 Abarth

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari FF

Ferrari FF

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 458

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Aston Martin Cygnet

Aston Martin Cygnet

Mini Cooper

Mini Cooper

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador and Gallardo

Lamborghini Aventador and Gallardo

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Maybach 62

Maybach 62

G65 AMG

G65 AMG

Ferrari 458

Ferrari 458

Lotus Elise

Lotus Elise

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Bentley Continental GT

Bentley Continental GT

Ferrari 458 Italia and the Maserati GranTurismo

Ferrari 458 Italia and the Maserati GranTurismo

Audi R8 GT Spyder

Audi R8 GT Spyder

Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Italia

Nissan GTR

Nissan GTR

Land Rover used in the James Bond film "SkyFall"

Land Rover used in the James Bond film “SkyFall”

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Ferrari California (in Milan)

Ferrari California (in Milan)

Rolls Royce Phantom and Hummer Limousine

Rolls Royce Phantom and Hummer Limousine

Audi R8

Audi R8

Ferrari 599 and Rolls Royce Phantom

Ferrari 599 and Rolls Royce Phantom

SL 65 AMG

SL 65 AMG

Lotus Exige S

Lotus Exige S

Audi R8

Audi R8

Aston Martin DBR 3

Aston Martin DBR 3

Aston Martin Vanquish

Aston Martin Vanquish

Jaguar F Type

Jaguar F Type

Bowler WildCat

Bowler WildCat

Vintage Aston Martin

Vintage Aston Martin

Ferrari 599 GTB (Red), Mercedes SLS (Pearl White), Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 599 GTB (Red), Mercedes SLS (Pearl White), Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Hamann BMW M6

Hamann BMW M6

Mercedes SLS AMG

Mercedes SLS AMG

Mercedes SLS AMG

Mercedes SLS AMG

Audi R8 V10

Audi R8 V10

Audi R8

Audi R8

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Mercedes SL 63

Mercedes SL 63

Ferrari FF

Ferrari FF

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Ferrari California

Ferrari California

Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Italia

Lamborghini Aventador

Lamborghini Aventador

Ferrari 458 Italia

Ferrari 458 Italia

Bugatti Veyron

Bugatti Veyron

Rolls Royce Phantom

Rolls Royce Phantom

Bentley Continental GT

Bentley Continental GT

Radical RXC

Radical RXC

Radical SR8

Radical SR8

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Ferrari 458 Spyder

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Pagani Huayra

Ducati Hypermotard

Ducati Hypermotard

Mercedes SLS AMG

Mercedes SLS AMG

Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560 Spyder

Lamborghini Gallardo LP 560 Spyder

Lamborghini Gallardo

Lamborghini Gallardo

Ferrari F430

Ferrari F430

Maserati GranTurismo

Maserati GranTurismo

Ferrari 458 Italia (the BatMobile!)

Ferrari 458 Italia (the BatMobile!)

Hamann BMW M5

Hamann BMW M5

Audi R8 V10 Plus

Audi R8 V10 Plus

Dukes of Hazard Dodge Charger

Dukes of Hazard Dodge Charger

Ferrari California

Ferrari California

 

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Welcome!

Welcome to our blog.

We’re going back to Italy. This is the first time we’re all going back since we left on January 7, 2009, after having lived in Rome for 2 years.

It’s a special place, and we would like to share it with you.

Come join us, Together in Italy.

The De Piante Family 

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