Sounds like you're doing it right! I think one key to Rome is the "big" tourist attractions are SOOOOOO CROWDED (so go EARLY), but if you got just a bit off the beaten path, the crowds are much much much much smaller, and they're almost, if not more, impressive. Enjoy!
(Consider Villa d'Este on the outskirts of town. There are three villas in the area, and that was our favorite.)
Thanks for the Villa d'Este tip! The other villas were so cool.
Totally agree on the off-the-path stuff. With Claude telling me about various attractions, it makes a place like Rome infinitely interesting no matter where I errr roam.
I stayed out of the tourist zones for the most part because crowds wreck my experience of even the most magnificent places. Exploring some parks (especially Villa Ada) and doing non-tourist stuff like getting a library card (free Italian books from now on whoooo), talking to people at performances, the instrument museum or restaurants kept me entertained and immersed in a different kind of Rome as well.
As for the noise, it helped that I was coming from a tranquil, chill life, so four days didn’t feel too overwhelming. I was ready to get outta there by the end though! Scooters braaaap. 😩
meraviglioso!
Sounds like you're doing it right! I think one key to Rome is the "big" tourist attractions are SOOOOOO CROWDED (so go EARLY), but if you got just a bit off the beaten path, the crowds are much much much much smaller, and they're almost, if not more, impressive. Enjoy!
(Consider Villa d'Este on the outskirts of town. There are three villas in the area, and that was our favorite.)
Thanks for the Villa d'Este tip! The other villas were so cool.
Totally agree on the off-the-path stuff. With Claude telling me about various attractions, it makes a place like Rome infinitely interesting no matter where I errr roam.
Yup! It's the best place to roam, pun intended.
How did you fare with the noise and the crowds? Those two things are what I found most exhausting about getting around Rome.
I stayed out of the tourist zones for the most part because crowds wreck my experience of even the most magnificent places. Exploring some parks (especially Villa Ada) and doing non-tourist stuff like getting a library card (free Italian books from now on whoooo), talking to people at performances, the instrument museum or restaurants kept me entertained and immersed in a different kind of Rome as well.
As for the noise, it helped that I was coming from a tranquil, chill life, so four days didn’t feel too overwhelming. I was ready to get outta there by the end though! Scooters braaaap. 😩