I have a favorite, which I’ve been to many time. It’s in Rome, in Piazza Navona at a five-star hotel – Hotel Raphael. This location I used in my first novel, it has much meaning to me and I spend an evening dining there every chance I get when I am in Rome. There are rooftop restaurants everywhere, and according to Bazaar online, here’s their list:
After the hectic day we had while trekking through the Cinque Terre, we decided to take a day to just relax and what better place to do so than Portofino, Italy. From Genoa, we took a train to Santa Margherita for 3.50Euro pp each way, then for 1.50Euro pp each way, we hopped on bus no 82 from the train station to Portofino and within an hour’s time from Genoa we were in one of the most peaceful fishing villages (and a hide out for the rich) in the Italian Riviera. We spend the entire morning leisurely circling the small town on foot, then stopped for lunch at the best bakery in the area for roasted onion focassia or two or three and then climbed up a hillside to get the postcard views which I have only seen on the cover of most travel brochures promoting the region. We ended the day by sitting at a sidewalk bar/cafe to people watch while we contemplated their lifestyles and reasons for visiting Portofino. The town is small, …
There is no way for me to travel through Italy without stopping in Rome, even if it’s just for a day. So, while plotting out this year’s trip abroad, I decided to make Firenze (Florence) my base and take day trips via TrainItalia to Rome, Venice, Pisa and hopefully Verona (will see how that goes). We took an early morning train (7:00 a.m .to be precise ) from Firenze S.M.N. station and arrived in Roma Termini within 2 hours. Upon our arrival we wasted no time taking our walking tour of the city. The point to remember is that, the suggested independent walking tour is not recommended for a first time visit to Rome, it’s just intended for people like me who have been to Rome a dozen times but just can’t get enough 🙂 So, in our case, we started the walking tour with: The entire trip took us twelve hours on foot, with an hour break for lunch and one hour rest break at the Spanish Steps. The train ride back to Florence …
The best thing about walking everywhere, while on vacation, is accidentally stumbling upon a gem of a place that you just know you must discover. That’s what happened to me with Day 4 in Rome. I happen to be walking about Piazza Navona, when I noticed an insignificant small street and decided to take it because I wanted to see what was past the main plaza. About 50 meters in, I came across what was labelled as Hotel Raphael, a five-star luxury property, hidden behind a wall of leaves. I walked towards the main entrance and was immediately greeted by a bellman, who so kindly waved me inside, even though I am sure he knew I didn’t belong there. He escorted me to a small elevator leading to their roof garden and suggested I have a drink while I rest my weary feet from all the walking. Of course I wasn’t going to argue, I simply followed his instructions and rode the elevator to the fifth floor and exited towards a small set of steps …
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