Ciao, Italia!

I arrived in Italy several hours before my mother. I'm still not sure how I found the apartment (left on Via San Franceso, left at Piazza di Santa Maria, right at Piazza di Sant'Egidio and one last turn I don't remember!) but a kindly waiter helped steer me there. Naturally, I had to explore the neighborhood a bit (Trastevere), but first order of business was lunch. I had read about this little spot that sounded incredible, but what was even more amazing was that it was located right next door to our apartment! Kismet for sure. I had a salad with smoked swordfish, almonds and strawberries, plus a piece of wildly spongy and flavorful focaccia. The salad was nice, but I wish I had ordered pasta or a panino.

After lunch, I did some requisite wandering. I don't remember exactly what I did or saw last time I was in Rome, but several of the piazzas looked very familiar. I even stumbled upon the crepe place that Nicole and I went to back in 2008! (Fonte della Salute) I saw someplace with cassata flavored ice cream. Mmm...

About mid-afternoon, I stopped for the perfect afternoon cocktail. Reminder to get a bottle of Campari for the home bar. I love it, but I haven't had any around for far too long.

Finally, Mamma arrived and we went to Popi Popi for dinner. A little touristy but I was pleasantly surprised. We ordered out first of many (over the course of the trip, not the night) mezzolitro of the house red, fried zucchini flowers stuffed with cheese and anchovies, and cacio e pepe. We ordered the roman-style artichoke too but were told that they were out of season. I guess we have to come back in the spring for our next trip. Pleasantly sated, but not overly full, we dove into a deep sleep to prepare for our one full day in Rome together.