NH Pisa:Our hotel room was very nice and clean. Was worth the price (about $115) being that they had great service, and was well located. One hitch that we had in the room was that we couldn’t figure out how to close the bedside lamp. We tried all the light switches- there were about 20 (as the room was dark when we entered). But to no avail! The light was stubborn and refused to cooperate!!!! We continued to battle the lamp well into the AM hours. We even tried to unplug the lamp- for some reason the plug was screwed into the outlet!!!!! Finally, we came up with a grand plan “We will call the front desk and ask for help”!! However, the directory was in Italian and after many attempts (and probably waking up other hotel guests) we gave up and decided to just unscrew the bulb!!! At least that was not permanently connected to the lamp! Other than that, we were very satisfied.
Monday: Being that the earliest direct train to Rome was at 1:57PM, there is not much to do in Pisa besides taking pictures at the leaning tower, and we arrived in Pisa close to midnight the night before, we decided to take our time in the morning with davening and breakfast. For breakfast we had delicious tuna sandwiches (bought rolls in Venice the day before, small mayo and tuna cans brought from home) and some hot coffee (our room was equipped with a small percolator) substituting milk with coffee creamers that we took from the plane since we wouldn’t have where to refrigerate the big bottle of milk until later that evening.
At about 11:30, we checked out of the hotel leaving our luggage in hotel storage. We were told that there was a bus across the street from the hotel which will stop right near the leaning tower. (Think it costs €2) After checking google maps, we chose to take the scenic 20 minute walk instead.
Since we were afraid that tickets for the direct train to Rome will sell out, we made a quick stop at the train station across the street to purchase tickets for the 1:57 train so that we wouldn’t be pressured to get back to the train station early.
We then headed to the leaning tower which was WOW!!!!!!! It was amazing to see the tower, which we had heard so much about, is so obviously slanted. We (and everyone else) took pictures while trying to hold the tower up and then trying to push it down! Many people looked quite silly in awkward positions.
(who are we to judge LOL) We spent about an hour taking pictures and buying souvenirs. We even found one shop that was selling mugs and shot glasses on a slant, which was just too cute not to buy!
We didn’t end up climbing the tower since by the time went online to book tickets (about 2 weeks before visiting Pisa) there were not slots available in our time-frame. (FYI, tickets can be booked up to 20 days prior to scheduled visit date)
We then headed back to the hotel to fetch our luggage and head to the train station. Thankfully our train was running on time and as soon as we arrived to the station, we boarded the first class cabin for our ride. Since we were satisfied with the 1st class seats to Florence, we bought 1st class tickets for this ride as well. But, the first class on this train was not nearly as nice or comfortable as the day before. We were still glad that we were sitting there as opposed to the main cabin.
The train ride lasted about 2.5 hours. It was a very scenic route!
Upon arrival to the Roma Termini Station at about 4:30, we collected our luggage and made our way to the exit. There were taxi’s outside waiting for customers, however, due to the fear of being ripped off, we decided to use Uber instead. (Yes! There is Uber in Rome). After a few minute wait for the Uber, (during which taxi drivers tried to convince us that the Uber would rip us off) the driver contacted me as he was circling for a few minutes and was unable to locate us. Finally we were sitting in our Uber and enjoyed a very pleasant ride as our friendly driver pointed out some landmarks on the way. Some 20 minutes later, we pulled up to a building which matched the address of our hotel.
While planning our trip, we were unsure which hotel to book for our stay in Rome. Many fellow DDF’ers stayed at one of the Sheraton hotels but we weren’t so sure about staying there since both Sheraton hotels are quite far from the main sites and attractions. Additionally, various TR’s mentioned that the public transportation in Rome was unreliable, and unsafe too, which led us to seek other hotel options. We were looking for a hotel that would be walking distance to the Ghetto area, and would also be safe to walk at night. After much research on TA, we settled on Hotel Navona, which seemed to have pretty good reviews, was within 10-15 minutes walking distance to most attractions, and was very decently priced.
Upon arrival to the above mentioned building, we entered the courtyard when DW said (in a calm voice that we all know means troube) “we are not staying in this place”!!!!!! I couldn’t agree more as the outside décor was ‘less than beautiful’ to say the least. I told DW to reserve judgement until we reached our room. (All the while I praying that Sheraton still has available rooms). We rang the bell by the main entrance where there was a sign “Hotel Navona- 2nd Floor”. After a short wait, a bellhop greeted us and helped us with our luggage. We read online that the building does not have an elevator but the hotel provides a bellhop. Fortunately, that turned out not to be accurate as they recently installed a small elevator, which was just enough for the bellhop and our luggage. We waited for the next shift……!!
After exiting the elevator and entering the 2nd floor, we calmed down somewhat seeing that the front desk and hallway were pretty ok looking. We checked in, and got a map of all the main attractions and headed to our room, holding our breath all the while. We were relieved to see that our room was by far much nicer than the courtyard!!!! By now DW agreed that we can stay here for our 3 night stay in Rome. PHEW! The room was actually pretty spacious; we even had a little porch.
After we settled into our room, we went for a stroll to explore the Ghetto area where the shul and all kosher restaurants are located (7-8 minute walk from our hotel.)
Since we hadn’t eaten lunch that day, we went straight to Ba’Ghetto Milky (we stuck to milchig since we didn’t want to run into problems with Glatt meats). We ordered Eggplant rolls filled with tuna and mozzarella cheese as an appetizer (€6.50), Spaghetti with cheese and cubes of salmon (€12.50) and Cheese and Smoked salmon (€12) as mains. Additionally, there is €1.50 pp sitting tax in all restaurants in Rome. Also, just like in Venice, you pay for your water
.
All the dishes were delicious and we wiped our plates clean. (hopefully the pictures will be posted one day)
After dinner, we headed to the great synagogue for Mincha/Maariv. As informed on DDF, we took along ID, which had to be presented prior to entry. In addition, everyone was subject to a security check and had to pass a metal detector. They were very strict about shutting phones during services, as pictures weren’t allowed and the gabbai strongly enforced the rule. (It later turned out that during a tour, pictures were allowed).
After davening, we took another short walk along the river before heading back and turning in for the night.
Up Next Day #1 in Rome…………
