Day 5 – Rome

I had read about the Aventine Keyhole and never had the chance to check it out so I thought before we leave Rome, we’ll get up early to beat the queues of tourists at it and visit the collesuem once more.

Battling through the rush hour traffic at 7am, we clearly beat all of the tourists and had the place to ourselves, peaking through the keyhole which has a picturesque view to St. Peter’s – the Vatican. It was definitely worth the view at sunrise.

We also enjoyed a scoot and walk around the collesum – no ticket sellers, scammers, hundreds of tourists or the guys who try to sell you selfie sticks and umbrellas. It was like authentic Rome, the tourist areas free to look at in addition to the hustle and bustle of locals getting their espresso’s before work.

Unfortunately, our time in Italy was coming to an end and we had to return back to the hotel to pack and check out. Packing, was definitely a struggle but we managed to cram everything back in with a bit of force.

In theory, our trip home was straight forward. We got a taxi to the train station, got a quick bite to eat before getting our train and bus to the airport. Through Covid checks, security and passport control, I thought all would be ok…as soon as we hit the boarding desk, disaster struck. Despite the girl wearing the exact same mask that Anna had on, we were told we weren’t allowed to board without the big FFP masks. Thankfully we just needed to purchase them at a vending machine in the airport and then queue up again. Great.

With our brand new masks, we were safely on the plane. The worrying thing was what was waiting for us on the other side of our flight. With storm Eunice tearing it up in the UK and Ireland, and with snow on everyone’s instagram back home, could we be stranded?

Thankfully, we landed safe and sound and although I don’t normally agree with it, the pilot deserved a round of applause for that landing. Just before our travels ended, we even managed to squeeze in our traditional FaceTime with Jerome (and a huge welcome to the blog to kirsty).

Although we were back in Ireland, our adventures weren’t over yet. Back to Nicky’s through the snow, we headed out for some food and drinks, enjoying the Dublin nightlife and finishing chapter 9 off in style.

Hope you all enjoyed our travels to Rome. Our next holiday will be our 10th chapter…and we have something really special for you! Make sure you stick around and we’ll see you again soon.

Arrivederci x