Month: August 2021

Castles in the Sand – Santa Severa edition

One location kept being recommended by locals as a worthy nearby beach trip: Santa Severa. Only one stop shy of Santa Marinella where we visited a few weeks ago, the city was again easily accessible by regional train from Rome.

Santa Severa is popular as a beach because of the Castello that sits at the beginning of the length of this stretch of sand, making for picture perfect views, particularly early or late in the day.

It was a bit of a windy day which hampered getting too far into the water and we ran up against the classic Italian challenge of restaurants having strict opening and closing hours and us being hungry (starving) outside of those hours. But soon after getting settled into our beach chairs, the restaurant opened and Dalia scored one of the best pistacchio seafood pastas of our lives!

Our day trip also marked Aleksander’s 10th birth-month celebration. The castle, sun and sea made for another magical background to mark his growth and development and a great memento to share with him in future.

We spent a handful of hours absorbing our vitamin D and meandered back to the train station for the quick ride back to Rome. Our first summer of Roman exploration is almost at an end but the list of cities, towns, villages, beaches and restaurants to visits remains healthy and long.

Bracciano – Centro, Castello e Lago

Our summer season of exploration continued with a day trip to Bracciano, a medieval town 30kms from Rome, overlooking a large volcanic lake.

The availability and diversity of great places to visit within an hour or two of Rome is truly astonishing. After our trip to Gondolfo, also seated atop a volcanic lake, we decided to give Bracciano a go and were definitely not disappointed.

Arriving just before noon on a sunny Saturday, we strolled the medieval alleyways in the hilltop Centro Storico. We looked for viewpoints of the lake, got lost in the historical architecture and pushed the stroller around some very narrow streets, all before sitting down to a well-earned pasta lunch.

Bellies full, we turned to Bracciano’s main terrestrial draw, the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi, which provided stunning views of the panorama below and also stunningly difficult quarters for stroller movement! My cousin mentioned that Tom Cruise was once married at this castle and it’s easy to imagine either medieval or modern celebrations taking place here early into the morning hours.

Our final stop in Bracciano was at the beach! Beach hopping around Rome has been one of my treasured summer past times here and we thought it would be nice to try a freshwater dip rather than the salty and sometimes choppy coastal waters.

Again, aside from the challenging walk down and then up the hill to and from the beach, it was an absolutely lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon. The cool clean crispness of the lake was a welcome reprieve to the hot Italian sun and Dalia enjoyed a long leisurely swim in the serene environment.

Overall, Bracciano was another great find and so easy to access from Rome. We’ll keep it in mind for future trips with visitors or when needing a break from the salty waves of Ostia.

Tivoli and Villa D’Este

As summer is starting to wind down, we’re making an effort to do some weekend travelling and visit the sites most recommended near to Rome.

Tivoli had been on our radar since soon after arriving in Italy but we were concerned about the accessibility of the visit with our stroller and no car. The two main draws, Villa D’Este and Villa Hadriana, are apparently not easily walkable and have few other great transport options. We decided to take the plunge, hop on the train see what would be feasible.

    The mid-August train was almost entirely empty. A lingering effect of long-travel-covid, as well as Romans’ tendencies to spend most of the month at well-worn family vacation spots outside the city. The forty minute ride passed by quite quickly and we were able to keep Aleksander entertained with the colourful seats and snapshots of countryside life outside the speeding train.

    We stopped for a hearty lunch on a patio right outside the entrance and meandered in with no queue (even with new green pass measures in place).

    The interior of Villa D’Este was impressive, colourful and cavernous. A series of temporary exhibitions contrasted nicely with the ornate stately rooms to follow.

    As impressive as the interior was, the incredible gardens really stole the show. Hundreds of fountains cooled the air and delighted the eyes all throughout the sizeable patch of land. We got our stroller workout in but Aleksander seemed to enjoy the bumps and hills as he snoozed his afternoon visit away.

    We discussed how magical Villa D’Este was and how Italy is full of magical places that are usually quite far off the typical traveller’s map (mostly due to their abundance). Almost anywhere else on Earth, Villa D’Este would be a top attraction. Only in Italy is it a surprising find not far from home!

    Beach Life – Santa Marinella

    On our continuing quest to explore the easy-to-reach beaches of Rome, we ventured away from Ostia and landed on the soft, sandy crescent of Santa Marinella beach.

    Just about an hour train ride from Rome Termini, Santa Marinella ranked high on many ‘best beaches’ lists that we searched and we were not disappointed. The day was blazing hot, the beach was full and lively, and water and slight breeze a real safe haven from the scorching sand.

    We dined al fresco steps from where our ombrello and lettinos were. Aleksander managed to nap on both train rides and even in the shade of our seventh row beach location. And I even found time and energy to review some French grammar for an upcoming work-required exam.

    It was nice to visit a place with better sand and stiller waves than Ostia. A location full of local Italians enjoying their summers. And create another lovely memory for our family in our first summer in Rome.