On our second day we took a scenic three and one-half  mile walk to visit the St. Callisto catacomb. Sorry, no photos as they are strictly prohibited. The catacomb, one of many in Rome, was a burial site for Christians during their persecution, which did not end until Christianity was recognized by the Roman government in the mid – 300’s. St. Callisto was the original burial site of St. Cecilia and ten popes. St. Cecilia’s remains were moved to Trastevere where they rest at the base of a church named after her.  The popes’ remains were moved during the reign of the barbarians in the 8th century, to prevent their destruction.  In 1852, archeologists discovered the long-buried catacombs and restoration work, which coninues today, commenced.

We relaxed at the hotel garden patio then headed off to L’Angolo Davino for an apertivo.  Massimo, the owner, and I are pictured above in the enoteca. Ro and I had dinner at Il Meridionale in Trastevere. The name of the restaurant means “The South”. The owners are from Calabria. Cristina, the host from last year, warmly greeted us. We had an appetizer of greens, pear, and pecorino cheese. For our main courses, Ro had schiaffoni pasta with a Neopolitan meat sauce and ricotta cheese (see photo to the right) and I had spaghetti with ‘nduja – traditional Calabrese spicy (and I mean spicy) sausage (see photo below). For dessert we shared a warm chocolate-filled muffin with gelato. Upon our return to the hotel we checked out the new roof top bar, a comfortable space with a beautiful view.  We look forward to our next visit so we can enjoy an apertivo at the roof top bar.