Miscele e Fuoco (Rome, Italy) 🇮🇹

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Rome is filled with a variety of restaurants, but my favorite was Miscele e Fuoco. It is located a few blocks from the Colosseum on Via Cavourright down the street from Hotel Romano. Miscele e Fuoco serves everything from breakfast, lunch, dinner, desserts, and cocktails. They have a variety of seating both inside and out. The food that I ordered was very delicious. My favorite dish was the chocolate waffle. It was super moist with tons of whip cream, and cut up strawberries drizzled with chocolate sauce. It was by far the best waffle I’ve ever had!!!! This is a meal I would recommend to anyone who eats at Miscele e Fuoco for breakfast. If you’re looking for something more on the healthier side, I recommend their bowl of fruit. The fruit was amazing and super fresh. It consisted of pineapple as your base with strawberries, oranges, raspberries, blackberries, and honeydew melon inside.

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Customers who sit inside will find the atmosphere very comfortable, and those who sit outside will find it a little busy on the street.The staff is very nice and takes great care of their customers. I definitely look forward to coming back to Miscele e Fuocothe next time I visit Rome.

© 2018 Sundown Pointe

Top things to do in Rome, Italy 🇮🇹

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  1. The Colosseum of Rome
  2. Try some Gelato
  3. Italian Opera
  4. Spanish Steps
  5. Altare della Patria
  6. Vatican City

 

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Buongiorno Roma, Italia! Today’s blog is on the top things to do in Rome. There are plenty of things to do and see in Rome, and I have to admit that Rome is my favorite city in Italy. The weather in Rome was warm and sunny during the day and a little chilly at night. The things I enjoyed doing most while in Rome included the Colosseum of Rome, Gelato, an Italian Opera, the Spanish Steps, the Altare della Patria, and the Vatican City.

My favorite attraction was the Colosseum of Rome, also known as the Flavian amphitheatre. The Colosseum of Rome is located in the center of Rome right across from the metro station. In school, I remember doing a paper on the Colosseum of Rome, and to actually stand in front of it and explore the inside was a dream come true. It was definitely an experience I’ll remember. Here’s aa fun fact about the Colosseum of Rome, it was built in 70 AD and was the largest amphitheatre ever built.

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Besides the delicious pasta, I became obsessed with the Gelato. Gelato is a very delicious Italian ice cream that’s similar to a sherbet texture. Each gelato restaurant is filled with a variety of flavors. My favorites included mint, tiramisu, white chocolate raspberry, and mixed berry. Since a small one didn’t fill me, I ordered a bigger one, but with fresh fruit this time. It was very delicious, and very filling.

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Next, if you are looking for a fun evening out, I highly recommend seeing an Italian Opera. In Rome, I saw La Traviata at Salone Margherita. La Traviata is a three act opera. I purchased the option of watching the performance with dinner that included a 3 course meal. We ate the first course of the meal before the show, and then went to our seats to watch the first act. We went back to our table to eat the second course during intermission between acts. After the second act we had our third course, and returned to our seats to see the final act of the opera. They allowed us to bring our beverage to our seats in the balcony to drink as we watched the performance.

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The Spanish Steps is a very busy attraction in Rome. We climbed a total of 135 steps to get to the very top where the Trinità dei Monti Church sits. We also notice flower pots with beautiful flowers inside spread throughout the staircase.

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The Altare della Patria is a monument building in Rome built for the first King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel. The Altare della Patria is an amazing building filled with many statues and the history of Rome. The building had an elevator outside that took us up to the top of the building with an amazing view of Rome. We even saw the Colosseum of Rome from the top!

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Finally, another popular place to visit in Rome is Vatican City. Vatican city is the home of the Catholic Church and the Pope. The  museum, MCSEI VATICANI is the busiest museum in Rome. There are multiple lines of people down the street waiting to go inside to see the ancient artifacts. It takes hours to get inside, so I highly recommend going during the early hours of the morning when it first opens at 9 am. Also, if you prebuy your tickets, you can schedule your entry time to eliminate waiting in the long lines.

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I look forward to visiting Rome again someday! Grazie mille for reading!!

Ciao

© 2018 Sundown Pointe

Backyard Brewery (Manchester, NH)

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The Backyard Brewery is a family ownedbrewery and pub located in Manchester, NH right down the road from Manchester-Boston Regional Airport. There are many pubs and restaurants located in Manchester, NH, but this is one of my favorite restaurants to eat at everytime I’m in Manchester. They have a wide variety of homemade craft beers with a huge glass window in the brewery for viewing the beer vats while you enjoy your meal. Although they offer a variety of food, their most popular dish is prime rib, which is served everyday starting at 4 pm. When customers arrive, they will find a variety of seating in the dining room, the brewery, the pub, and outside on the patio, which is a great place to bring your dog.The food is a little pricy, but very high quality. Some of my favorite meals at the Backyard Brewery include their Prime rib with extraAu jus, and the Dragon steak with a side of chicky sauce. The prime rib is the best prime rib there is. It melts in your mouth. That’s how delicious it is.

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Next, the Dragon steak is a soy ginger flat iron steak with broccolini, pineapple salsa, and sriracha fries. The steak is very moist and the pineapple salsa complements the flavor of the steak very well. I will admit I did think the siracha fries were going to be a little too spicy for my liking, but they were actually very good. Not too much spice, but just enough to give you a taste of sriracha.

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Customers can also substitute their starch such as mashed potatoes with a side salad. My favorite salad is their Smokin Caesar which includes fresh parmesan, applewood bacon, and delicious caesar dressing.

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 Customers will also find the atmosphere a little busy both inside and outside, but the staff is very nice and takes great care of their customers. Finally, one of their best desserts is their Smore’s mud pie. This includes graham cracker crust topped with chocolate ice cream, toasted marshmallows and chocolate ganache. YUM!!!! Definitely one of my favorite desserts, and I highly recommend it. If you are interested in checking out Backyard Brewery online, click here: https://backyardbrewerynh.com

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© 2018 Sundown Pointe

 

Lemon Bars 🍋

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If you’re a big fan of Lemon Meringue Pie like I am, then this recipe is a must! Lemon bars are one of my favorite treats to make during the summer. They are great for snacks or bringing to a party. They go extremely quickly!! I also love them because the lemon flavor isn’t too powerful, but just enough to give a hint of lemon. It is super easy to make, and very delicious. Definitely a great recipe to get the kids involved. I look forward to reading your comments!

Makes approximately: 12 bars or slices

Things you will need:

1 box of Supreme Lemon Bars (I used Betty Crocker)

1/3 cups of water

3 eggs

8 inch pan (Can be square or round)

Powdered sugar (Optional)

Fork

Mixing bowl

Instructions for Lemon Bars:

  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Take the ready-mixed crust mixture and empty it into your ungreased pan.
  3. Take your fork and press the crust mixture down
  4. Place in oven and bake for 10 minutes
  5. While crust is baking, take your mixing bowl mix in the Lemon mix, 1/3 cup of water and 3 eggs.
  6. Once crust is out of the oven, mix the lemon mixture again before pouring over the hot crust.
  7. Place in oven for 30 minutes.
  8. Once timer goes off, pull out of oven and let cool completely.
  9. As a finishing touch to dress it up a little, you can sprinkle powdered sugar over the top.
  10. Enjoy!!!

© 2018 Sundown Pointe

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Day in Venice, Italy 🇮🇹

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Buongiorno Italia! Today’s blog is on a day in Venice, also known as Venezia, Italy. Venice is an island city that is surrounded by water. The only transportation visitors can take to travel around Venice is by boat or walking through the cobblestone streets. So, be sure to wear comfortable shoes. Venice, is filled with numerous famous attractions and things to do. It also has two small islands across the canal which include, The island of Murano and Burano. My top things to do in Venice included taking a Gondola ride, visiting the Saint Mark’s Basilica, and finally the island of Murano. The Gondola ride was fantastic and the most relaxing activity in Venice. It is a great way to see the city from a different perspective and learn about some of the history.

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The streets and piazzas in Venice were extremely crowded with tourists and the lines were so long that unfortunately, I couldn’t see Saint Mark’s Basilica from the inside.

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It is important to schedule your day to accommodate the local customs because there are very few restaurants that open before 7 pm for dinner. Many of the bars were open, yet only offered light snacks. Next, the island of Burano is filled with colorful houses and many hand crafted lace garments and linens. As a keep sake from the island of Burano, I bought a beautiful pink blouse with pearls sewn onto it.

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Finally, The island of Murano was full of glass artists that display their intricate glass works of art in shops. Some of the glass artists open their factories for glass blowing demonstrations. Their skill and talent for designing and developing their works of art is truly mind blowing.

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Venice, is a wonderful city to experience in Italy. I recommend doing all your exploring during the morning hours due to the busy crowds in the afternoon and evening. I also added a short video of the glass blowing down below for your enjoyment.

Ciao Italia!

© 2018 Sundown Pointe