(Rome, Italy)

Where to begin?  We have only been here for a few hours, but already it has felt like a carnival of wonders.  Even without trying, we found ourselves stumbling over some of the greatest hits of Rome.  We’re staying in the Piazza della Repubblica area, so we started off our adventures with visits to the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountain.

We each threw a coin over our shoulder into the Trevi Fountain, thus assuring that we will return to Rome some day.  It was just like in the movie “Roman Holiday”.   Even in March, however, these places are awash with tourists…and pickpockets!  We have some theft-deterrent techniques in place to minimize the risk.

After this year’s brutal winter, the relatively warm (18’C) temperatures today meant that we could not resist the temptation of true Italian gelato.  We’ve had it twice already!  As we expect to have similar sunny weather all week, I also see much more gelato in the forecast.

We had a wonderful dinner (with no “coperto”!) in a neighbourhood pizzeria on the Via Flavia.   I really enjoyed my ricotta-filled ravioli in a cream sauce with walnuts, speck (Italian bacon) and shaved Reggiano Parmigiano cheese.  Louise’s gnocchi was spot-on too.   I would happily go back to the same restaurant tomorrow, but there were so many other appealing restaurants on the same street that we might just try each one.  They all fit our “dining ideals”:  patronized by locals, reasonably priced, and offering more than just the standard types of pizza, pasta and desserts.

On tomorrow’s agenda:  another country!