M:

First- the picture......

Anne after a successful foray into the markest at the Campo dei Fiori. But more of that later. Back to the departure from Catania first.

A:

Our departure from the Catania flat was relatively simple as it was Sunday morning and hardly anyone about. This meant we could wheel our luggage along the road as opposed to the very narrow and unpredictable weekday route avoiding dog turds and the ever present cigarette stubs and other impediments. Apart from the 40 minute wait at the airport to check in, the trip was uneventful, and 55 minutes in the air and then 30 in the Mercedes taxi that our landlord Massimo had organised at our request and we were inside our beautiful Roman flat at Via Chiavari 8b, unit 7, Rome.

The caretaker Ronny - a Philippino (there seem to be quite a few in this neighbourhood) was very attentive. Hardly had he got us up the 4 flights of stairs (he and the baggage in the lift, and us "a piedi") than he called Massimo on the mobile that has been left for our use. Massimo was very keen to make sure everything was in order, and organised to call us back later and give us a 'tour' of the apartment.

The flat is in an amazing position close to the Campo de' Fiori (3 minutes on foot), Piazza Navona (10 minutes) and the Pantheon (20 minutes). The flat has all we could need - fridge, stove, TV, radio/CD, the aforementioed phone and we even have a washer/ dryer which is unusual in Italy as Italians prefer to air dry their clothes.

We were unable to stock up on groceries as it was Sunday (M: although we later discovered a shop that was open on Sunday) so we had a pasta lunch at a nearby spaghetteria which forgot my order. Mick was well and truly finished when mine arrived but it was very good. We explored the Campo de' Fiori briefly in the evening when it comes alive with restaurants and young people. During the day from 7- 1.30 it is a food and flower market.

Massimo rang again in the evening to do the "tour of the flat" by phone to make sure we knew how everything worked. He was doing it as he, Biancamaoria and Delfina checked in at Catania to fly back home to Malta.

The following morning we had some phone calls home to catch up on as this had been very difficult to do in Catania. All was well with Mum, Mick's Mum and Dad and Marthese. We got initial supplies from a supermarket- DeSpar and took them back to the flat. Next was some fun in the Campo de' Fiori collecting fruit, veg, cold meat, cheese and a bottle of Limoncello for after dinner. We also got beautiful bread and a torte al pistacchio from the fantastic bread shop- Il Forno- about one minute from the flat. These items we displayed on the table and you can see the result. Another important purchase was an exercise book each for our Italian lessons which start next week but this proved difficult to find- probably as we are not in local shops but tourist areas. We ended up with the most expensive ones in the world at 8 Euros each (Moleskin!)- beautiful but we better be careful of them. In the afternoon we explored the Piazza Navona with the amazing three fountains - in particular the central one with Bernini's four rivers representing the known world at the time - the Plate, the Nile,the Ganges and the Danube - the with lots of other tourists. This place must be really busy in the summer!

M:

We headed on to the Pantheon, just as the rain set in. Unfortunately this led every tourist in town to consider the massive dome a ready made umbrella. Deciding we had plenty of time, we headed back to the flat, and passed the late afternoon in planning future campaigns.

A:

That evening I cooked our first Roman meal of chicken, potatoes, green beans, red capsicum and zucchini- a real treat. It was finished off with a glass of Limoncello- that's the way its done here!

M:

At this point let me share one of the most useful resources we have found here. By chance, one of the many travel books in the flat is Rick Steves' book on Italy. It has less detail on things like where to stay, and more on the sights themselves, including interesting itineraries with maps. A great resource - particularly when you also download some of the walking tour commentaries (free through iTunes!). I've used a few of these downloadable commentaries on the trip so far and in different places from different sources, and they are a great way to see things at your own pace. These ones are better than others for which I paid more. Worth noting for future travellers!

On Tuesday we took up where we had left off, by combining two of the Steves itineraries - the first essentially from the Piazza Navona to the Spanish steps, and the second from there to the Vittoriana.

We began in earnest from the Pantheon, and used one of the commentaries there which drew our attention to many things we may otherwise have missed. What an incredible dome - and a truly remarkable space. Often in churches and temples the art work distracts from the building. Not so here. Rather, the star is the sheer vastness of the space, lit by that gigantic oculus ( a fancy name for a hole in the roof through which the rain enters, to drain off through strategically placed holes in the floor). It was interesting to note that even the Romans were not perfect. Having ordered the massive, one piece pillars in the portico from Egypt, and after shipping them all there - they were too short! This caused a late change in design.

Stop press: A blow has been struck at American imperialism. McDonalds opposite the Pantheon has closed down!

Speaking of world affairs, we paused a while outside the offices of the government deputies at the Piazza Colonna. Hunger strikers, carabinieri, soldiers, pollies and journalists all milled about. Given what we now know about Berlusconi - 24 hours later - perhaps it was the vultures gathering?

The Trevi fountain. That story about the coins must be true, because Anne and I threw some in in 1984, and here we were back again! What an extravagance, though, just to show off the availability of fresh water via the aqueducts to the city. Still gob-smacking even without Anita Eckberg (La Dolce Vita reference).

The Spanish Steps are indelibly etched in our minds as the place where we were able to collect letters during our 1984 visit at the American Express office.. Hard to imagine that we thought sending a recorded cassette tape home by mail was the height of technological advancement for world travellers in those days. (PS McDonalds at the Spanish steps still operating!)

We meandered down the via Condotti and every international fashion brand known to humanity. This led us to the via del Corso. We thought we had earned a little rest and that we might find a less touristy bar and sit at table for a coffee. The problem was that the one we chose was a touristy one in disguise. Four (4) euro a coffee! We made them last.

Having sucked the last morsel of value out of our break, we headed on to the Monumento Vittorio Emanuele II.

To get a sense of it, imagine crossing a wedding cake with an early typewriter and then giving it a massive dose of growth hormones. Some of the statues are so big that a person will fit inside the horse's hoof. There was a picture of about a dozen workers having a meal at table inside the body of a freshly cast statue of a horse. The whole project took years to decide on, and more years to build and change and develop. It is a massive gesture of confidence in a newly united country that, like the country itself, took decades to come to fruition.

In the past I have found other sites more interesting. Yesterday however, with some interesting tips from our new friend Rick (Steves), we found ourselves on the rooftop terrace of the monument with views over Trajan's forum, and the Foro Romano across to the Colosseum on one side, and through to St Peter's on the other. Lovely bright weather made the prospects stunning.

By now, as they say in the classics, our dogs was pooped, so we decided to head for the flat and have lunch. I had a paper to finish writing (well actually to start and finish a first draft) for work. For some reason motivation had been lacking, but in the absence of that, an impending deadine worked fine. And a good choice it was - the weather started to close in and soon we had not only pioggia (rain) but tuono (thunder) and fulmine (lightning). What a clever boy I was to decide to do the paper today! I had 3000 words by teatime (Good words. Wise words. Clever words. Enough words.) and sent them on their electronic way to Australia.

A bottle of Valpolicella (about 5 euro from the supermarket) and pasta made for a lovely dinner. As we were continuing our planning for the next day, a lovely chat with our good friend Kerry Stirling who popped up on Skype.