So, via Air Canada, with a rubber chicken supper, two movies, and 8 uncomfortable hours, we were magically transported from Toronto to Rome. Getting a SIM card and train transport to the city center was a lot easier than Madrid last year.
We checked into our convent, the Istituto Immacolata Concezione Nostra Signora di Lourdes (Motto: In God We Trust, but guests pay in advance, in cash). Very quiet, central, large room, no tv, two single beds at opposite ends of the room (it IS an ex convent, after all), and a modern bathroom that so far doesn’t leak (see my opinions from last year on “European modern” bathrooms).
After unpacking we hit the local Chinese-run Italian restaurant for our first pizza of the day. When an adjacent table questioned the provenance of the wine the proprietor brought him the cardboard cask for inspection. Then we moved on to the first Gelato of the day.
To accomplish at least one tourist objective, a further short walk brought us to the Trevi Fountain – us and most of the other tourists in Rome. The population density increased dramatically as we neared the area. The square, the steps down to the fountain, and everywhere you looked was totally packed with people taking selfies. The historic church on the corner was virtually empty though.
Later in the evening we went out for a light meal, and were hauled off the street into a likely looking establishment where we ran into the slow food movement – or at least the slow service part of it. Vic had a salad, I had soup, and we shared a dessert. One and a half hours. But we are on vacation, so who cares?
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