Arrivederci, Roma.

It's not goodbye, but see you later, because I do intend to return.
Ciao!
It has been an intense three weeks, and I am tired.  I will leave tomorrow morning--sadly.  I went shopping today, and sniffed a lot of soap.  Nice, but not good blog material.
Rome has been a challenging city for me.  It's not the language barrier.  That hardly exists.  A lot of people speak English, and they have a helpful attitude.  I can put my finger on two things that made Rome an interesting and worthwhile challenge.  First, there is So Much.  Do you want history, art, food, drink?  It's all on offer in overwhelming abundance.  The city has an energy to it--a vigor.  Don't think laid back Italians.  I didn't see any.
I was fortunate to be able to stay, and I got to see most of what I wanted and some things I didn't know I wanted to see.  What I missed out on were sites that had to be booked in advance.  I just couldn't get myself together to schedule the visits.  Next time.
The other thing is transportation.  Other European Capitals have extensive metros or trams.  The visitor can easily get where she wants to go or very nearby. Rome has two lines and is working on a third.  The issue is that every time a hole is dug in Rome, the likelihood is that some potentially valuable hunk of antiquity will be turned up.  And the busses are confusing and really not made for tourists although they can be useful.  I made a habit of trying to figure out the nearest metro to what I wanted to see and then I'd plot a route.  I got a lot of exercise that way.
I also got to follow my Mediterranean Diet otherwise known as stuffing down mountains of pasta and pizza and using olive oil and parmesan with abandon.
Didn't you get tired of pasta, Pil?  You ate so much of it.
Nope.  I don't get tired of ruins either.
And the indulgence of my daily aperitivi.  What a lovely custom, but since I am not nearly as active at home as I am on trips, I won't follow it often.  But I had lush olives, savory prosciutto on crostini, creamy cheese, and Prosecco every day.  I drink it at home, but--ha ha--NOT everyday.  Also in Italy what I found in the stores is "extra dry," which is slightly sweeter than the brut commonly found in the United States.  Because Americans have theirs with dinner and the sweeter wine makes a better aperitivo?  I don't know.
I went to the big supermarket this morning and got some things to bring home, so I can continue eating Italian.  I got some tried borlotti beans and some farro, which is a traditional kind of grain that is enjoying a revival.  I also got a package of very tiny farfelle (known as bowties in the U.S.) which are just so cute. The teensy pasta is for soup.  I'll make good use of it.
Let's talk about lipstick.
Kinda random, Pil.
Well, I couldn't help notice that most Italian women were following the matte lipstick trend.  Now because of my age, I don't think it's for me, and anyway it's a hard look to pull off for anyone.  I have seen it look very pretty even on older women.  The key seems to be avoiding bright or dark shades and going with something soft and subtle, but avoiding chalkiness.  Chalky lips look like the Zombie Apocalypse.
I have gotten a lot of traffic on the blog for this trip.  Muchas gracias to the readers in Peru and Chile.  I don't think I have had readers from South America before.  But I appreciate everyone who takes the trouble to read, and I hope you are feeling inspired.  Maybe relax with your friends and family with an aperitivo?
And for our ultimo cena in Italy for now--pasta!  It's a huge bowl of angel hair dressed with garlic, olive oil and parmesan accompanied with the last of the Orvieto.  Divine!

Grazi, Amici!