Romance

ROMANCE

ITALIAN WONDER WAYS SERIES

If it is at all possible to fall in love even more with Italy, then it would be here.

Rome.

Just the thought of Rome is moving enough and if you ponder on the gravitas of its position

in the history of the world, not only in terms of religion, but in art, science, literature, and architecture,

it almost is too much to contemplate.

And this is Rome's effect on me - weak-in-the-knees-pardon-me-for-a-second-while-I-steady-myself-on-this-

marble-pillar-so-I-can-steady-myself-before-I'm-reduced-to-a-puddle. For me, Rome is a very visceral place

and if my brain was a memory stick, it would shut down no sooner than when I disembark on the Leonardo da Vinci express train from Fiumicino that I self-combust from sensory overload.

I had one day in Rome to myself and I did just as planned. I was in Rome a couple of years ago and had some serious unfinished business. I was determined to settle this business once and for all, bury the

hatchet, and finally move on. Two years ago, between having directional issues (that still exists

today, by the way) and finding the well-hidden street signs that they seem to intentionally have

made inconspicuous in Rome, and despite the most earnest of intentions,

I didn't make it to Forno Campo de' Fiori. This time will be different, I vowed myself.

I will find this darn bakery.

With the same exact issues mentioned above (directional issues and street signs scattered about and

feeling as though I was a highly unqualified spy in a bad spy movie), I again almost didn't make it

the Roman to Forno Campo de' Fiori. I ran into piazza after piazza, then into a narrow and obscure

street called Via del Pellegrino that is filled with lovely artisan shops and ateliers, and where I stood

defenseless to local bar Barnum, to have an espresso standing at the bar, of course, just to blend in

(I stuck out like a sore thumb). I literally walked into every possible historic monument - the Forum,

Colosseum, Il Vittoriano, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona - except the one I was

looking for - the brutti ma buoni of Forno Campo de' Fiori.

But the Italian cookie gods must have been smiling on me this time, because after

getting happily lost, I finally arrived at Campo de' Fiori, one of Rome's liveliest outdoor markets,

as vendors were packing up for the day. I snuck in at the bakery ten minutes before it closed and had the bakery to myself. I gawked at the glass case and asked for plenty of each of the lady behind

the counter's favorites, including the precious brutti ma buoni.

I have come this far. I will not be denied again.

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