There’s a small keyhole in a green door on Aventine hill. The property belongs to the Knights of Malta (passed down from the Knights of Templar from the Middle Ages, but that’s a whole other story). If you look through this tiny opening, less than an inch in diameter, there’s a peculiar view. Is it intentional or coincidence? We do not know. But what you see is quite clear. There is a direct line of sight to the Vatican: a perfectly framed view of the dome of Saint Peter’s Basilica. I did not see this particular view while in Rome. But to see this enormous dome through a miniature window would be…

We saw it for the first time walking back to the apartment after our traditional seafood Christmas Eve dinner at Ristorante iClementini. It was around 10:30 pm. Lite up with yellow lights against the dark sky, the Colosseum stood there. Solemn. Impressive. Beautiful. Airy with open rounded arches stacked on top of each other to form the three lower stories. Inspired by the Greeks semi-circled amphitheaters, Romans added the other half to the structure. The result was a 160 feet high, 280 feet long, and 165 feet wide oval shaped monument that could accommodate 50,000 people. The construction of the Colosseum and its 40 feet deep concrete foundation started in…

I am sent early to get in line before the crowds descend on the Pantheon. No more than a dozen people are ahead of me. While I look for my family, I cannot help but admire the Pantheon. This monument has seen so much history. The Pantheon, initially built in 27 B.C. and rebuilt around 120 A.D., was dedicated to all the Roman gods. It is built on a circular foundation and mostly made up of bricks with a concrete shell as a surface creating 20 feet thick walls. I cannot see the dome from where I stand. But I can see columns. There are sixteen of them. Each one…

While in Rome, I visited the Pantheon for the first time. It was a humbling experience walking into this 2000 years old monument that boasts the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world. The Romans are credited for inventing concrete, which allowed them to build their empire. As such, I want to talk about concrete before talking about the Pantheon. I will not be offended if you skip this post. It is a bit technical. But if you are interested, let’s make concrete. To make concrete, we first need to make cement. The process starts by collecting rocks. Not any type of rocks. We need limestone, which contains calcium carbonate,…

A café-bar in Rome (and Italy) is multi-purpose. They serve the strong shots of coffee my husband so misses, but there’s more. These institutions transition from day to night. The fast efficient tempo of a caffè standing at the bar morphs into a relaxed pace in the evening. The clang of cup on saucer is replaced by the clink of ice and gentle fizz of Prosecco. The pastries are cleared out. It’s time for something salty: crispy chips or a soft panini with fresh cheese and tomatoes. You move from the bright light of the bar to the dusky evening as the sky turns indigo. You don’t stand, you sit.  It’s time for…

Buongiorno. Un caffè per favore. I picked up those Italian words pretty rapidly. The almost-tuxedo-dressed-server immediately puts a little saucer and a little spoon on the no-stool-bar countertop. He adds a container with sugar envelopes and a small glass of water. He turns around and moves toward the massive espresso machine. An instant later he puts a tiny-half-full espresso cup (or half-empty depending on your perspective of life) on the saucer. Are you kidding me? That’s all? I take the cup and taste the black liquid: hot and a little bitter. That’s yummy and waking me up! While I slowly drink the four-sip-maximum-caffè (caffè in Italy is an espresso here)…