A MORNING RITUAL

The fun of being in Rome is not only the food but the people watching.

In every piazza you can sit on a bench for hours to watch the people stroll by ... our favorite place in is the Campo De Fiori ... we sit outside in a little coffee bar that is on the corner directly across from the flower stand ..and in front of the kitchenware stand .... and close enough to the Forno that we can smell the freshly baked pizza and bread that is made daily there ... just perfect for me.

This is our spot .. no matter what time we get up .. our first coffee of the day is taken there ... I have learned over the years to go in a order the coffee myself and bring it out to Clint, who has already begun to "people watch " ... our usual order consist of due cappuccini, due cornetti & a arancia spremute... Spremute is freshly squeezed juice made with blood red oranges & lots of pulp.. it is a large glass of heaven..
You can sit for hours sipping your cafe and watching the colorful live show that goes on within steps of your table ...
The Piazza Farnese which holds the French Embassy is in the next piazza so there are always plenty of well dressed businessman and polizia in huge shiny Mercedes or Alfa Romeos squeezing past the throngs of shoppers.
Well dressed Italian matrons .. in fur coats & high heels walk arm in arm visiting and bargaining with the shop owners for the best their money can buy.. .. teenagers with impossibly huge backpacks stop and study maps to find the closest hostel .. cabs stop abruptly to drop off the hordes of tourists .. for this is a very popular spot to visit.
And the workers sometimes make up the most interesting people to watch and study .. no where but in Italy do you see garbage collectors or street sweepers so gorgeous !.. women with long ponytails & large hoop earrings.. the only sign of their profession is a bright orange vest .. they carry brooms that can belong to the wicked witch .. made of twigs and wrapped with twine .. the women are beautiful and the men~ oh so sexy .
Large delivery trucks vie for space along side the small Italian Ape '~ a 3 wheeled truck that sounds like the engine was borrowed from a lawn mower... these are very popular in Italy .. they hold only one person in the front seat and the back is a flat bed made to carry large boxes .
The Campo de Fiori is a vibrant street market filled with stalls with every imaginable thing for sale...from the fish market at the shady east end to the flower stall at the west end of the market .. you can buy meats of all kinds .. cheeses... prosciutto...breads wine ... underwear.. umbrella ... baby clothes .. jewelry .. scarfs .. pots & pans .. dishes & glasses .
The Campo is also filled with wine bars & restaurants .

But the most interesting of all is the people .. priests striding in pairs their long black cassocks flowing behind them .. Gentleman dressed in suits with bright red scarfs draped around their necks for fashion and warmth... young Italian men with their tight pants and jackets .. holding a cigarette , sun glasses perched on their foreheads .. women young & old in high heeled boots and tight pants .. long flowing scarfs wrapped around their necks .. long hair .. blond .. black .. and all shades of red... dogs are everywhere too .. on leashes.. on laps ...on motorini.. in baskets.... cuddled in arms .. talked to & whispered to in Italian.. they are like children to their owners.

And so we sit ..our backs to the wall .. the world at our feet ~ sipping our caffe .. people gazing and planning our day ... is it lunchtime yet ? where will we eat dinner ? How about a gelato ?
Where shall we go ~ The Colosseum ? The Pantheon ? the Piazza de Spagna ?
the Piazza Navona? Trevi Fountian ?
And yet again I find myself thinking ~There is no place like Roma !!!