Yesterday’s walk took a toll on Steven, so he told me today that he didn’t want to do a bunch of walking – which meant I had to get him to where I wanted to be… then walk him.

The one we caught was a double-decker pink bus… and they gave us pink earbuds to listen to the tour in the language of your choosing… We picked English… button two. We got to keep the earbuds too, so there’s two more gifts for the grandkids! There are eight stops on the tour bus, and I only wanted to hit two of them. The Vatican and then, Trevi Fountain.

First stop, is Vatican City. One word. Crowded. But also, exhilarating. Crowds push to go over the bridge that rises above the Tiber River towards Vatican Square. Street vendors and performers hawking their wares. Couples in their wedding finery posing for wedding pictures, carrying their luggage for their outfit change later.

We walk across the bridge, checked out the outside of St. Peter’s Basilica quickly taking a few pics and then headed to the Square looking for a place to sit, drink and relax. We ended up sitting and relaxing for over two hours, next two a couple of Irish moms on holiday by themselves. “Best mates since school,” Kathy and Bridget, were on a late birthday present trip which was interrupted by COVID. They were finally able to take the trip and they said they were having a ball. We sat and talked for more than a couple of hours, while they told us about their adventures in America when they were younger. They had come over to work together as camp counselors to see American and earn a bit of money, but one was sent to Philadelphia and the other to Nebraska! But they said they loved it and were amazed at how quickly they earned money.

We finally made it into the Vatican Square and it was as impressive this time as the first when I saw it. Again, the line looked to be hours long, so we didn’t try it at all and were fine walking around and taking pictures. We did manage to get close enough and in time to see the changing of the Swiss Guard. I love those outfits!

I would have really loved to have been able to look inside the Vatican Archives… oh, the secrets I could spill!

There were Italian Poliza, Vatican Poliza, and Carabinieri everywhere. Steven pondered what was the difference between the Carabinieri and the Italian poliza. I said, let’s ask. He didn’t want me to, but you know how well I listen. I went up to a vehicle that had two officers and asked. They were very friendly and told me Cabineri are military police…. they laughed when I said I was military too. Maybe I look too old now to see it! LOL

Walking back to the Hop On Hop Off bus stop, I told Steven I wanted to walk to the stop we missed… I was trying to sneak in an extra stop there. On the way there, my Google Maps let me know we were coming to an area I had looked at the day before. It was the location of a shop owned by an Onorati… a Chocolate shop, so I set out to find it. I could tell I was pushing my luck with the hubby and the walking, but he was still being pleasant and let me search on. I found it on Corso del Rinascimento and it was opened! Inside Dolciumi Onorati, we met Patrizia Onorati who was from Artena, the hillside village of the hubby’s grandfather. We chatted for just a few moments because her English was as good as my Italian, but I did manage to get a picture of Steven and Patrizia together…. his probable cousin from Artena.

We finally found the previous stop but I could tell Steven had walked as much as he was going to do. So when the bus came, I skipped Trevi Fountain, even though he said we could stop and go see it, and we just rode the bus back to the hotel. He fell asleep as soon as we got to the room. I, on the other hand, was looking for a cardboard envelope to put my newly acquired original art in and went searching for a post office.

Coming out of the alley, I heard a man in English excitedly tell a vehicle driver about a fire that would block their way, so what else could I do other than head that way! Once a reporter, always a reporter… the black smoke bellowing up was a sight to see when I turned the corner. People standing everywhere just watching. At first, you couldn’t tell where or what was on fire, it was just an absolutely vicious fire and you could feel the heat of the blaze. But still, no one was moving. .. so I crept closer until I managed to get closer and take a video of the scene. The Italian Poliza were pushing people back and others were taking their place. The Italian fire department arrived in their Tonka-sized fire pumper and quickly started spraying down the flames, and it soon became apparent that the cause of the fire was a bunch of motor scooters.

After the fire was put out, it was too late to find a post office, so I found snacks instead and headed back to the hotel to wait for the hubby to wake to tell him about my adventures and then to find dinner. At the hotel, I find the teenagers have forgotten to close the elevator doors AGAIN… so, this time I walked up to the fifth floor, rode the elevator down to the second floor, and then absently minded, probably because of the steep walk, “forgot” to close the doors.

Next stop… Artena, Roma, Italy… the medieval city of Steven’s paternal grandfather.