That's a Wrap.

I will start this post with an apology.  I am writing this at hour 8 of our 11-hour flight home from Rome.  Despite my best attempts, and a few sleeping pills, I haven’t slept.  So as I take a minute to reflect on this adventure that is coming to a close you’ll have to excuse the rambling that will undoubtedly follow.  I think it is important however, to capture the thoughts as they transpire as we wind this journey down to its inevitable close. 

I so needed this trip.  I have had essentially the same job since I graduated college.  For many years I loved it, and I was fairly good at it (at least as they tell me). Over the past year or so I had hit a plateau of sorts, I wasn’t learning anything new and didn’t feel challenged. Cruise control has never fit me very well.  At this point I really knew that I needed another chapter in my life, a new challenge.  I knew that starting a business was the next step, the next dream.  I also knew that before I jumped into this new enterprise I needed a full mental and physical reset.  Not just some bullshit I’ll take a few weeks off, but a true mental reset.  As I write this we have had 127 days of epic travel.  Reset button confirmed.

When I first started to write this post my plan was to, in part, list out the countries we had been and calculate the miles we had traveled.  As I continue to write I am realizing that this really doesn’t matter.  It doesn’t matter that we went to one place or a hundred.  What matters is the impact this trip had on Jamie and me.  What matters is that I got to spend 127 days with Jamie, my wife, my love, and my best friend.  What matters is that we got an opportunity to truly detach from our normal lives to experience the world.  Travel has always brought me a better perspective on the “normal” components of my life.  Travel always reminds me to slow down, take a deep breath, grab someone you love, smile and enjoy the moment.  If we forget those things then what the hell is the point. 

So as we head home, in 23H and 23J (yep, we have made the joke a bunch), with potentially zero income, we feel immensely lucky. 

Fun Fact: We get to see Banjo in two hours.  Cool.

A moment of reflection

We have 3 full days left in our adventure and as I sit and watch the sunset over the caldera in Santorini, 3 glasses of champagne in my stomach, I can't help but wax philosophical and reflect on the past 4 months. So, I apologize in advance for the self indulgence.

Throughout this trip people can't help but to ask what our favorite country is and I never know what to say. I end up listing each place we've visited and explaining why I liked or even laughably disliked (hello Glasgow) them. Each city/village/town holds such a special and unique memory. If I had children, I feel like this question might be a bit like asking who your favorite child is. You love them all equally (I assume), but perhaps for different reasons.

While scuba diving in Fethiye (this comment falls in the self indulgent column), I met a man who traveled Europe in an RV for 2 years with his wife. I couldn't help myself and asked him what his favorite city/village/town was. He fell silent for what felt like a short eternity and told me he couldn't choose just one. My mouth immediately felt 4 marshmallows deep in a chubby bunny competition as I realized I just asked him his least favorite question, my least favorite question. However, he provided the answer I was searching for all along.

It hasn't necessarily been the places we've been, more-so the adventure itself. Sure, I can now recommend a great place for wine tasting or the best beach to encounter the most interesting man in the world. And, to be honest, I love that I am able to do this, that I have added a few more notches to my travel belt. However, I will never have a favorite. My favorite place is a state of mind. It is this weird state of being where you are always slightly uncomfortable, routine is a thing of the past, adventure falls along the spectrum of which place to visit next to death defying hikes, you are the only one who knows where you truly are in a specific moment, and everything feels attainable. For me, it is pure freedom. Pure happiness. While traveling, your only responsibility is to meet people, learn, absorb and never lose sight of the moment.

So, random man on a boat, thank you for reminding me what travel truly is. I hate cliches as much as the next person, but going toe to toe, the journey always wins over the destination.

Istanbul - Brady Bunch Edition

Jamie and I have always had Istanbul / Turkey as part of the plan since we kicked off this long strange trip.   Our plan was to meet up with Jamie's crew of girlfriends from Seattle.  In fact, it seemed like just yesterday (which was actually in May or June) when I was making sarcastic comments to Jamie about the 455 page long email trail that went along during the travel planning process (ok, 454).  

What also came together was the ability to connect with Jamie's Mom, Janis.  She had planned to take a trip to Egypt and we were hoping we could overlap at some point during our adventure. Thankfully Cairo to Istanbul is a pretty easy trip and we would have a couple days to see the city before the rest of Jamie's entourage arrived.

I have alway been excited about the Turkey portion of our trip, it has been a "must see" for quite some time.  Istanbul is so rare in that it has been a conduit between the western and eastern worlds. It's path thru history is anything but boring.  From the Greeks, to Alexander the Great and the Romans, thru the Ottoman Empire, to the Republic of Turkey as we know it today; Turkey has basically been in constant change since the paleolithic age. And within all of this geopolitical change, at the epicenter, lies Istanbul and its small village of 16 million people. 

Far left side, continent of Asia.  Right side, continent of Europe.  

Istanbul is massive, I mean massive.  Did I mention it's massive?  It feels a lot bigger than major US cities (Chicago, LA, NYC), I think partly due to the population total being all city. They don't include surrounding areas or boroughs in that 16 M figure, its all metro and it's massive.  Ok, sorry I'll stop. 

Like a lot of major cities around the world getting transportation from the airport can be insane.  Not sure about the taxi situation we had booked our transfer, supposedly a private transfer, thru our Airbnb contact.  It was completely FUBAR.  They met us in the wrong spot, with the wrong hotel name while at the same time trying to wrangle another 15 arrivals that were coming out of the international arrivals door.  After being herded out to the pick up area (and watching an awesome random fight) we were shown to a mini bus with a small group of people.  When our driver said the wrong hotel again we pulled the rip cord and headed to the taxi line.  Istanbul lesson #1, don't bother with the airport "private" transfers, just grab a cab.  

Jamie, Janis and I were staying in a hotel for a night until Jamie's friends arrived.  The hotel was called the Grand Hotel de Londres.  It boasted a grand history with grand guests.  Ernest Hemingway is said to have stayed and written here (which I have found is a very common factoid in Europe).  We arrived to conclude that the hotel lost its "grand" status sometime in the 1950's.  If I were to construct a city version of The Overlook Hotel (The Shining) I would craft a hotel much like the Grand Hotel de Londres.  I imagine each night the salon was the place to be, with drinks, music and dancing.  Only in present time we can't see anything, just the occasional mysterious draft of wind and clinking glass.

Must have been quite a party here last night, the piano played until 4am.  Piano?  Nobody has played the piano for 20 years!!!

We bid Hemingway and friends adieu and set off into town.  We quickly learned the best way to experience Istanbul is on foot.  The city is amazing.  It's unlike any city I have ever been.  In the span of 30 minutes you can experience modern shopping and the cosmopolitan feel of Taksim Square, past the lookout point of the Galata Tower, to end in the magical Spice Bazaar.  Istanbul has an immediate energy, it's infectious and prompts you to continue your exploration. 

Galata Tower.  Roman lookout position and site of the worlds first hang gliding.

Are those spices from a Chevy '69?  How Bazaar.

As you learn about the history of the city you recognize how pragmatic the people of Istanbul have been over the past two thousand years.  Since Turkey was controlled by both the Greeks and the Romans they of course constructed many churches throughout the city.  As control changed so did their religious affiliation, Istanbul is now 99% muslim.  Instead of destroying many of these beautiful churches the people of Istanbul simply converted them to mosques.  And there are plenty to go around, we learned that within Istanbul there are 3200 mosques.  To put that in perspective there are 900 churches in all of Rome.

There are 28 total conversions throughout the city, none more impressive than the Hagia Sofia.  The conversion from church to mosque appears throughout Hagia Sofia.  Picture of the Last Supper?  Nope, how about a nice mosaic of flowers.  Alter?  Nope how about a mihrab that points towards Mecca.  It's not exactly the right angle?  No sweat, we'll just move it over by 7 degrees.  It's the original repurposed DIY project, how trendy.  If you make the trip, take the tour through, well worth it.

Blue Mosque, taken from inside the Hagia Sofia.

Remember the comment I made earlier about taking a taxi?  This applies to and from the airport, this does NOT apply in taking a cab from the Blue Mosque back to your hotel.  I'll spare you the details and just say that we got taken (which really pisses me off bc I pride myself on not having that happen to me) and we learned our lesson.  Take the tram back or walk.  Stupid Ryan.  In the end it still didn't come close to ruining our time as we all looked forward to another day of exploration.

The next day kicked off the Brady Bunch portion of the trip.  We were meeting up with Hannah, Michelle, Ann, Kimmy (daughter Lilah) and Kimmy's husband Chris.  You're probably thinking, that's a lot of estrogen in one place, and yes you would be correct.  Thankfully though Jamie's friends are a low drama group of girls, who love to have fun (especially with each other) and have come from all over the world to be together.  I have to give them props for pulling it off.  

What I did learn however, over the next few days, is that there must be some chemical reaction that occurs in groups of girls that physically prevents their ability to make a decision.  On their own all of these girls are smart, successful individuals who makes decisions for themselves all day, no problem. In a group though something systematically shuts down in their brains, I have never seen anything like it.  This situation becomes even more acute when the choice surrounds food and which restaurant to eat at, so we walk and we wander looking for that perfect restaurant.  While we wander each one takes their turn to tell me that they aren't the picky one, which somehow by process of elimination means, I am the picky one?   Here's an example: Red or green?  Girls answer: (She wants Red) I don't know, I like both colors, I mean what color do you guys like, I like both colors, I mean I could do Red but if you want Green that's totally cool, I really don't care (even though I do care). 

Ryan's answer: Red damnit.  I quickly learn that I will be the official decision maker for the next couple days, no problem as we all settle into our roles.

Thankfully now our focus can shift to the real highlight of Istanbul, the food.  Jamie and I like to make the joke that Istanbul stole all of the spices from the rest of Europe.  As lame as the joke is, the point is very true.  Even at our very first lunch, at a simple traditional Turkish restaurant, we were blown away by the level of flavor present in the various dishes.  Lamb, Chicken and Beef are the most popular proteins and they will prepare them in a million different ways.  They are masters at the lightly grilled vegetables, unlike when I either overcook or undercook at home.  Of all the choices and flavors, my personal favorite is the constant presence of the traditional kebab stand.  For 5 Turkish Lira (TL), which is roughly $2, you can enjoy a hand carved wrap sandwich (chicken or beef).  I challenge you to find a better $2 meal anywhere in the world.  

Delicious. Amazing. The rest of Europe should reconsider their acceptance of Turkey into the EU just so they can steal some of the food. 

No JV electric meat shaver for me.  I'm all varsity, I'll use a sword.

Turkish Delight, a must.  Pistachio was my runaway winner.

So, we bought a rug.  Jamie started laying the foundation on this eventual purchase early in our trip.   "We'll have it forever, it's an investment", "Turkey is the best place to get a rug" were a few of her consistent sales pitches.  While I wasn't against the idea I definitely wasn't sold.  Buying a rug in Turkey, let alone the Grand Bazaar can be an overwhelming experience.  I didn't like the notion of the bargaining game (sorry Mom) and was concerned that I would always wonder if I paid a good price, got a real rug, etc.  We agreed to go look and if we weren't blown away then we wouldn't get one.  Off we went.

We had strolled through the Grand Bazaar a few times before, which, as before, includes a consistent sales pitch from the shop owners who come out promising you the best stuff for the best price.  I appreciated one comment, which is still my favorite...."come on in, so I can rip you off."  At least have some fun with it.

A rug....puhhhleasssse?

As we strolled and looked through the various stores we found a small shop that had a creative spin on the traditional Turkish rug.  They took handmade pieces of rug and create a patchwork design, which resulted in a very cool and unique look.  Furthermore (and what maybe sealed the deal) is that we found a shop that worked on fixed price vs the majority that played the negotiation game. Maybe this is the German in me coming out but it seems way more efficient and effective to sell this way, cut the bs, and just offer me a price that I can accept or not.  I appreciated the way that he made fun of the process when we first started talking about it.  "I can make up a fake price that we negotiate back to this price, if you like.  I'd rather just tell you the price."  Amen.

After looking a bunch, we found one that we loved.  At one point Jamie and I had exchanged roles in which I found myself making the case for why we should get it.  The end result was a positive one and we are now the proud owners of a new, old, handmade patchwork rug from our friends at www.dhoku.com.  Here's a shot of it.  If you don't like it we respectfully request that you please shut your mouth.

I could go on about Istanbul for days, but I will spare our 13 readers from a full book report post.  I will say that this city is an absolute must for everyone.  Please add to your future travel plans.

The Brady Bunch.

Oh, and if anyone is curious about the safety here is a quick story that will help you feel better.  We were walking back from the Blue Mosque and we see a protest of sorts up near the road.  There was some initial hesitation amongst the group, so we did out best to avoid the crowd as they marched up the street with bull horns in full action.  As the protestors marched past us we noticed both men and women, all wearing matching t-shirts.  We asked the store owner who came outside who they were and what they were protesting.  "Teachers Union, they want a better contract."


Until next time Istanbul.

Drinks at sunset

Cistern, watch out for the medusa!

Fun fact: As mentioned in the picture above Istanbul actually covers two continents, Asia and Europe.  By far the largest transcontinental city.

Turkish Mario Kart

There are no trains in Turkey. In order to get from one city to the next you either cross your fingers for an available flight or hire a car/bus/shuttle to drive you.  We were fortunate enough to take several transfers around Turkey and are alive to blog about it.

I equate Turkish driving to playing impaired Mario Kart. The driver is constantly passing other vehicles along highways disguised as windy mountain passes, avoiding obstacles, ignoring traffic lights, randomly (???) getting pulled over by the police, donning a mustache, and I may have even seen one drop a mushroom to gain enough speed to pass a tour bus around a large curve in the road. Ok, the mushroom thing never happened but the tour bus passing did. At least I think it did, as I admittedly had my eyes closed (while whispering a few prayers). 

I couldn't have drawn it better myself

Lanes hold zero meaning and I assume you collect the most points for driving as close as possible to the car/bus/donkey/moped in front of you without actually hitting them. Double points for driving slightly to the left of the obstacle as to always be in the best position to pass them. Triple points if you successfully make every passenger in your car feel like they might hurl. 1,000 bonus points for catching a rain storm and continuing the follow/pass dance without working windshield wipers.  2,000 bonus points if you successfully reach the finish line while taking calls on your burner phone and simultaneously texting on your smart phone. Gain a life if you participate in what appears to be a glorified ride share with random Turkish men hopping in and out of the passenger seat along the way. As our drivers scores rapidly increased I had to ask: Does this make them terrific or terrible drivers? 

While each transfer was a new adventure, I will always prefer to play Mario Kart from the comfort of my own home. 

Scoot Scoot!

Before we set sail to camp on the sea, we spent a few days just outside of Old town Dubrovnik near Lapad Bay.  On the drive in from the airport we grilled our cab driver on what we should do during our stay. He mentioned a popular boat tour- nope-  we were about to spend a week on a boat, old town (duh, we couldn't wait to see a walled city and pretend we were Game of Throne extras) and a funicular that took you to the highest point and boasted spectacular views. We sort of hummed and hawed over this option until a light bulb went off in our drivers head and he suggested we rent a scooter instead. We can zip up to the highest point on our own time for less then a funicular ticket? Sold. 

Like many university of Wisconsin students, Ryan drove a scooter to and from classes. Why didn't this happen at the better U of W?? That being said, he was very comfortable in the driver seat and I, having never been on a scooter before, was happy to take the passenger role. My preference was to sit behind him and enjoy the scenery rather than worry about tipping over or crashing into a large tour bus. I think we've established I don't have an award winning sense of balance. I also find it weirdly romantic to zip along, the wind in my hair and my arms around my best dude. 

Ryan and his hog...or piglet...

Stylin' in my helmet, which for the record I never took off

We spent the better part of the day zipping up and down the windy roads and making pit stops at beaches that would otherwise have been outside our walking radius. I loved scooting around and gleefully yelled "weeeeeee" in Ryan's ear about 5 times more than I'm willing to admit. Below are a few highlights from the day:

A view from the top

Kings Landing aka Old Town Dubrovnik

While zipping around we saw a sign for this "cute" town and decided to take a 8km detour up a windy road in anticipation of being charmed and grabbing lunch. Instead, we were reminded that only 20 years ago there was a civil war in this country. Osojnik was a ghost town and the only hint of civilization was this memorial listing the names of all the town inhabitants who had died in the war. 

On our adventure we stumbled across Wendy Perrott's dream. This group of 50+ women partaking in a haphazard water aerobics class provided endless entertainment. 

During our sail, we had an opportunity to rent a scooter on Vis and jumped at the chance. There is something incredibly freeing about whipping around a bend when all you can see for miles is the ocean and greenery. I've decided I like transportation better sans windows and Ryan has decided we might just need to pick up our very own scooter when we are back home. Take that, Chicago winter. 

Fun Fact: When in Old Town Dubrovnik, if you take a right after the main church, follow the teaser signs for cold drinks and duck through a large port hole in the stone wall you will find the hidden gem of Buza! The drinks ARE cold, the bar is built into the cliffside, the soundtrack is classic American rock and roll with a little old blue eyes mixed in for good measure and the view is unprecedented. It is also the perfect setting for the end of a heist movie, when the team slowly trickles in to cheers their victory. Go there.  

Follow this sign...

..and you will find this gem of a place

This picture has absolutely no relevance, however it would be a crime to keep it to myself. World, meet Croatian Santa. Croatian Santa, meet the world. You are all very welcome. 

Croatia Sailing: Camping on The Sea

As Jamie and I worked on the plans for this amazing trip there were a few constants, places or activities that we both wanted to see or do.  For Jamie that was certainly Rome (those nachos were legit, better read her Rome post if you don't get the joke).  For me one of those places was Croatia and one of those activities was a week long sail throughout the Croatian islands.

As you can imagine there are a million different options of boat/charters/routes that you can choose.  The options boil down to rent your own boat or jump in with a group of others and hope they don't really suck. We didn't have the six needed to make renting an entire boat plausible (after a few of our friends totally failed us in not dropping everything and flying across the globe to meet us :)), we were jumping on a boat with strangers.  After more hours than we care to admit we settled in on a company and a route. We would be on a 21.4 meter boat, with a skipper and six other sailors, none of which we have met before.  Fingers crossed!

(I'm writing this after we sailed, so I know how the movie ended, but for dramatic effect let's pretend that I wrote it before we got on the boat....fingers crossed!!!)

Over the last few years I have been quite curious about sailing trips.  I have wondered, as friends have taken similar trips, what the experience would be like.  I understand that it can vary drastically based on the type of boat, but assuming for a moment that I don't know Thomas Crowne (I only know Todd Crowne) what would the voyage be like?  I couldn't wait.

Let me set the stage of our group, the characters of our journey:

Jeff and Paula - Kiwi's.  Jeff crushes tall boys and smokes a lot.  I liked him immediately.  Paula is more quiet and took some time to get to know.  Loves to SUP.

Colin and Na - British and Chinese (living in London).  Colin LOVES to talk, literally about anything.  He is also the nicest person on the boat.  Na is Colin's wife, they have been married 3 years.  Also extremely nice, Na must secretly be an adventure seeker as she is going on a sailing trip for a week and absolutely cannot swim.

Gabriel and Lora - San Francisco.  Lora is a RN, really nice and loves to be in the water for as many hours a day possible.  Gabriel...how do I put this....Gabriel kind of sucks, not totally sucks, but sucks in that know it all personality (who doesn't really know it all) that rubs me the wrong way.  Undersell, Gabe (who corrected us that it's Gabriel).  Sorry, tangent.  Gabe won't be a predominate character in my story.

Seb - Corsica, France - Skipper.  Seb, aka, Sebastian Pegout is nothing other than French on French. By far my favorite line from Seb is this quote as we were talking about what he liked better France or Croatia.  He of course said France and then followed with "you have been, you know." It was amazing.

The Characters.  I'll let you try to figure out who is who.

We departed from Split, Croatia.  A coastal town that happened to be filming a little known show at the time, you probably haven't heard of it, Game of Thrones.

Grey Worm doesn't look so tough while smoking and texting.

We quickly learned as we departed that sailing trips are not a luxury experience.  Our boat was nice and the largest of our fleet but even at 21.4 meters you are in close quarters at all times.  Jamie and I immediately dubbed it "camping on water", which as an experience is great and hilarious at the same time.  You begin to say ridiculous things like, "hey I swam in the sea today, does that count as my shower?"  (Hi, it's Jamie! You also start to count swimming in the sea as your shower when your actual shower is your sink faucet, you have to brace yourself against the tiny walls in the bathroom while hovering over your toilet, your water pressure resembles a leaking hose, the drain is essentially non existent and you are fairly confident whatever shampoo or soap you have applied to your body will never truly wash off...making you human soap scum. In fact, I cut my eyelid on a cabinet while trying to navigate the "shower" making me simultaneously feel like an idiot and a badass) You also become very comfortable not caring at all about your appearance around your shipmates.  "How does this look" was not uttered on the boat, you throw on whatever dirty shirt and shorts happen to be within arms length.  Without too much thought, it quickly becomes the norm.

For those scoring at home, that is jean on jean on jean.  Whoops.

Mid-post factoid and tangent.  Our boat had four small cabins with attached bathrooms.  As many of you know toilets on boats have a manual pump to release your contribution into a tank or into the sea. Our cabin was in the rear, which meant it was right below the benches where everyone hung out as we were sailing or cruising.  This is an important fact as our manual pump made quite literally the loudest noise of any pump in the history of the world (I can concur).  Anytime Jamie or I had to excuse ourselves we may as well have stood up, waved our hand and yelled "ok, I'm going to go poop in the ocean now!"

Our massive cabin.  Don't get up too quickly!

Everyone on board was interested in learning to sail.  This may seem like an obvious point, considering we are on a sailing trip, but there were many other boats that were much less interested in sailing and ended up motor cruising most of the way between islands.  Thankfully our team wanted to sail whenever possible.  What Seb lacked in hosting and cooking abilities he made up and then some in his sailing talent.  It was a blast (I concur!!).  Everyone on the boat traded tasks and took a shot at driving the boat.  He taught us the intricacies of apparent wind and true wind along with the ideal degree in which you should sail when compared to wind direction.  We learned to tack, we learned to jibe (or gybe if your in europe).  On our last day of sailing we engaged another boat in an impromptu regatta, where we skippered the boat.  Seb was quite proud as we smoked everyone.

Crusin'

The "on the boat" experience truly is like camping.  You're up early, bed head and all, enjoying a sleepy coffee around everyone else shaking off the same sleepy cobwebs.  It's very communal, you trade off doing the dishes, cleaning up around the boat, getting the lines and the anchor ready, etc.  It does becomes quite the social experiment to see how 8 strangers will get along in such a setting.  I can proudly say that our boat carried on very well, everyone pitched in to spread the work around throughout the week, you know the "many hands thing", let's not get all hippie about it :).  One may think that doing chores on your vacation would be an annoyance and potentially take away from the experience.  The inverse actually occurs as you feel more like part of the team, it enhances the trip and builds camaraderie amongst the boat.

My turn at the helm.

In total we hit up five islands/ports during our week long sail.  Sesula, Vis, Korcula, Hvar, Stari Grad, Bobovisca.  Each had their own unique offering and feel.  My favorite times, however, were not on shore but on sea.  It's such a liberating sensation to get up in the morning on the water and set sail to really wherever you want to go.  We would typically get going early and find a cove or bay to anchor and eat breakfast or lunch.  We would swim or paddle, enjoying the secluded locale that are only accessible by boat.  I loved it, we loved it.

Submarine Bay - USSR who? Crazy.

"Can I get the paddleboard?"

"I'm literally a postcard right now, you'll just have to wait!"

As we cruised back into Split, we reminisced about the great week we had.  We exchanged contact information with our 7 new friends (well maybe 6) and look forward to staying in touch with them in hopes that our paths may cross again.

If you get the chance in your travels to camp on the ocean, the sea, the lake, the river jump at the chance. You will forever appreciate the time when it's socially acceptable to announce: "I'm going below deck to poop into the sea!"

Fun Fact: Croatia has a ton, and I mean a ton, of nude beaches.  Consistent with all nude beaches I am not interested in seeing any of these people naked.  I will admit however that watching an overweight, 70 something naked man pull up an anchor line by hand was pretty hilarious....don't loose grip on that chain!!!

Oh yeah, this happened.

Who says sailing isn't an adventure sport?

My loves

I love Rome.

In 2003 I studied abroad in Rome for a quarter through the University of Washington's CHID (comparative history of ideas) program. We learned about the history, philosophy and architecture of this great city while actually wandering its streets. I fell head over heels in love with everything about the city.

The only thing interesting about this picture is that I am standing in front of the door to my old apartment building in Campo Di Fiori

In 2010 I was fortunate enough to visit Rome again with my family. I was a bit apprehensive as I worried my initial love might actually be lust and Rome would not shine as bright. It shone brighter.

In 2014 I got to share my favorite city with my favorite person and show him the place I love while watching him discover it for the first time. Despite a sizable amount of closures and construction on many of the famous sites (it was almost comical) I believe my two loves got on very well. Rome (and Ryan) are quite extraordinary. Let me explain why I love Rome (we all know why I love Ryan).

Typically, the Trevi Fountain is a sight to be seen. It was under construction, so in order to avoid confusion they put up a sign...

...don't worry, they also saved a tiny pool of fountain water and plopped it in front of a  sad representation of the center statue (represents ocean) so we can all still make a wish (and we did, see below)

Like the majority of big cities with a remarkable reputation for food and culture, Romans are very proud to be Roman. They should be, their city is great. The difference, however, between a prideful Roman and lets say a prideful New Yorker...you know, just as an example...is that Romans want to share with you. They are kind, welcoming and willing to overlook your slow tourist pace and tendency to gawk. They get it, they do it too.

Between the trams, mopeds, cars, taxis, pulse of people, and mobs of tourists, the city is in constant motion. It feels alive. It breathes. However, because there are no skyscrapers it never seems to completely overwhelm. It is not pressing down on you or enveloping you in is massiveness. Instead, it gently swarms around you and even stops for you at each pedestrian cross walk. While massive, Rome has manners. It is also easy to escape the big city feel and find a small, quiet cobblestone street or neighborhood.

Rome is bursting with public spaces and its people love to congregate in them to share a meal, a glass of wine, an apertif or an espresso. We witnessed tourists among locals filling and spilling into the larger spaces, such as Piazza Navona and Campo Di Fiori. However, you stumble across a packed piazza (large, medium, and small in size) after about every 3rd turn you take. The city is almost begging you to stop, take a breath and let it all soak in. My favorite random gathering was a group of people crowded around a teeny tiny table sharing a bottle of wine and some delicious looking pastries. Their joy and laughter was palpable.

People congregating on the Spanish Steps

Pizza. I rarely make gluten exceptions, but I had been dreaming of Roman style pizza since we decided to book this trip. It's crispy, thin crust is one of a kind. I am boring and love the classic margherita, however you can basically put anything your heart desires atop the delicious crust. Though, we were told by a Roman who lived in the US for awhile that Dominos thin crust gives Roman pizza a run for its money.

Possibly the most wonderful thing of all is the juxtaposition between the ancient and the modern. It is the epicenter of so many historical paths. You are walking amongst ruins dating back to 700 or 600 BC (depending on who you ask), you can see how it morphed from monarchy to republic to immense empire. You can sit right next to Julius Caesars burial place while looking directly at the ruins of a church that marked the first onset of Christianity. You see its decline and how it rose again with our great renaissance artists and finally became the capital of a united Italy. It is truly remarkable that Rome withstood so much and has always maintained its relevance. While the archeological remains (Coliseum, Forum, Palatine Hill et al) are always being excavated, it isn't necessarily their appearance that takes your breath away, rather the fact that you are literally walking through an ancient history book. The feeling is totally indescribable.

The Coliseum is super impressive, we promptly watched Gladiator after our visit, not caring that it was actually filmed in Malta

This is Julius Caesar's burial site, he was cremated so it isn't actually a grave

So, like thousands of other visitors, I will always toss a coin in the Trevi fountain to ensure good fortune and a fast return to the Eternal City. Absence really does make the heart grow fonder.

Rome, I am coming back for you!!

Don't forget about me!

Fun Fact: After thousands of years of pedestrian traffic, the stairs leading down to the Coliseum are quite slick. Information that would have been useful to Ryan before he turned said stairs into his personal slip and slide.