Starting off Rome with a Bang!

So much to cover and so little time!

Our last day in Prague was a big success-- we made some new freinds and explored the local's hangouts. If you haven't already, go back and read about meeting Milos, Alamo and Molly. Who would've thought Subway sandwiches was the place to go to meet locals!?

My new personal plan is to try to meet as many cool people as possible from all over the world! Hopefully, then these people will come visit when they stop by the States. That way, even though I will be stuck in a basement laboratory for the next six years and will thus be unable to travel the world, hopefully I can recruit some of the world to come travel to me!! I'll let you know how it works out.

We started off Rome with a Bang, including our own personal fireworks show. I LOVE the feeling of this city. Rome is alive and bustling with real people living and working amongst gorgeous buildings and unbelievable ruins. We're especially fortunate to be staying in a central location right on Via Flaminia. Its not a toursity part of town at all, but its only a short walk to the elagant Piazza Popolo, the metro stop or as we learned last night, its a not-so-far walk to basically anywhere in town.

I cannot stress how beautiful this city is. Rome has a gritty sincerity about it that Prague, with its made-for-film Disney-esque perfection, seemed to lack. And, even better, the Roman's we meet have been friendly and seem excited to practice their english!

Best of all, we have excellent hosts. Those cheezy Olive garden commercials say, "When you're here your family!" and thats exactly how I feel here today. Mossimo is a long-standing friend of my parents who I haven't seen in at least a decade. But without hesitation, he and his wife Stephania have opened up their home and they've served us one of the best meals I have ever had! (Beef briscuit, a lentil dish, cooked veggies and eggplant, a delicious green bean dish that I can't fully explain which was then followed by salad, fresh fruit and a trip to the best gelato in the world, at "il settimo gelo", which apparently is an Italian pun, perhaps Massimo could explain it for us!)

We have big plans ahead! Today we are seeing old ruins. Mossimo's daughter Giulia will show us where the local kids hang out Wednsday night and this afternoon we will meet up with my Brazillian friend Priscilla and her new husband who I haven't seen in years and who just "happen" to be in town!

Life is good. Ciao!