La Dolce Vita
To visit Rome is to go to war. It is a fight, a struggle. The individual against the world. There is so much to see and do, and so little time. Especially in the "Eternal City." Just to give you an idea of the beauty of this city, look closely at the detail below. This was a small fragment on a corner of a minor museum (Brancaccio) that I looked at every day when I opened my window. This was a late afternoon view, with the golden sunlight. There were gray views, blue views, white views, depending on the hour or the light. I never got tired of looking at it (and the hooded crows and lesser black-backed gulls that roosted just above it).
Rome is history. Religion. Art. Culture. Fashion. Tourism. And, in the end, I suspect Rome ALWAYS wins the war against us occasional invaders.
Rome endures (as Faulkner said of Southerners). It persists, beautifully, and continues to intrigue.
It frustrates with its crowds. It lures with its appealing alleys. It entices with its restaurants and enthralls with its art. The best part of visiting Rome is to go wandering, to walk at random down a dark side street, and stumble onto this view, of a small apartment with a glorious balcony (in January, nonetheless).
If you can avoid the crowds, the lines, the noisy tourists and obnoxious vendors, you'll find a city that is unique, special, and enticing.