MILWAUKEE NYC-ITALY-GREECE AND A DAY IN LONDON BLOG POST TWO/PART TWO

A 24 HOUR SPRINT THROUGH ROME
THE SHOPPING AND EATING EDITION
SHOPPING

Shopping in Rome is for us a contact sport. It is not a frivolous activity. It requires extreme stamina and years of skill development. We are masters. Emmy is still an apprentice in training but one with exceptional talent and potential. She may be a little green around the edges but she will soon have earned her degree with marks equivalent to a Magnum Cum Laude in shopping.

For the uninitiated Rome is not for the unschooled. It is rich with high fashion and the Romans know how to flaunt it. You can spot the non-contenders a mile away dressed in jean cutoffs and t-shirts with sayings like "I'm with stupid" and an arrow pointing down to their crotch.

The real Roman men are decked out in starched white shirts either with silk ties or unbuttoned to the point just above where any lower and it would be too gangsterish rather than sexy at sixty.

The women wear linen and heels and genuine leather bags that can be differentiated from the knock-offs by the professional shoppers with a degree in shopping fraud detection.

Now real shopping schooling doesn't always require a huge bankroll. It helps but when you're trying to school someone on how to develop an eye for bargains you want them to learn in places where they have to hone their sleuthing ability of separating the fashion wheat from the chaff. Emmy's training ground has been through high-end window shopping in the prestigious shopping meccas of the world and then applying that knowledge in thrift and vintage stores where the finding tests her knowledge and fortitude toward real bargain fluency.

This can be seen in this Christian Dior coat she snagged at an antique mall for an amazing $36.

In Rome she did her research and found a street crowded with vintage stores not frequented by many tourists and kept close to the chest by most Roman fashion trendsetters.

Hunting through stores so cramped with merchandise she immediately sniffed out the best of the best walking away with a Gucci belt, Trussardi handbag and an amazing red velvet jacket from the fashion house of Roberta di Camerino. We were so proud.

Rick was on top of his game sorting through the new trends in fall fashion from some of the higher-end shops and coming up with a whole new look for the fall in patterns that will make New York stand up and take notice.

He also decided that since my birthday was coming up the following day he wouldn't forget me. I'd never been into jewelry in a big way. Never bought much more than a ring or two. Never wanted a gold tooth or a grill, but I recently bought an inexpensive chain bracelet to go with the watch I'm never without. I'm old-fashioned.

My watches are never digital but radial. I was hoping to find a sterling bracelet to go with my watch and the chain bracelet I already had. I was a little weary of parting with the kind of Euros I knew I'd have to spend for what I wanted, but Rick came through with exactly what I was looking for. He knew sterling from the imposters and boy did I luck out.

My shopping came in the form of a little antique shop I only happened to stumble upon selling these small rolling pins and ink jars form India. I couldn't pass them up. I'm a sucker for high design.

Not a bad haul for a day that included a trip to the Galleria Borghese, breakfast at the hotel and two meals at two different restaurants and topped off by gelato to boot.




















EATING

When an American hotel tells you breakfast is included the best you can expect is a coffee dispenser and a selection of packaged sweet rolls. Not so in Europe. At the hotel La Residenza breakfast was a meal well worth getting up for and one that would sustain you all the way to dinner. Scrambled eggs and bacon, prosciutto and sausages, muesli and granola, a selection of exotic fruits, chocolate croissants, cheeses and the list goes on. Our hostess, who remembered us from our last visit, also remembered who took what beverage with his or her meal. As soon as she saw us she was there with Emmy's cappuccino, Rick's juice and my hot chocolate. Bless her heart.

We were so full from breakfast we didn't want to do anything major for lunch.

Around three in the afternoon while visiting the vintage area on the other side of the Piazza Navona we decided on making a stop at an old friend, Etabli.

It's one of those cafes that serve an ingenious menu in a room that feels like a warm worn shearling coat,

not too fancy but exuding comfortable style.

Everyone feels welcome in Etabli including children and dogs.

The menu was extremely tempting but knowing we were going out to dinner we settled on an appetizer plate with a selection of salumi and cheeses along with an olive tapenade and bowl of sweet honey.

That evening we decided to go back to another old favorite, Nana. They specialize in seafood and did not disappoint.

Emmy and Rick are much more adventuresome seafood eaters than am I . Anything that stares back at me before I have to eat it is going to automatically turn me off. Besides I have an aversion to those needle-like little bones that I fear are going to puncture my throat or lodge permanently in the lining of my stomach converting it into an inverted porcupine.

I must admit that the sea bass didn't look quite so scary once it had been prepared for baking and presented in a blanket of sea salt.

Then once the filets had been plated with the heads missing and the filets boned I could sort of see the appeal.

I, on the other hand, went for these boneless crustaceans in the form of some Mediterranean langoustines served on a bed of linguini with sundried tomatoes, pepper and virgin olive oil. Clearly my plate looked much better than theirs.

At the very end of the evening Alessandro, our hotel maître d' and mixologist supreme, sent us off with a nightcap making sure we'd sleep well and be prepared for the next days journey.