Caesar, Olympus Epic

6AM in Rome is heavenly. The streets are still, there are very few cars, and the morning light is warming the ochre painted walls- backdrops to motorbikes, minis, and the ever-present flag declaring “PACE.”

I had to escape our hotel room that first night. The temperature was in the 90’s all day and there was very little air (no fan, nothin’) in our modest room at Trastevere House.

We were so close to the street level restaurant, that it seemed as if all of Rome was dining at the foot of our bed. Motorbikes cruising through the back alleys of our legs, laughter filling our tousled hair, the clinking of dishes filling the thick warm air of our room…

And so, things seen while jet-lagged in Rome at 6AM:
– Graffiti on walls of peeling ochres and reds
– A man in a gold viking helmet dressed as “Cesare” of the Roman empire.
– Gorgeous women in perfect sunglasses (I am obsessed with finding the right pair of sunglasses) with “blue steel” glares (a la Zoolander)
-Perfect cappuccino
– An old woman with blonde wavy hair and gold teeth asking me for directions. As I explained that I was American and didn’t know the city, she grinned, gold teeth aflame and told me her name was Slavic and meant “Pace gloria.”