Gorging on the sights and tastes

It is now day five in Rome and we are just starting to get our bearings. We walked over to the Vatican this morning and wanderer around St Peter’s Basilica before walking through the museum area to take in Michelangelo’s master work at the Sistine Chapel. After that, we took the Metro over to the Monti district to have lunch at the highly rated, L’Asino D'Oro. The set four-course lunch with a glass of sensational Umbrian red wine was 12 euro each.  We started with a small brochetta with chick-pea and broccoli paste before first entre of bean soup and then Ricotta and lemon ravioli. With no space left, we attempted the main of potato frittata with caramelised onions and chestnuts but barely put a dint in it. We waddled out late in the afternoon and somehow found room for gelato while looking over the ancient ruins of the Forum. We have also been shopping along the Via del Governo Vecchio, which is home to the city’s antique and vintage shops. It is only 10 minutes from our apartment and is home to numerous cafes’. Since Venice, Ollie has developed a taste for Cappuccino, which will no doubt lead to a lifelong addiction. We have been back to one café in particular that has an old world charm and consistently excellent coffee. Cappuccinos are $1.30 while espressos are only 1 euro. In most cafes, we can each get a coffee or freshly squeezed orange juice and a pastry for about 10 euro. On the vintage trail, Karin bought a groovy pair of black Italian boots while Ollie found a pair of khaki converse gym-boots. Karin also found an old green leather jacket for me, even though she has been searching for her own since we started. We are now into our last day in Rome and plan to explore the Colosseum. I would love to head back for lunch at L’Asino D'Oro but do not know whether we have enough room to fit it in again. Maybe we should just take it easy and have a light lunch in the run. On the other hand, maybe we should just toughen the hell up and go again.