The Cat's Meow

Today we had a very nice 'food tour' given by the lovely Ashley Noronha, Director of Communications for the Pontifical Santa Croce University.  If there is a modern Michelangelo or Raphael who needs a model, Ashley would be a great muse and she has a personality to match her beauty.  She is also a woman of great faith.  She was a trooper as we had torrents of rain for our walk around the food places of the city.  It all paid off when we made our stop for a delicious cappuccino to warm up and dry off a bit, the temperature has dropped into the high 60's.

Yesterday's post showed some birds.  The Roman people LOVE their cats.  Our Holy Father has a cat and when he was a Cardinal he was in the habit of feeding the ferrel cats that roamed his neighborhood.  Ashley shared with us that some years back there was a beloved and popular chef who decided during one program to share a series of recipes from the time of the revolution on how to prepare a delicious meal using cat meat!!  S.P.Q.R. went crazy, short hand for:  The Senate and the People of Rome.  The people rose up in a frenzy and turned on the chef.  His show was abolished and he became unemployed, never would a Roman cook a cat!

You can see domestic cats everywhere, in fact one roams through our property here (he somehow gets by security!).  But all over the City can be seen Big Cats, Leone, Lions...here are a few!

Church of S. Agnes

Bernini Fountain Piazza Navona

S. Maria in Trastevere!

Zodiac, Leo, porch of the NAC

Base of the Camillo Cavour Memorial

Over the door, Palace of Justice

Here we are at the beginning of our tour just turning off the Via Giulia on our way to Campo de Fiori, the field of flowers.  Rome, like most of Italy has campo's (fields or parks) and piazza's (like a plaza) sometimes Piazetta's (small piazza's).  A campo is usually green but the Campo de Fiori was long ago paved so the name is from it's past not it's present state.  The reference to flowers is because the Campo was principally the place where plants and flowers were sold.  Flowers are still sold there in great numbers but also produce.

Priests in the rain, food tour.

 Yesterday there was also torrential rains but afterward we had this wonderful rainbow.

rainbow after yesterday afternoons deluge

 After that brief intermission, here is a picture of the Campo de Fiori.  The Statute at the center of the campo marks the spot where Fra Bruno was burned at the stake for heresy, among other crimes.  He was a Dominican Friar who was quite critical and vocal about many Doctrines and Dogma's.  He was excommunicated by both the Catholic and Lutheran Churches!  He was a spy for the English and provided them with the names of faithful Catholics and Priests during the English Reformation resulting in many martyr's.  Refusing to be reconciled or repent the Inquisition sentenced him to burn at the stake on this very spot where his statute stands.  Now you are probably wondering why on earth would such a horrible person be honored with a statute?  Well the answer is that the Mason's, who hold him in high esteem for his rebuke of Papacy and the Catholic Church. They erected the statute and every year conduct a Masonic Rite honoring him.  Creepy.  The statue is not complimentary, he looks insidious and evil, like Darth Vader!  All around Fra Bruno are sold an assortment of produce, flowers, spices, olive oil, Balsamic, cheese, wine, bread, meat and other assorted delicacy's.

Campo de Fiori

Finally at the end of every rainbow there is a pot of gold!!  Here is where our tour, given by the lovely Ashley Noronha ended, wouldn't you like to be married to her!  This is the Della Palma Gelatera where they serve some 150 flavors of Ice Cream.  La Dolce Vita, the sweet life!!!

Ice cream anyone, hmmm what gelato should I chose with 150 flavors???