Woke up on Saturday morning to a sore neck. Just turning my head hurts so much that I had to move very slowly. Even so, there were still sharp pains.
So annoying!
I’ve no idea what happened. Could it be my sleeping position or could it be this?
Thankfully, the pains were completely gone by Sunday. Maybe I should lock stickrinaz in the drawer just in case.
In all honesty, at first I wasn’t that interested in attending the Anti Berlusconi demonstration. I just don’t find politics very interesting. But curiosity got the better of me and Cart and I headed to the Piazza Del Popolo last Saturday.
By the time we reached there, it was bustling with activity. All the way from the metro to the piazza, it was crowded with people. Cart guessed that there were about a good 30 thousand people when we reached there at 3. There were even more people streaming in as we left later.
Many of these people were wearing purple in a demonstration against Berlusconi’s corruption like the hiring of unqualified girls for his party.
I was hypothesizing that since purple in Italian is viola, the colour was chosen because it was close to the word violare, which means to violate.
There were an impressively large number of people carrying banners and marching around
But I was amused and most impressed at this very well made effigy. Everywhere the dummy went, the camera would follow.
And in this picture, he was probably trying to make the kid in the red coat cry by lowering the dummy close to the boy.
Eventually the speeches started and everyone was listening keenly to the speeches being done on stage. And all around me was cheering and clapping at what was being said.
Even though I couldn’t follow smoothly at what was being said, I thought that the event was very well planned and executed. Every speeches went back to back with no awkward pauses.
But what amazed me the most was the unity and the very public display of protest. And yet everything was very civil. What an eye opener.
I couldnt help but to compare it to Singapore’s own Hong Lim Park and all its regulations.
Pretty much like last year’s Valentine’s day, this year was a pretty simple affair. Regardless, Cart and I had a very nice day.
The initial plan was to head out to the Mount Terminillo to see the snow but the weather in Rome has been rather bad, hence we headed to Castelli Romani instead.
It was interesting going through the roads. There were layers of snow everywhere. Since we were outside of Rome, it was colder and more prone to snow.
By the time we reached there, the main roads were closed and I saw a number of traffic police wardens giving fines and towing vehicles away. And then I saw a number of booths being set up. It looked as if there was a pasar malam about to start.
I was very curious by this point of time. What was going on?
But there was no time to stop and investigate as we both did not want to be late for lunch. Italians are very iffy about their food times. If you go to a restaurant at 3.30pm or later for lunch, big chances is that you’ll be turned away.
Anyhow, we headed to Trattoria dei Cacciotori. And much like the last time that we were there, there was an interesting display that we saw, the first thing that we entered the place.
Hohoho! Big diamond! Imagine if there were anyone having a diamond ring as big as this!
In anycase, we were lucky that even with the large amount of patrons in the trattoria, we had a table. And it was really crowded. The waiters were running around serving the patrons, some looked quite tired.
So we camwhored while waiting for our food to arrive.
Here I am posing with my mini-hat. I bought this while in Singapore just for fun, not knowing when I’d wear it. But I’m wearing it now since its the last few days of Carnevale. When else would I wear it after all? Its cute how people tend to smile and wave more when I’m wearing it. Hehehe!
As a sidenote, I saw something similar to my mini-hat in a shopping mall in Rome. It was almost 50 euro! Woah! I liked it, but I couldn’t bear to pay that much money for it!
Cart camwhored too :-P
Eventually, our food arrived and it was interesting to see how our table was decorated. With the red flower shaped place mat, and the heart shaped napkin holder.
I was admiring the napkin holder and that’s when I saw some words printed behind it. Rubato alla Trattoria dei Cacciotori. And I asked Cartcart what Rubato meant.
And he replied, “Stolen from”
We had a good laugh out of that.
Soonafter our food arrived. I had my beloved Piccantine ai funghi porcini and Cart had his Ravioli.
And then Cart had his artichoke while I had my verdure cotte in the background.
Cart absolutely LOVES artichoke and he’d buy 6 pieces of fresh artichoke at one go in the market. And for one week he’d make fried artichoke, artichoke in fritata, pasta with artichoke. Oh my god. I don’t mind artichokes in small doses but I’m starting to have a phobia of these things.
Anyway! On to the desserts
Initially I wanted tiramisu but since they ran out of it, I settled for this Torta Della Nonna. It was good! I loved the lemon cream in my cake.
And no, I didnt share with Cartcart 
Cart can keep his Creme Caramel :-P
We left the trattoria after having our espresso and thats when I saw what was going on. The booths were fully set up and there were loads of people in costumes walking around. There was a carnevale festival going on! Oooh!
Its not as festive as the ones in Rio De Janeiro but it was still very cheery and happy-fying anyways. I loved looking at the different colours which was in contrast to the cold chilly afternoon.
Everyone was having fun, smiling and playing with each other. There were heaps of confetti pieces everywhere. On the floor, on people, being strewn in the air.
And there were so many people wearing costumes both young and old. I spotted out this group of costumers wearing a Cleopatra outfit, an ancient Roman soldier, a princess and Pinocchio … Hmm … So tempted to pull his nose off :-P
There were also several cute outfits that I spotted out, like a really adorable Hello Kitty baby! Daphne would love that! Unfortunately, I wasn’t fast enough to snap them. But I did got a couple of shots.
This is Po from the Teletubbies! (By the way, its interesting that the Italian version of Teletubbies, they speak properly, not in baby language)
Here is a cute little chicken about to lay an egg
And this is a totally fake looking Minnie and Mickey mouse with fake pooh in the background. Could be a copyrighted issue.
They were a hit with the kids anyway, with kids asking them constantly to play and dance with them.
And there were countless of kids throwing confetti and spraying foam from cans. I’m not too fond of the foam things. So upon spotting them, I quickly swerve and manouvered away. I don’t want to get my outfit messed up.
But these kids are having fun spraying it on their friends. Their cheeks a bright pink from all the running around. There was one boy who made a foam beard on himself even. He looked like a young santa claus :-P
I was a little confused though, as I saw a couple of policemen confiscating the foam cans from a couple of kids and pulling out the nozzle so that it doesn’t function anymore. The ironic thing is that there was a small booth selling it just next to the policemen. So is it illegal or no?
Anyhow, there were also a few sideshows. Cart and I spotted a small parade band, a South American musical performances and this acrobatic act.
It was ok. I mean, after being used to seeing Chinese acrobatic troops, I’m a little harder to impress :-P
At the end of the road where the festivities ended, Cart and I naturally camwhored.
For some reason, my sister thinks that we look very married in this picture. Maybe its because we *are* married :-P
We later drove to Nemi just for a quick look see since it was along the way. Cart feared that it would be like during the Ferragosto period and would have absolutely no space for parking.
Fortunately, it was fine, and we found a spot at the entrance.
I was still fascinated by the stacks of snow everywhere. The different seasons is something interesting to see. The same spot looking different at different times of the year.
Lake Nemi is still as pretty as the last time that we’ve been there. I liked looking down to see the different buildings and farms which is built in a concentric manner around the lake and the cars going by the roads. They were so tiny from down there! Like the size of ants.
Having a bit of time before it was completely dark, we walked up to an area where you could see the lake better.
It was really nice to see the area decorated with valentine’s day decorations. There were balloons and pinks at every turn and corner. Its so secondlife!
We walked down the bridge and thats when I saw a familliar face. Its the same kitty I saw the last time we were here with Jerrick!
Its impossible to take a clear shot of the cat since she’s always moving and wriggling. And she is still as claw-y as ever. Here she is molesting my chest and clawing my coat 
But its probably because of the cold. I’m tempted to just kidnap her but she looks well fed and taken cared of, so I’m sure that she belongs to someone.
Anyhow, it was getting darker and colder, so we went to seek refuge into a little bar called Locanda lo specchio di Diana.
While this bar has excellent strawberry and strawberry cakes, we were here more for the hot chocolate instead since we were still full from our lunch.
What was interesting about this place is that they had speciality hot chocolates. I had the orange and cinammon flavoured one and I liked it very much.
I didnt take a picture of the hot chocolate that we had, since all hot chocolates look the same as each other. But here is a picture of me posing with my hot chocolate 
While Cart had his with chilli.
I tried a bit but I didnt like it that much. Its a tad bit too hot and a little wierd for me. I think I prefer chilli in Curries and Masak Merah and such.
Anyhow see what the hot chocolate did to Cart.
First it made him, “Woah this is very hot!”
Then he was like, “Urgh! This burning feeling, but I’ll be macho”
And then he’s like, “Oh please, its not hot at all!”
And finally he’s all Giles-like, “See, I’m a man!”
Tee hee hee!
We left Nemi pretty much tired from all the walking, but it was such a nice day experiencing and seeing all the sights and sounds (and tastes too) together. I really enjoyed Cart’s company :-)
Oh and before I end this post, check out the hat I bought from the festival
Cute! And I’m talking about the hat, and not myself, naturally 
Hohoho! Its like I’m collecting hats all over again.
If you enjoyed reading this post, you might also like :
1. Carry a box filled with food
A box of pizza or a box of cakes will do just fine
2. Walk around alone, without your husband or your boyfriend with you
And then slowly you’ll find random Italian men waving excitedly and smiling at you saying things like :
“Oh for me? Grazie!”
“You really shouldn’t have!”
“Yes! That’s mine!”
So shameless
Dammi i soldi se tu vuoi il cibo!
After a whirlwind 3 weeks of mostly stuffing my face with food as well as meeting friends and family, I’m back in Rome again.
Already missing Singapore. I’ll try to blog soon.
Am in Singapore for about a week now.
It was a rather simple affair when we exited the customs with my family greeting an exhausted Cart and I at the airport.
Regardless, I was looking here and there on our journey to my parent’s house. There were so many changes! Empty areas had a buildings on them and some places with buildings which I remembered, were demolished.
All in one year?
When we reached my parent’s house, I was shocked that the house felt so unfamiliar. Strange because I spent years and had so many memories here before moving to Rome with Cart.
The first thing that I ate would be the rojak that my mum prepared. It felt really great having to eat hot and spicy food again, as opposed to the mild food that I have been consuming.
And then Cart and I fainted on the bed from our extreme jetlag.
But anyway after being here for a couple of days, the “unfamilliar” feeling was gone and everything seems normal again. Suddenly it felt as if Rome never happened.
Going about doing daily activities feels very natural to me. Finally I can understand what the people around me are saying and interact with them properly.
Spent the last few days catching up with friends and family. Its nice to be able to speak face to face in Malay again. Although I’m a little bit worried that my Malay is getting a little bit jumbled up with Italian and English at the same time.
And of course enjoying the food that is not so easy to get in Rome. And where best to enjoy them but in hawker centers! Today itself, I gourged on Ayam Penyet, Indian Rojak, Mee Siam …
I’m looking at a couple of the items that used to belong to me. Like the scooter.
Its been a long while since I’ve ride on my baby Vespa. I miss the feeling of zipping down the road with the wind in my face. I dont even mind getting sunburnt for it (and I did!)
Which reminds me that one of the fears that I had before coming here was not being accustomed to the heat. Some nights were uncomfortable. But so far, it hasn’t been too bad.
I’m in what used to be my room at the moment, looking at the things that I didn’t have time to pack and left temporarily. And I reminisce and feel nostalgia.
Its a good thing that this time I’d have a couple of weeks to pack them back for Rome as opposed to the hectic one day packing last year.
But yet, it makes me sad though because all this “normality” doesn’t last and eventually I’d have to go back.
One week has passed by. Only two more weeks to go.
Bah
Just reached Dubai airport and I feel groggy and looking totally unglamorous.
But Cart and I will be in Singapore soon!
I’m so looking forward to seeing my friends and family, eating good food and shopping! And I’m definitely most looking forward to meet you! Please don’t feel shy :-)
But before that, we’d be waiting at our stopover in Dubai Airport for about 8 hours before our next flight to Singapore. Oh my!
We’ve got quite a bit time to kill, thank goodness there is free internet here. So I hope that you come and keep us company and chat with us via the comment box below :-)
Live updates
11.00pm Dubai Time : Just landed in Dubai.
12:00 Dubai Time : Just finished eating this Steakhouse Burger from Burger King.
I don’t like it so much.
1.00am Dubai Time : Cart and I are bored.
2.15am Dubai Time : Cart is napping on the bench while I’m keeping watch. Internet here is wonky. I cant load plurk or twitter well. Why isnt anyone chatting with me on the comment box?
2.45am Dubai Time : If I didnt have to keep watch over the stuff, I would totally do like what these guys are doing
3.00am Dubai Time : Finally trying out the Starbucks Toffee Nut Frap. Its not bad.
3.10am Dubai Time : Whoops, battery running low. I better find a charging station.
4.16am Dubai Time : Feel stoned. Getting lesser people and is quieter now. Everyone looks so docile.
5.05am Dubai Time : Fell asleep on the Starbucks table. Lappy is about 70% charged now. Totally dishevelled. I look like a pontianak in ugg boots.
Woah! Arabic Google!
6.15am Dubai time : The place seems more lively now. Suddenly there are more people streaming in. Wanted to pray but the prayer room doesn’t seem to have any prayer outfits provided.
Check out these very skilled women!
The lady on the PA system has such a nice and comforting voice. Wahyu, wahyu, Isnain, Tsalasa.
6.20am : Alright time to head to the boarding gates. Thank you for your hospitality Dubai, see you soon, dear Singapore!
