Category: life

By thursday my cough got worse and I felt feverish. I guess I really am not used to the environment. Are you okay? He asked, concerned. I’m fine, but I think I might need an asprin or something. Then he drove round and around to get some medicine for me.

It was afternoon, and most of the pharmacies were closed. Still he carried on finding an open pharmacy. I couldnt help but feeling touched and so heartened. That someone would care so much. You’ve been so wonderful to me, I thought to myself. How could anyone ever…

Ah! Found one! And he parked his car and entered the pharmacy. I closed my eyes to rest a little.

He got me a pack of aspirina and then brought me to have lunch first. You cant eat aspirina on an empty stomach. And we drove to L’insalata Ricca and I had gnochi, while he had pesto.

You’re wonderful to find the pharmacy and not give up. Some people would have given up.
Why would I do that?
There was a time, when I was ill in school. And I asked my friend to bring me to the sick bay. There was a bed there, I wanted to rest. But it was quite a distance between the sick back and the classroom. We had to walk a bit. In the middle of the path she let me sit next to the drain, while she went off to get some stationaries at the bookshop. I was there, feeling miserable and sick and she left me!
Nice friend
I saw her at a bookstore quite recently this year. I recognized her. But I never said hi. Go figure

We each dropped an aspirina tablet in our mineral water. Be careful not to pop these directly in your mouth. Paolo (another friend from secondlife) did that before unknowingly and he found his mouth to be full of foam.

I felt slightly better later on, and we headed to Villa Sciarra. Another beautiful park. It was quiet, and serene. We rested on the benches and I layed my head upon his lap and stared at the sky above. I cant remember what we talked about. All I could remember was I really really really enjoyed being in his company. Looking up in his eyes, and his face. Staring at the white clouds. And smiling at him as he passed me my glasses which he carefully wiped.

So … How are you? Feeling better? He asked me tenderly. And we went back and he let me rest for a few hours.

—

I felt much better after the rest. The aspirina helped tremendously too. We left to get ready for a night in Nemi to meet a few of his friends. Nemi is a beautiful place located somewhere in the Southeast of Rome. He told me that Paolo had his wedding in Nemi and showed me a few pictures taken from his mobile. It looked most spectacular. I was looking forward to seeing it for myself. Bring something warm, he told me, Nemi can be quite cold as it is high up from the sea level.

I wasnt able to see much unfortunately. I would have loved to see the beautiful crater lake but blame it on my falling sick. Oh well.

I watched the temperature reading from his car dropping.

29 degree C

25 degree C

22 degree C

When we reached Nemi, I looked in amazement as the reading dropped to 18 degree C. Wow. We were immediately greeted by 4 very friendly people. A lady opened the door and waved at him and me. Hi! This is Bruna, he told me. Paolo’s wife. And that is Paolo, Luigi and Alessandro. I looked at the bubbly group, chatting animatedly with each other. Bruna had a mass of curly brown hair, Paolo, in a polo shirt, his straight hair on the verge of the wild side. They went hand in hand to the restaurant. Luigi and Alessandro on the other hand, looked the most mismatched pair. Alessandro was tall! I think he must be over 2 meters tall. While Luigi was a portly man, I think he was slightly shorter than I was.

We went to a cosy restaurant. They greeted the owner and we went upstairs to pick our tables. We paused a while to choose which table to sit at. We must have taken too long when Alessandro complained, hurry up! My neck is hurting! He had to bend his head as the ceiling was much too low for him.

We picked a table near the window and joked the entire meal courses. The restaurant was playing a song that Bruna liked and she teased Luigi to dance with Alessandro. It will be so romantic, Alessandro said, with him looking into my eyes, while I dance on my knees.

And the guys teased her back.

Alessandro: Actually Paolo never signed the marriage contract
Luigi: But you did and there are some hidden clauses in tiny words.
Alessandro: You’ll have to do everything that we ask you to do.
Bruna: Can I say something?
Everyone : No!

Too funny!

He smiled and laughed and I loved seeing him looking so happy like that. He looked so relaxed and so at ease. It made me feel good. Although I never spoke the language, they never made me feel left out. Alessandro, Luigi and Paolo never gave up trying to talk to me in English.

Even Bruna who didnt know English talked to me in Italian anyway. It was interesting, me talking in English and she replying back in Italian while we were at the ladies room.

We had appetizers, three types of pasta in smaller portions and the highlight of the dinner. Ice cream with Nemi strawberries. What struck me about it was how tiny the strawberry was. Is this really ripe? Its so small. Matura? No Matura?

He tells me that its a delicacy in Nemi and is famous for that. I took a bite of the ice cream and it tasted so good. I loved it. Soft and delicately creamy with sweet freshly harvested strawberries. Delightful!

What was lovely was seeing how loving Bruna and Paolo was. Though they joked with each other mercilessly, it was obvious that they were very tender with each other.

After dinner, We looked at the lovely view over the area and chatted. What nice friends you have dearest, I thought. Wonderful people.

—

I woke up feeling horrible. I had to leave on Saturday. It was Friday then. Time passed by too fast. Realisation hit me and I sobbed and sobbed … I didnt meant to make him upset but that was what I felt, a deep sadness inside me. To meet your other half, to spend time with him, bonding together and having wonderful memories together. And to have that taken away. It was upsetting to me. I couldnt help crying.

He comforted me tenderly, said words, trying to make me feel better. We both embraced, trying not to let each other go. After a long while, I tried to put up a brave front and we decided to do something today to get our mind off the sadness. We’ve still have one day left together, we should spend the day as best we could and have fond memories about it.

He took me to have lunch at Gastone again as he knew that I liked eating there. We reached there a little too late and were the last patrons there. There were no other diners with us and we had our lunch, quietly, in a more sombre mood. We looked for Palazzo Venezia to see the artworks of Botero. His artwork was featured in Singapore a few months back, but I didnt have the chance then.

I loved Botero, its very colourful and fun to see the different subjects. There were one part of the gallery which showed his Abu Ghraib works and I was suprised a little. Did Botero actually did this? It didnt seem his style to do so. He and I cringed a little at some of the depictions. It wasnt so pleasant to see compared to his other works.

We left for dinner afterwards at Pizzarito. This time, we had one pizza to share. Then we went to Gianicolo for ice cream. And then he showed me the beautiful sights at a place called the Zodiac. We hugged each other tightly while looking at the wonderful view infront of us. I still couldnt help but to feel sad. Some tears rolled down and I continued hugging and not let go. Not wanting him to see me cry again.

—

The dreadful Saturday. A strong aching in my heart. And I felt worse than yesterday. My sobs turned to wails. I felt truely heartwrenched. I knew that I cared about this man so deeply. I try to stop myself from wailing and try to be strong and composed myself.

We spent the short day having ice cream and walked about in the city for a while, finding gifts for friends. About 2 hours before the flight goes. He took me to see Gianicolo.

Me : You took me to see Gianicolo again. The same place where you first took me
Him : I want you to have good memories, this will be a special place for us.
Me : We did have many wonderful memories. I’ll never forget them. They are so precious to me.

We walked hand in hand and strolled slowly. I took in the sunshine streaming in. And looked at the trees swaying softly in the breeze and listened to the crickets singing their chorus. I kept a mental image in my head. of the place, the people around, the waiter who brought us ice cream, the smells, everything I could.

My last Italian expresso before flying home

But most of all, I wanted to keep a mental image of him more. His gentle eyes when he looks at me, his mouth, the way he smiles at me that is so heartwarming, the way he says “hmm-mm?” without realising. The way he asks me, “Are you fine?” His hands, the touch of his fingers, caressing my hair. His warm hugs. Everything. I will miss you so much, my dearest. I love you. I’m already missing you.

I closed the car door and said my goodbyes to Gianicolo.

We drove by and I saw the city, then the fields, then nearer to the airport. The reverse of what I saw when I first came. Inside of me, a voice screamed out, “I dont want to go! No! I dont want to go! Why? Why?!” I didnt want to make him upset even more after the way he looked at me, I am sure he was feeling the same way too. We went in the airport, and he helped me to confirm both the main and transit flight bookings after what happened to me in Paris.

We hugged each other tightly as we reached the departure gate. A few tears rolled by and I desperately tried to wipe them away. He looked so sad and almost choked while talking.

Bye dearest … I love you. I really do.

I turned my head around to look at him when I passed by the gates, and gave him a wave and then walked by … and thats when the my tears turned to floods. I sobbed oncontrollably while walking and couldnt stop. I tried to compose myself, but couldnt. It still wont stop. Entering the transit plane, I had to hold a newspaper up, pretending to read so no one could see me cry. I didnt want anyone to ask me nosy questions, making me feel worse.

I must have cried all the way to Amsterdam. Freaking cold place. It didnt make the sombre mood any better hearing the mechanical voice asking me to “watch my step” while I had to walk briskly at the transit gate. I got there just in time and was grateful that he booked the flight for me in advance. Huge place, I knew I wouldnt have time if I confirmed the booking then.

I was feeling totally bummed in the plane. With many unfriendly faces (maybe its just my imagination?) And thats when he messaged me on my phone

I’m right there, next to you.

Wasnt the same as if he said it to me, but it made me feel slightly better. And I fell into a deep sleep, dreaming of the wonderful memories we both had.

—

Reached Singapore the next day, the plane lost my baggage again. But it wasnt a problem for me this time as I spoke in Malay to the clerks working there. Saw her sniffing. Sakit-sakit pun kena kerja? Terpaksa dan dipaksa. (You have to work even when you’re sick? I have to and am forced to.)

The humidity hit me strong as the train opened up at Tanah Merah. I couldnt breathe for a while as my nose adjusted itself. I looked at the people around me, heard familliar sounds and accents. People going around in their Sunday leisure. Mum gave me the hugest hug and chided for making her worry! I saw my siblings playing computer games and watching television. It was good to be back home again. I looked at my room. It was the same, as if I never left. But in my heart, a collection of pictures of memories. I will never forget them.

I love you, Cartcart, so very much. I feel so blessed to have met you, that fateful day in Secondlife. And am so touched everyday by the things that you do. I love the way that you think. Every gesture that you do. You are wonderful. You’ve helped me cope though many things, by being there for me. You held my hands when I was scared, comforted me in times of need. You are wonderful. And I’m so grateful. And proud. Proud to be your girl.

Though we have so many things that we have to resolve but I know that we’ll try to find a way eventually. I’ll still be there for you the way you’ll be there for me. I love you, my wonderful dearest. You are *my* wonderful dearest.

I woke up finding that my brother had tried to call me, yesterday night. It could be something important. I wondered what could be the matter and I let him know about it. We went to the internet cafe which was nearby. I considered myself to be a pretty good typist but I find myself struggling to type in the keyboard. Here’s why:

Where the heck is the @ sign? And how on earth do I type in the apostrophe? How very confusing. It took me extra time trying to type an email to Geri, Juli and Hema.

Dear friends,

Just wanted to drop you an email to say that I’ve arrived safe and sound in Rome and am having a lovely time here. Have a happy national day celebration and talk to you soon 🙂

marina

I also web-sms’ed my brother to ask him if everything was ok over there. He didnt reply, so I supposed that he was at work or probably taking a nap. A little bit worried. I just hoped that everything was going fine back home. We took a walk around the area. Beautiful flowers blooming in the month of August.

We saw different shops. Most of them were closed though, due to the fact that August was the month when most Italians would take a vacation because it was the hottest season of the year for them. (Funny, it wasn’t that hot when I was there, it was comfortable for me, even. Not too hot and not too cool)

I noticed that many people here loved their dogs. And that there are many of them around.


Allos! We’re just chillin here while we’re waiting for our master

An adorable Beagle

Not a very common sight in Singapore unless you visit the people living in bungalows and terrace houses, mainly the bigger area. Very rare to see them in HDB houses.

But there are quite a number of dogs here. It was kind of nice to see.

He took me to have lunch at a place called Pastarito where we could choose the toppings that goes into our pizza. He exlained to me the different ingredients and not long after, the lady who took our order arrived.

che cosa desiderate?
Umm … *points to the menu repeatedly* I’d like this, this and this
*Chuckles*
Huh? Whats so funny?
Not a really good combination. We dont usually have our pizza’s like that
So .. What would you choose?

The pizza was ready and I loved the taste. It was a lovely tomato paste based pizza with, tomatoes, special type of mushroom and asparagus (I shouldn’t have added the asparagus in though) with buffalo cheese. Mmmmm! I guess I liked it so much that I even managed to complete the pizza even though it was huge enough for two people to eat.

We then went to a place that he liked and often went to, Villa Pamphili, a park that was open to everyone. One of the places where one could run away from the graffiti filled city.

I liked it here, though there were plenty of people here, but its peaceful here. I liked seeing dads playing with their children and mum’s swinging their kids and people just sitting and relaxing. I could hear the crickets singing.

He told me that he used to study here, underneath the trees. We walked to the waterfalls and recognized some of the places that he took pictures of using his mobile phone which he sent me some months ago. But seeing pictures doesnt do it much justice. It couldn’t let you know how cool the rushing water was as droplets fall to your face or the gentle sound of running water or the smell.

The smell … He had a wonderful scent about him, so comforting …

We sat down in front of a fountain and I leaned towards him. Watching the different people go by. I watched two little girls going to the fountain and their mother walking towards them. The little girls chatted excitedly

Those girls are asking their mother if they could dip their feet in the fountain. Their mother says no.
Oh.

*pauses*

They speak in such musical way. Naa-Naaa-nana-Naanaa (follows the intonation)

*pauses*

You know, I could spend all day like this, with you
Me too. I like this.

*pauses*

And for a long while, we sat and leaned and enjoyed the late afternoon sun, in each other’s company. Just watching the people go by. Not doing anything at all.

We then proceeded to walk around some more and I managed to see a grand house in the middle of the park. He told me that it used to house a famous person and is now hosted by the prime minister to people all around. I looked at the lovely maze like garden and the ducks and swans in the pond. We walked down the steps and chuckled at a strange jogger who was oof-oof-ooffing as he ran up the steps.

I find myself starting to cough constantly. It could be the air there. I wasnt used to the environment yet. My throat started to itch and become sore.

In the evening, he tells me that we’d be meeting Alt, a friend of his since childhood. I met them, a tall, brown golden haired man with striking blue eyes, his partner, full of brown curls and their two children. I watched in entertainment as how the little one ran about hyperactively.

We went to an ice cream shop and made our order to the man behind the display full of beautiful and colourful ice cream. Pick three flavours he said to me. Umm … I guess I’d pick the lemon, the banana and the hazelnut ice cream and he arched his eyebrows

Whats the matter?
An odd choice
Why?
We dont usually have cream ice cream and fruit ice cream mixed together.

The man at the counter handed me the ice cream (which looked something like the one below, but much much bigger portion of ice cream)

I licked my ice cream gingerly.

You’re not supposed to eat that way. Look. And I observed how Alt and his partner ate their ice cream. They twirled their cones round and round and licked the ice cream that way. I did the same. And soon I realised to what he meant by my ice cream being an odd choice.

Tasting lemon and banana and hazelnut does NOT go well together. It would taste good individually but when you lick the sourness of lemon and then the creaminess of banana and hazelnut, it tasted quite odd, almost unpleasant. I’ve duly learnt my lesson.

Never mix cream and fruit ice cream together

We all walked to a carousel that was nearby and had a chat together, Him, Alt, His partner and their children. I wished I could speak the language. I find myself only giving polite smiles and a nod, not understanding a word that they said.

—

Next morning, we went to the office for him to sign some documents. He was buying a new house and after the meeting with the agent drove me to the place to see what it looked liked. He tells me that the location was different from central Rome and I could see why. The design of the houses looked different, more modern. And there were lesser graffiti there. The air there smelled much fresher too. I like it here, I told him. This is a nice place. Far from the center, he replied. But this is near the workplace, and I can see myself living here.

He then took me to see the exterior of his workplace and I tried to picture it in my head, of him getting to work to this building. It was wonderful for him to show me what his daily life was like. I appreciated that very much.

We had lunch with Alt that day. We first parked outside his workplace waiting for him to come out. I looked at the exterior of the building with a giant horse. This is a building for the natinal television. It looked pretty interesting. I pointed out at the girls who was taking pictures outside of the building. Do you think they could be fans waiting for some big stars to come out? Maybe. But they could be tourists too.

At length, Alt appeared. He looked pretty casual in polo tee shirt.

Where were you? We’ve been waiting for you!
You’re supposed to call me!
We already confirmed that we’ll be meeting at this time!
I thought you should call me first just in case.

I chuckled when he translated the conversation to me. My dearest and Alt talked quickly in their language. I managed to pick up a few words.

sinistra. Destra (Left. Right)

And we reached a place called Gastone. It was a lovely restaurant. It looked nice and cosy and classy. And they served buffet! Hurray! No more too big portions! I can take as much (or as little) food as I wanted and not make the excess food cry! I wanted to try everything.

Becareful, he warned. Some of the food here might contain pork. Let me ask the waiter. (walks towards the waiter and comes back a few minutes later) We cant eat this, this and this. Hmm .. a pity. Alt walks towards me and asked me to try the salmon. Salmon! I love fish. But … (I turned to look at him) Na, I wont eat fish since he’s vegetarian and wont touch meat. Oh forget about him! Just eat what you like. 😛

And then he told Alt about my eating habits. I told them, I found that breakfast of bread and drink was odd to me. What do you eat for breakfast then? Oh we have rice and fish (nasi lemak) and maybe tea or a chocolate drink (milo) and both their eyebrows went up so high, it hurts for me to try to emulate it.

After lunch, we had went to a coffeehouse where him and Alt had an expresso each. I dont dare, I told them, I might get a migraine. And he gave me another of those eyebrow arches. He must have think of me as very strange.

I liked the smell of the coffeehouse though. Something about the richness of coffee that was really pleasant to inhale. He ordered peach tea for me. I could see Alt shaking his head.

We stopped a while at a newspaper shop and I saw Alt buying a toy. For my son, he said. When we go to the swimming pool. I looked at all the magazines in Italian languages. Even the National Geographic was in Italian. Nothing there was in English. Then I saw him buying a toy too. He’s strange, Alt said. He’s always been strange. And I chuckled.

Alt pointed up at the tree and peered around repeatedly. Look! There’s a birds nest there. Oh yeah, he said. I tried to located it but couldnt see anything. I found it refreshing to see that there *are* some people who took the time to notice something. Back home, people wouldnt notice these kind of seemingly trivial matters.

We drove Alt back to his office building and we shook hands and he wished me a safe flight home. What a nice friend you have, dearest. We’ve been friends since we were little boys. We are like brothers.

—

In the later part of the afternoon, he took me to see the Castel Sant Angelo. It was a stronghold that was connected from the Vatican. Its fuction was to become a ford to protect against the enemies.

See this road here? What do you see there? Thats the San Pietro. Look at the other side, thats the Castel Sant Angelo

We walked on the black cobbled path with many many tourists. There were many stands along the way. He commented to me, I’m not sure even if tourists would buy those souvenirs. They look a little tacky. Look. *points to a street perfomer that was keeping still) They must be crazy to be doing this in such a warm weather. I wouldnt do that myself, dearest.

We reached the Castel. Crowded place.

We admired the wonderful architecture as well as the statues. I tried to take some pictures of the insides but then I heard.

No no no. No pictures (and she pointed to a sign)
Oh well.

I saw a simple bedroom, and then looked up at the ceiling. It was decorated with paintings. What a nice sight to see before you close your eyes to sleep. I told him.

Beautiful scene overlooking the Castel. Gran Belvedere

We climbed inside the steps and walked around the area to see the beautiful sights in front of us.

I enjoyed the walk with my dearest. It was a very relaxing day for us. I enjoyed it very much. Later in the evening, he had to go for his weekly appointment again. I’ll be back soon. *smooches* The same tram again and the same stop. You’ll be alright.

I got ready to go to dinner again and waited at the tram stop. I didnt see anyone around me but I felt confident enough to enter the tram by myself. The Largo Argentina Tram stopped and I tried to enter. I pressed the open button. It didnt open. I pressed it again. It still didnt open. Open! Open! Why arent you opening? And I heard the beeping sound, singnaling that the tram was about the move. Arrgh! Openlah! You stupid @$()&%(U!

A man inside must have taken pity of me and pressed the button to allow me to get in. Flushed, I mumbled a thank you to the kind man. Grazie. Grazie.

We went to have dinner at a Sicilian restaurant. A friendly waitress came over to take our order. He quickly commented to me that she wasn’t a native Italian as she walked away. Its her accent. I think she must be from Eastern Europe.

Yum! I saw Caprese in the menu. I want that. Ever since I saw the picture of the Caprese in DJ’s Blog, I’ve always wanted to try. He tried to order for me, in english! It was really humorously entertaining to see two natives trying to talk to each other in English.

Aye wann two orrderr, mai friend and aye. Arr yew from Eetalie?
Aye yam urr not from Eetalie. I am steel a stuedent and I work here att nite.

Full marks on effort alone!

Try my Caprese, dearest. Its really good! He tried it. I guess he liked it enough to order another one. And he ordered Sicilian cheesecake while I had Creme Caramel. I didn’t expect the syrup to have a slightly bitter taste. It was still good never the less. And his cheesecake arrived. And I peered and stared at the cheesecake. It was a tiny slice.

Is that it? After the days of huge portions for pasta and pizza and everything else.
Well, Sicily makes the best food. So for this price, it’ll have to be small.
How ‘interesting’

We heard a guy singing on the piano and cringed. Somehere in my head, I was wondering where all the karaoke bars were in Rome.

After the dinner, we decided that the night was still young and decided to return to the Piazza Navona. Close to midnight and there were still people there. I admired a caricature done by a man. I loved caricatures! I’d had wanted to do one with him, but it wasn’t exactly the style that I’d liked. And we walked to the Fontana Di Trevi again. This time, I didn’t forget my coin purse.

So what do I do? Turn around? Make a wish? Throw it after or before I make my wish?
Anything you want.

As I threw my coin behind me into the fountain, I wondered when the next time I’ll be here with him again.

(To be continued)

I looked down at the traffic below from the balcony for a few minutes and looked at the traffic, the people walking at the sidewalks. Feels just like home, I thought to myself. Even if they might physically look different, its still the same. People in vehicles driving to get to work. People back from grocery shopping to prepare breakfast at home. Friends chatting on the sidewalk. And I imagine what the Italian auntie would be thinking in her head…

Hmm … What shall I cook later. Maybe I’ll make pasta, maybe Pizza. What to cook … what to cook

And the man on the motorcycle as he zooms along

Woah! I had better hurry! I’m late for work!

See, people might look different, speak a different language. But we are still the same everywhere.

—

I had this for breakfast.

and

while he had cappuccino instead of tea. He offered me to taste some but I had to decline. Migraine. I cant drink coffee or I’d have a splitting headache.

Thats its? Just bread and drink? This is breakfast?
Yes. This is the Italian breakfast.
Why?
We have a simple breakfast.
Why?
We dont eat too much during breakfast
Why?
Its always been that way
Why?
Why??

—

He took me to see the Pantheon today. Like the days before, I was so amazed to see such a huge structure. Everything is so big here, I told him. It was a crowded noonday, with many tourists walking around. Some were lying on the floor, some where just chilling out outside of the huge pillars of the pantheon. We walked in and looked and admired the beautifully decorated interior of the Pantheon.

I looked up at how high the ceiling was. Wait a minute, there’s no cover on the ceiling! What will happen when it rains?
Then it gets wet.
How about the statues and others?
They should be fine.

We then went along the street corners to rest for a while and ordered some gelato. He had coffee ice cream while I had a hazelnut one. This is giolitti, one of the most famous ice cream places here.

I looked at the beautiful display of ice cream, so colourful and appetizing and breathed in the rich aromas of freshly brewed coffee and the sight of the mouth watering pastries in another display. Oh how beatiful! I wanted to snap a picture of the interior of the place. However, I felt so self conscious to do so. Such a pity.

We continued with our journey and I find myself walking in a cobbled black road full of rows and rows of shops. He stopped me every now and then

Do you like this pair of shoes?
Looks pretty, but doesnt look like one I would wear
How about this one? (points)
I’d break those in 5 minutes …

(peers)

HOLY TOOT! 80 euros?!? For a pair of shoes like that? (80 euros is about 160 Sing dollars)

(peers some more)

Ohmygosh … that one’s 100 euros for a simple design like that. All of these shoes are way too expensive. I couldnt buy them … Look at that shop with a sandal similar to the one I’m wearing. Its 25 Euro here. Golly … I got it for less than 10 Sing dollars …

Before we knew it, we reached a place with many tall steps with a fountain in front of it. This is the Piazza Di Spagna or the Spanish Steps. There are usually many events here, like a model photoshoot (oooh!) or some other large events.

I hope we’re not going up there.
I’m tired.
Good idea.

We walked to the Piazza Navona which was right beside the piazza di spagna and I loved how it looked like, bustling with people, artists everywhere, showing off their artwork and some were painting. It was lovely. He showed me a statue of a man who looked frightened and was cowering.

This man is frightened because the building (which was in front of him) looks like it will fall on him.
Really?
Its a legend here.

We didnt spend that much time there, and quickly left.

Look at where we are now.
Oh my goodness! This is the Fontana Di Trevi!
Wow (stays stunned for a few minutes)
I cant believe I’m here!

Its pretty crowded here. I held his hands tightly, feeling so amazed. We sat down and watched the crowd for a little bit. Extremely crowded. There were people throwing their coins in there. Taking pictures and posing by the fountain.

Did you bring your coin with you?
Erm. No, I didnt bring my coin purse, I didnt think we’d go here today.
I’d throw one for you, but I’m Roman, and wouldnt do much difference for me to throw 😛
So only a Singaporean coin would work for me huh? 😛

We then decided to take the subway. We entered the gates using the ticket pass aquired last Sunday, and I admired the decorated subway train which was fully decorated with graffiti. And then we walked and I find myself at the San Pietro.

Woah. I’m at the Saint Peter Basilica. This is so surreal. I never dreamed I’d ever reach here. This is the same place were the pope make his speeches for goodness sakes.


Fountain outside of San Pietro

He tells me that its possible to see all the colums in a straight row when standing at the right position

There are many people there (well, thats expected) chilling around, sitting on the steps. We rested a while next to some Korean tourists who were busy paying attention to their tour guide. And we talked, with me still amazed that I was at the Vatican.

What do you think your parents will say when you come back on Sunday?
I dont know … We have so many differences, you and me. And I’m so afraid of what may be … but lets just enjoy our moments for now without worrying about the future.
We’ll get through this somehow.

We went though the gates to enter the Vatican and I noticed the signs as to what was permitted and not permitted for people to enter. No sleeveless shirts, no skirts above the knees. Ack! I was wearing my off the shoulder shirt and my denim skirt. I looked sheepishly at him.

I feel so wrongly dressed. I didnt know we’re going here today
There’s nothing wrong with your dressing
But still, this is a holy place, I should be better covered, right?
Dont worry about it, if the guards could let us in, you’re fine.

I looked nervously at the guards and lo and behold! They actually passed me through! We admired the architecture inside

Alot of people just walk by quickly and miss alot of things. Lets walk slowly and look at each area one by one. The interior was created by many famous people, like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Huh?
Michealangelo 😛

We couldnt spend much time in the Vatican as it was almost time for closing. Which was a pity, as we didnt manage to see every part of the interior. The caregivers chased everyone out.

A woman still taking pictures.
(Some Italian words I couldnt catch)
Woman still taking pictures
Prego! Prego!
Woman scurries away

We can come here again if you want, nearer the morning, he told me.

We then had a quick stop at the grattachecca. Its shaved ice with syrup and flavouring. Its prepared something like the picture below. I wanted to take a picture of the lady who prepared the shaved ice but again, I felt so self conscious … argh … And I’m regretting it so

He had tropical fruit and I had mixed berries. I stared at another thing that the stand was selling. Uh … Coconuts pieces?

Why are they selling pieces of coconuts there?
To eat of course!
But why?
Its nice to munch on. Dont you have coconuts?
Sure we do! 😛 But eating coconuts like that is not common. Odd even. I find that so strange.

We then headed back and decided to walk instead of taking the tram. It’ll go on a roundabout and will take a longer time to go back. Shall we walk? Ok

And walk

And walk

And walk..

Oh my gosh. I think we walked for about an hour or so. Walked past along some streets, past the Villa and alot of buildings. I didnt mind so much the walking, but we were quite tired from our day’s excursion. We trudged breathlessly on till we saw something that made us amazed.

A woman, was trying to drive the opposite way in a one way road.
Hey thats dangerous! (shouts in Italian)
A car drives up to her and slows down and she drives in reverse for a while and drives away

I should have guessed it. Women drivers
Hey!!!
I’m just teasing, not all women drivers are like that 😛

At length, we reached our stop and he told me, I’ve got to go to my weekly appointment, I’ll see you later for dinner at about 9.30pm. Take the Largo Argentina Tram and stop by the Education Ministry building. You cant miss it! I’ve got to go now, I’ll be late *smooch*

Ack! I’ll be going by myself alone. What if I get lost. What if I missed a stop. Wah!

I quickly showered (aahhh fresh! and clean!) and put on fresh clothes and got ready for dinner. Walked up to the tram and tried my best to look to the left instead of the right (old habits die hard) and entered the tram.

I peered outside of the window to see if it was the right place to be. And I looked at some ladies chatting excitedly to each other. Friends on a night out. How lovely. I then saw an old building, isnt that the building he told me to stop at? I wasnt sure. And just then, he sms’ed me. And I peeked at the exit of the tram. There he is! I quickly jumped out of the tram just as the doors were closing.

I made it here all by myself! Yay! I’m so proud of myself! And he beamed at me.

We walked up the streets and saw many restaurants. We saw an Asian restaurant. What kind of restaurant is this? I peered at the sign. Its a Korean restaurant. How can you tell? Look at the lettering, Koreans usually have a circle underneath their characters. See, now you can tell if a restaurant is Korean or not 🙂

We then went to a place called L’archettoz to have dinner. We ordered pasta and he asked me, can you twirl your pasta like this? And he proceeded to twirl his pasta expertly with his fork. This is how Italians eat their pasta.

Hmm … Let me try. It doesnt look that hard to do (proceeds to twirl her pasta) Hey! I can do it!
Not bad!
Woohoo!

I couldnt finish the pasta (again, the portions were much too much for me) and I had to decline when he asked me if I would like some dessert. I’m stuffed! We walked about in the cool night air after dinner and chatted, holding hands and I stared at the beautiful crescent moon loving every moment that I was with him.

(to be continued)

The first words he said to me :

Hi
Hi
So … How are you?
I’m fine, very fine.

And I smiled and looked at him, so amazed that we finally met. I told him about my long flight, and of my lost luggage. And confidently he went to the enquiry counter and spoke to the lady there and reassured me that it would be ok.

We got in his car. I looked at the driver seat being on the left and how he drove at the right lane and overtook at the left lane. I took in the sights in front of me from the highway to the fields that we passed by.

I cant help but to stare at him as he was driving. Seeing his face and how he talked. English wasn’t his native language so he spoke slowly and asked me every now and then, “What’s the correct phrase for … ” and “Is that right?”

I noticed that Roman buildings were full of graffiti and asked him about it. He tells me that it was common to have one of those. Doesn’t anyone clean them up? Some try to repaint it, but in time, it will be drawn on again and people just gave up trying.

We reached the place and he hugged me tightly and we had our first kiss. It was so lovely to feel his lips. So warm, and inviting and delicious. I liked it.

He let me rest and soon after, he received a call from his mobile. My luggage was here! We took it up and I showed him some of the things that he wanted but couldn’t get in Rome.

And here we have …

Tada! Baba’s Curry Powder.
Tada! Fresh Curry Leaves.
Tada! Love Seeds of the Orient.
And a small gift I got him while on my photoshoot trip to Bugis.

He wanted to cook curry. After seeing on the webcam, at the curry he tried to cook previously, I reckoned that he would like to try something more authentic. I doubted that Rome had these types of items.

So how do you cook this? Oh the leaves are to be placed in the end of the cooking stage? Oh those love seeds. I would love to be a child and play with these. I could plant these in the Villa Pamphili Park and in time, people will enjoy the trees.

He let me rest for some while before we headed up to a little place called Gianicolo. We walked to a ‘punch and judy’ box with children watching the show and then we had ice cream and talked. It was lovely, the hazelnut ice cream that I had. Smooth and creamy …. Mmm…

He then showed me the beautiful sights overlooking the different landmarks that Rome was famous for. By then I was feeling chilly, even though it was August and was supposed to be summer. It was so nice to cuddle up to him. I liked it. 🙂

I woke up to take a shower and saw this:

What’s that?
That’s a bidet – that’s where you shower babies in.
Oh … that makes sense

The rest of the days was spent travelling around Rome. On Sunday, he took me to see the weekend flea market. We first went to the train terminal to get tickets at one of the vendors there. These tickets will allow us to travel via Train, Tram and buses. I looked at the different sights in front of me. Many dark skinned women in skirts passed by chatting in a foreign language, wearing trinkets on their bodies.

Those are gypsies, he said. People who roam around selling items as their means. Most dont have any fixed jobs or education.

We took the tram to go to Via Trastrevere and reached Porta Portese to see the flea market. What a sight! There were so many stalls that the eye could see and what ever that you wanted, you could get here. I saw some stalls full of clothing, some full of toiletries, some full of shoes. There were even some stalls selling antique items and furniture.

But what really caught my attention was the diversity of people there. There were African men selling shoes and bags, Chinese people selling electrical items and what made it all amazing was how fluently they spoke in Italian. I was mightily impressed!

We stopped by to look at some of the lovely paintings that were being displayed there. There were even some Asian Trinkets like Jade necklaces and Oriental Hair combs.

Psst … I could find something like this back home so easily. I was surprised to see something that was so common being displayed and regarded so highly. It was strange even.

The beautiful streets of Trastrevere

We then had lunch at L’insalata Ricca which literally means “Rich Salads” I had an egg salad while he had Gnocchi and we had Sparkling Mineral Water. I tried his delicious potato dumpling in tomato sauce and then I was shocked to see the amount of salad and the size of my plate when it arrived.

I can’t finish this! Argh!
(laughing) Dont worry, no one’s going to scold you for not finishing it
Yeah, but in Asian tradition, if you don’t finish your food, it will cry.
Uh? (teasing) Aww I see those corn crying. See these olives, I can see the tears

He then ordered Scamorza which was a type of cow cheese which was baked. I tried a little. It was dry-ish, smoky,rubbery, but still tasty. I was still struggling with my salad. I finally admit to defeat. I left the restaurant feeling extremely bloated.

Marina, wait a while, I’d like to use the water fountain.

I gave it a try, the water was cold and refreshing. There are many water fountains like these all over the town of Rome.

We walked by the ancient ruins of Largo Argentina with a cat sanctuary and I try to imagine what life was like during those times. We reached the Altare Della Patria and I was amazed by the sheer size of the monument. It was super huge. I wondered how such a huge monument was created in times when forklifts weren’t created yet.

There was a soldier display there. He tells me that like the London Soldiers, they aren’t supposed to talk or move about while they are on duty. They are supposed to guard the fire that has been constantly burning to remember the fallen soldiers. He added cheekily that the soldiers are adding in extra time for the passing over, just to play for the tourists.

We went in to see the different architectural displays and then walked by the fori imperiali area and I soaked in the wonderful sights in front of me. So many people relaxing and strolling around in the lovely afternoon sun. He was complaining about the heat though and tried to hide in the shadows whenever he can. I chuckled at that. Weakling! This isn’t hot. It’s so comfortable. And I proceeded to dance in the golden sunshiny afternoon.

Man playing classical songs on his guitar at the fori imperiali

A lovely quiet church we stopped by at

Yes, traffic is always like this. Scary.

In the evening, we went to a restaurant called the L’antica Roma and we had a pizza each. I liked the place, beautiful ambiance and beautiful people were around, friends chatting and relaxing in the cool evening. We ordered our meals from the interestingly bald and burly waiter. He ordered pizza with cherry tomatoes and I had a mushroom pizza. Again, it was so huge that by the time I tried to finish half of the pizza, as delicious as it was, I was bursting to the seams. Argh! More crying food!

Again, we had sparkling mineral water and I noticed that practically every table had them. It was bottled and packed and served like wine. How classy. I was beginning to appreciate the lovely taste of the water. It was slightly effervescent without being too bubbly like Perrier and yummy, quite different from Evian.

Dessert? Tiramisu maybe?
How about Gelato with Fragola?
Always room for dessert 😛

And we chatted joked and had fun as I enjoyed the night air. I was really enjoying his company and loved spending time together with him. As we walked hand in hand, it felt so natural and comfortable, like we knew each other for years and years. I was looking forward to days to come. Oh how beautiful the day was!

(to be continued)

The first time I encountered him was a chance meeting in Secondlife. We had a chat together and then we met again the next day, and the next. Initially I got a tad nerved because it seemed that everytime I logged in, he would be there, private messaging me. To the point of me getting nervous everytime I logged in. I didnt know him that well, and gotten a bit jaded of internet relationships.

And then my computer died. I wasnt able to log in Secondlife anymore and had to borrow my brother’s laptop for internet connection. Unfortunately, his laptop isnt capable or running the graphics intensive 3D world. I had to be content with just hanging out in the Secondlife Forums to get my updates and chat with other secondlifers there.

And a few days later, he was there in the forums. I was so surprised to see him there. But slowly I got to know him better and saw his caring character, the way that he is always very perceptive of people and how concerned he is towards his friends and the way that he thought. I was very drawn to it.

And in time, we got closer and closer and became a couple. We were inseperable. We talked to each other every day via msn or sms’ed each other every now and then.

Months passed by being in bliss. And then we wondered how it was if we met each other in real life. Would we still have a connection? Would we still like each other after seeing our physical selves? We had to know.

He helped to get me a ticket in July and against all sanity and logic, I decided to go. I smsed my close friends one day before the flight. Some were shocked but they were all excited and happy for me and I couldnt help but feel touched.

Juli, Geri and my brother Nazry was there to see me off. I was feeling butterflies in my tummy by then. What am I doing? This is crazy! I cant believe I’m doing this! Geri calmed me down in saying that everything will be alright once I get in the plane. I still couldnt help but feel nervewrecked. Nazry told me that he was jealous, you’re going there and I’m stuck here in boring Singapore.

I reached the gates and waved to my friends feeling the butterflies and yet excited at the adventure in front of me at the same time.

—

Couldnt sleep in the plane at all. With the turbulence, it made the plane shake alot. Being unaccustomed to long flights I couldnt adjust myself to rest. It didnt do well to my already nervous mind with many questions. I looked around at the many people who were sitting docile at their chairs.

Fish or Chicken?
Uh? (woken up from my thoughts)
Fish or Chicken for your dinner?
Uhm … Do you have vegetarian?
No, but let me check for you.
(walks towards the cabin)
I’m sorry, we dont have any
Then I dont want to eat.
Are you sure? Come try the fish at least
Ok ok

I stared at the tv screen in front of me and tried to rest as best as I could.

—

After a long 12 hour flight. I got up dazed and bleary at the Charles Degaulle Airport in Paris. Decided to wash my face and brush my teeth for a little bit before heading off to the transit flight to Rome.

And before I knew it. I was late for the transit flight with less than 10 minutes to go. I didnt realise that the Airport was so huge. I spent a long time trying to look for the place. Everyone spoke French (the only french I knew was what came out of perfume bottles)

Luckily, the man at the airport gave me a replacement ticket to board the next flight in about an hours time. I tried to sms him with my mobile but that didnt work since my phone couldnt work with global roaming. I tried to use the payphones and I peered helplessly at the french speaking phones.

Lost in France

The place was crowded with people and I observed the people walking. People smoking around the airport terminal and felt how chilly it was there. So many people of different nationalities were there walking around. It was interesting to look around.

At length I took the transit flight and arrived in Rome two hours later. I tried to look for my luggage but couldnt find it! I approached the man at the counter.

Scusi. My bag. Where? (Shows luggage ticket)
Parlare Italiano?
Huh?
(some words I couldnt catch)

He pointed me towards the lost and found and I thanked him and went there. Speaking in slow english, I described my bag, its contents and gave my contact details when it would be found.

By then, I was feeling quite haphazard since it was nearly 1pm when I was supposed to reach there at 9.30am on the original flight. Would he still be there? Would he leave thinking that I would not arrive?

I received a sms from him and it said

🙁

Dont leave, please dont leave yet, I’m right here, I thought to myself

I exited the area to enter the arrival hall and walked around to look for him. And that is when I saw him. He looked so much more warmer, and real. And as our eyes crossed, we instantly recognized each other. We walked up to each other and hugged each other dearly and time just seemed to stop.

(To be continued)

At the Castel St Angelo with San Pietro in the background, smiling at a wonderful, wonderful person.