Disclosure– I’m Team Piemonte. The Piedmont was the first place in Italy that truly caught my imagination. I’ve met its winemakers, ate its tartufi in season, and have seriously contemplated how I could retire there. It is the epitome of all that is good about Italy, in my not-so-humble opinion.

In my mind, Tuscany was filled with annoying tourists who saw one to many rom coms. It was cliché. A little Disney. I liked Lucca a lot, but stuck my nose up at the rest of Toscana. Silly me.

Volpaia has won me over. It’s not my beloved Piemonte, but it’s gorgeous. The people are lovely. Paola Barucci, the proprietor of our local wine bar, spent part of the evening reading books to Bambino in Italian. She also serves fantastic local wines and good food. Maybe the rest of Tuscany is hackneyed, but Chianti is the real deal. Visit here. Rent an apartment with a garden. You won’t regret it.

The Vatican is swamped during Holy Week. Rather than stand in the thousand-strong line to St Peter’s, we opted for a tour guide. (Our brief time in line resulted in me swearing in Italian at multiple ugly tourists. FYI, Americans are no longer the ugliest.).

Thankfully, our tour guide was fantastic, and we learned a lot. We toured the Vatican Museum, saw the Sistine Chapel, and visited St. Peter’s. The scope and grandeur of Vatican City is awe-inspiring. The place oozes history and power.

The Sistine Chapel was… humbling. It’s beyond my comprehension that one man could make something so large and so consistently beautiful. No photos. They aren’t allowed, but regardless, sometimes you need to shoot with your eyes. I appreciated the time to look and reflect.

While leaving the Vatican, it dawned on me that Rome has almost always been a beautifully decaying, chaotic, polyglot place. I was just seeing the most recent episode. For better and worse, I liked Rome.

We had another lovely lunch, wandered the Piazza Navona again, and did a little shopping. For dinner, we went to la Antica Birreria Peroni. The place has been operating as a beer bar since 1906, and seems fairly off the tourist grid. The wait staff was amazing. The food was delicious. Bambino got more hugs and kisses from strangers than any child deserves.

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After dinner, we enjoyed Rome at its finest. Again, nighttime is special here.

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We capped the night of with tiramisu for three.

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