Breakfast in Florence Lunch in Rome: A Spontaneous Day

When I was young and living in Rome, my friends and I didn’t plan much. We declared it a day for breakfast in Florence and set off in the middle of the night because it was exciting. Someone brought a map. Someone ignored the map. Someone else promised to navigate but sang the same song on repeat instead. We took a wrong exit, argued in good fun about who missed the sign, and laughed so hard the windows fogged. We rolled into Florence as the city was waking up. Our tired faces crowded the bar for a warm cappuccino and cornetto, and we promised to be back in Rome for lunch - as if time were waiting on us.When you are young, plans are merely suggestions. When you are with your people, any ordinary Tuesday feels special no matter where you are. We didn’t need a reason. We were the reason. A song, a joke, a look across the table, and the day became an event.I have returned to Rome, the city that took me in so many years ago. It’s like a familiar song that floods my thoughts with memories. I step onto a street that knows my footsteps...