Katherine Rodriguez

I took the metro and met up with Federica to embark on a shopping adventure in her smart car. Yes – I’m obsessed with her smart car. Not only is it the cutest thing ever (meep! meep!), but it allows for very creative parking solutions. I wish I took a picture of it parallel parked facing the street instead of the car in front of it!

We drove around going to shop to shop as I tried to find the perfect gift for my grand-nephew’s 1st birthday. I found really cute stuff from a couple Italian baby shops so now it’s time to shop for me! Federica and I walked up and down Via Cola di Rienzo, which reminded me of Fifth Avenue, except I wasn’t annoyed to be there. This trip cost me so I just bought a few items that I thought would look bad ass with my new leather jacket.

I love experiencing a new city this way – casually walking around and talking with good company in amazing weather. Federica drove me back to the metro and gave me a bracelet she was wearing to remember her by. No one’s ever done that for me before and it was so incredibly sweet (worn in pic above). I’m so happy to have made a new friend while I was abroad.

On my way back to the hotel, I was trying to think of where to head for dinner. Being that it was my last night, I wanted dinner to be special, but I was also tired and tired of being Ciao, bella‘d at by Italian men on the street so I decided to have another overpriced dinner back at my hotel. The views at night were remarkable from up there after all. It would be a great way to soak up Rome for the last night in one panoramic view.

Ciao ciao, Roma!