We boarded the flight to Heathrow, London, with sleepy red eyes and waiting to pull up the covers and knock off. Instead all our dreams for dreams were knocked off! In arrived a couple, with a 1 something year old baby. Madhur and me looked at each other in alarm, both thingking "thats it!! baby doom!" and sure enough this child stared her tenor wail and it lasted the entire flight! Through the night! Now its not the baby's fault but definately the parents'! I mean come on, I too have a niece and nephew who travelled at the same age. And my nephew is a fire ball of energy. We are all sure his mother feeds him rocket fuel for breakfast! (nazar na lage THU THU") Even he was behaved in a flight longer than this! Atleast his parents saw to it! 
These parents should have sedated that kid. And had they not wanted to they should have taken mercy and sedated all of us! And yes, I did in a very off hand way give the parents a piece of my mind! 
Rome is beautiful. We caught the less daunting sights, leaving the Colosseum and Vatican for non jetlagged days! And a word of advice to anybody sight seeing in Rome.. Dont pooh pooh the Trevi fountain as just another fountain. The first glimpse strikes you dumb! One is supposed to stand next to the fountain, with you back to it and make a wish and flip a coin backwards into the fountain. We sat on the steps of the fountain, mesmerised and unable to get up and leave. 
The roar of the water, the sudden chill one feels in that area, even on a hot day, the sheer magnifesence. So far the Lure of Italy lives up to its name! Even the smallest Pole with a small Virgin Mary is Mamma Mia!!


--
Aparna Somani
Life needs a frosting! Eat more desserts!