Today, we went to see my Kitty Raptus at Torre Argentina.  That is where the famous Cat Sanctuary in Rome is located.  Torre Argentina is a ruin site and it is where Julius Cesar was assassinated on March 15th…the Ides of March.  The cat sanctuary is built under the street that surrounds one end of the ruins.  They have been doing their good work for years.  I first remember seeing the place in 1996.  Raptus is the 5th cat I have adopted at a distance and she is a three legged cat.  She doesn’t like people very much, but she does love other cats.

After that, I went to a fabric store.  It has room after room of fabrics that go from floor to ceiling…thousands of bolts.  I was looking for a simple cotton to coordinate with some fabric I have here…but all of their quilting cottons look like they came from the 1960’s. Just tired old looking calicoes.  But if you want some beautiful silks…Oh My!  Look no further…but that’s not what I wanted.

We we had lunch at a Chinese place across from Torre Argentina, then went to two churches.  We are behind on our daily count because I was sick for a couple of days with a cold or allergies or something.  One church is dedicated to the Stigmata received by St. Francis.  The next church we went to is called Chiesa Nuova…the New Church.  Just a huge, beautiful, over the top decorated wonder.

After this we caught the bus home.  I rested up a bit, then left to go to Piazza Spagna (Spanish Steps) to meet my friend, Liz for dinner.  Pouring down rain.  Get to the Piazza and find the restaurant and it is closed for remodeling.  Liz has brought a friend with her, a lovely young woman from Oklahoma named Lauren. They met in school over here and Lauren has lived in Rome for 5 years.  We ended up going to the TRUE Alfredo restaurant here in Rome.  Actually, there are two TRUE Alfredo restaurants in Rome where they will both tell you THEY were the ones who invented Fettucini Alfredo.  No other restaurants in Italy serve it…it never caught on here like it did in America.  The waiter mixes the pasta and Alfredo sauce like a master musician…our waiter mixed it to the beat of Italian men playing the accordion and fiddle.  I had my new favorite, mussels in wine sauce and that wonderful thick crusty bread to sop it all up.  We sat and talked and laughed for almost 3 hours.  They walked home and I hopped on the subway and got home before midnight.  It had quit raining and it was a pleasant walk back to the apartment and bed.