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2004 was our 6th anniversary together and we celebrated it in style. The traditional gifts to give are iron, but we both cheated slightly. Nick gave me a steel mushroom knife, engraved with our initials, and I gave him a specially commissioned artwork by Adam & Andy's James Asal, which features the two of us celebrating our anniversary in Paris (our usual spot). We both loved our special gifts.
		Rome was full of unexpected surprises and, as I hadn't really put much thought into planning the trip, turned out to be a very nice way to spend our sixth anniversary. Our bed and breakfast, the Alla Balduina, was in a lovely residential neighborhood, and our hosts were very accommodating. We were on the fourth floor penthouse and had our own balcony, where we sat in the evenings and ate pistachio nuts by candlelight.
We were lucky to have been given food recommendations by our hosts, and by our friend Bob, who came with us to eat on two separate evenings. With him, we devoured a giant ball of buffalo mozzarella, tiramisu, handmade pasta with truffles, and gorgonzola pizza, all washed down with lots of red wine and grappa. Definitely a successful visit as far as food goes.
		When we weren't eating, we did lots of walking and sightseeing. Our first day, we took the bus down to the Trestevere area, where we strolled around the trendy streets and widow shopped, getting our bearings for the next day. We met Bobby that evening for dinner and he took us to the meat restaurant, which almost lies in the shadow of the Colisseum. Afterwards, we went to a gay bar called Coming Out, and sampled limoncello liqueur.
The next morning, we made our way through the city to the Trevi Fountain, where we threw coins and made wishes, and the Spanish Steps, where we ate pistachio ice cream before it could drip down our arms onto the souvenir Christmas ornaments we purchased in a nearby boutique. We did a lot of walking near the Janiculum hill before returning to our hotel to spruce up for our second dinner with Bobby (and his Danish partner, Jens Ole). They took us to an Umbrian restaurant, a tiny Mom-and-Pop establishment that served the mushrooms we were after, plus wild hare, homemade pasta, and lots of other rustic delicacies.
		On Sunday, we got up very early - even earlier than we thought as the daylight savings time 'fallback' caught us unawares - and headed off for the biggest flea market in Rome. It was a hectic, bustling bazaar, full, in my mind, off potential things to sell on Ebay. For this purpose, we bought two sets of knitted South American finger puppets, including a superhero collection of Batman, Robin, Spiderman, and The Hulk. I also bought four packs of outsized playing cards to use in the Alice installation at school.
From there, we walked to the Pantheon and Piazza Navona to take photos before heading to the Vatican, where we actually saw the Pope! Can't say that he does much for me, but it seemed a historical thing to do.
Speaking of history, our visit coincided with the signing of the European Constitution on Friday, October 29th, and the whole city was full of diplomats, heads of state, and cute policemen. A couple of days later, Nick and I passed the building where the signing took place, on our way to the Circus Maximus. They were tearing down the pavillion, and Nick had the idea of taking some carpet samples that had been thrown out and selling them as souvenirs on Ebay back in England.
		Near the pavilion is the large, round wall plaque that Audrey Hepburn put her hand into in the film Roman Holiday. It's called 'Bocca della Verita' and is supposed to reveal whether or not you are telling the truth when you put your hand (or other body part) into its mouth. Liars are rewarded with their hands being bitten off! Fortunately, we, and half the population of Japan who were queuing with us, turned out to be truthful. Throughout the world, there are millions and millions of almost identical photographs of tourists putting their hands into the mouth of this statue and feigning fright. We now have two to add to this collection.
Later, we strolled among the toppled columns and lizard haunted streets of the Forum, and then admired the Colisseum in the daylight before heading back to our bed and breakfast to get showered and ready for our final big meal at the local restaurant.

Have you seen the photos from my Rome 2005 trip (the Pope's funeral)?

Have you seen our anniversary photos from 2003?