Current location:	40°6'12" N, 74°51'5" W
Current mood:	impressed
Current music:	Around the World in a Day - Prince

Back from Italy...
Our trip to Italy was 7 days in Sicily and 3 in Rome. We happened to be in Rome the same night Tom Cruise was. There were about 200 people loitering outside his hotel waiting to glimpse the star. But... "It's frikkin' Rome!" How completely star-struck was a person be to waste hours waiting to see one in Frikkin' Rome!?

We had to pass his hotel a few times on our way to other parts of Frikkin' Rome. One night, on our way back to our own hotel, these two British guys were coming up the street towards me. I assume they were making their way to see Mr. Cruise - because this is what they were saying as they passed:

Brit #1: "That's Johnny Depp."

Brit #2: "No. Tom Cruise."

Brit #1: "That's not Tom Cruise."

Brit #2: "You idiot."

No. I don't think I look like Johnny Depp. I do get compared to Captain Jack Sparrow a lot but that's another story, really.

Back to our hotel. Some of the other guests there were delegates to a meeting of Nobel laureates. They were escorted to their conference each day by the Carabinieri. I asked a few of the delegates what they were discussing and learned that they were preparing a document for the United Nations - concerning nuclear weapons and methods that might be used to enhance diplomacy.

But every single night we were in Rome, all the news seemed to be concerned with was Tom Cruise. No report was made about the Nobel prize winners. This is probably why the wandering Brit didn't say "That's Muhammad Yunus."

The high point of my trip was actually not in Rome. It was getting to see (and hear!) Mt. Ætna. For about 2 minutes I just stood on the mountain and watch the smoke and ash coming from the summit. Each new cloud was preceded by a very powerful "Boom." I'm not sure why, but after a while I wondered if anyone ever bothered to look away from the mountain. I'm glad I did.

This picture wouldn't have happened otherwise: