A coffee with Borromini

My lovely Lenci doll

If, one day, you happen to come to the Eternal city, please do not rush in a crowd, in the speedy Gonzales rythm of modern tourism! Take your time, instead, breathe slowly in the glow of a glorious golden dawn and open ears, eyes, soul, mind and heart to all the beauty Rome can bestow on you.  Not only the Colosseum, and not Piazza di Spagna alone or the Trevi fountain, in spite of all their bliss, no, no: Rome hides its grace in shadows and perfect diamond spells which are there to meet you, if only you might like to follow her secret charm... If you walk down the Clivo di Scauro on the Celio, for instance, you might meet, white dressed and blond and beautiful, the nynph Egeria who inspired King Numa, when Rome was still to become the glory of ancient times. In the catacombs of Saint Sebastian, please, after roaming in the hell of those dark christian caves, abide in the pagan tomb on the top, were birds sing and flowers bloom: paradise after all. And paradise is in Piazza Sant'Eustachio in the joyous lantern of Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza, masterpiece of Borromini, which looks like a white ballerina piroetting graciously in the blue sky. I was there, yesterday, sipping the best coffee in Rome (in the Sant'Eustachio bar), eyes fixed on the Borromini treasure, my soul up there, dancing in the clouds, when all of  a sudden, a voice makes me start: "Sorry, do ya think it's going to rain?"