I feel like Audrey Hepburn to Chris's Gregory Peck...

Except, he's not some news guy trying to get a story and I'm not a princess. But other than that...
Currently, Chris and I are tucked in at the Villa Morgagni in Rome watching some TV5Monde (which is apparently Italy's channel for French, Belgian, and Swiss people). We are watching some sort of talent show, and so far we have seen a man play 5 recorders at once (3 in the mouth and 1 in each nostril), a group of 4 jugglers, and a guy who was balancing on his head, on a bottle, about 5 feet in the air. Apparently, when in Rome, one doesn't even have to leave one's room to find something at once interesting and disturbing.
Yesterday was a very rainy fourth of July for those of us at the Aviano Air Force base, where – wonder of wonder, miracle of miracles – we found the power cord for the Mac. It had exploded one of our first days here in an Italian power surge. It was as though the Italian outlet needed to establish its dominance over our weak and puny American converter. Once this had occurred, Chris entered many of the stages of grief....however, never reaching acceptance. That it was dead and gone, he understood. That he could exist without it was unthinkable.
Once on base, Chris fell to the floor upon seeing that the bx was also a certified Apple reseller, weeping sweet tears of joy. The Air Force men stared a little until they realized that without his precious cord, he could not play his beloved Plants vs. Zombies game. After that, they were fairly understanding in this chink in Chris's masculinity. That, and his mighty and much envied beard left them all in awe – despite his crying. I think he was ready to kiss the cashier when she told him that that cord could be his for only 79 American dollars (slightly more than the gelatos the day before). This may have been the highlight of Chris's European adventure.
The rain prevented us from having fireworks, but the bbq at Mike's shop was great. Someone made this dip that combined marshmallow fluff and cream cheese that you dipped strawberries in. This may have been my highlight.
The only problem with our day was laundry. We needed it. The dryer at Mike's shop (which is what he called the EOD building) lacked the power we had expected from the United States military. It had promised us to get the job done with efficiency and thoroughness, yet....after a far longer time than promised, the clothing was still damp. Weird...and somehow, metaphorical?
Today, Mike (Grazie mille!) drove us to the outer Venice train station and Chris and I began our real adventure... we could no longer rely on either Mike's good graces or his Italian. The 4 hour ride from Venice to Rome was calm (Chris did not have to pretend to have an infectious disease once) and, at times, beautiful. Apparently the whole fields of sunflowers thing is not a myth.
Once in Rome, we managed to go to the Spanish Steps, the Piazza Navona, the Tiber River, and the Trevi fountain. Chris managed to neither get conned or pickpocketed (penny for a song, g'vner) all day, despite his initial worries about the city.

The Piazza Navona and its Church



And the Trevi Fountain (Chris loves these guys)