Laurie,
What a fabulous adventure! Thank you for sharing it with us. I love the picture of the Pope...

How did the kitties react to you being gone again? I know when I travel and then come home I always get the, "oh, it's you...whatev.." from my 4 feline room mates.

And...did you make any of the knit items you are wearing in the pics?

Oh goody! A nice long post to read over lunch! Thanks!

I have been thinking about doing a trip by myself and you are inspiring me to do a weekend away at a spa on Vancouver Island. I think that the quiet and peace would be good for me:-)

Okay, that clinches it. I'm taking a trip somewhere this year, just for me!!!!

So glad you had such a great time.

What an amazing trip! Good for you! I was starting to worry- we hadn't heard from you in a whole week! (Sorry about all the exclamation points. But if any subject deserves such excitable punctuation, it's a surprise trip to Rome.)

Am I the only person in the world who hasn't read "Eat, Pray, Love"?

Laurie, that is awesome! $600 for Rome?

I think taking a trip alone would be heaven. I suggested it once to my now-ex-husband and he thought I was insane.

you are awesome! We are all envious of your big adventure(s) as of late!

:)

Your trips sounds wonderful! I have yet to travel by myself and much as an adult out of this country. I am applying for my passport this weekend and I am planning to go somewhere!

I was soooo happy for you when I read your post yesterday. Rome is a part of my soul (I'm convinced I was Roman in a former life). So glad that you went and had a wonderful time, and so proud of you for taking the leap to travel alone.

Isn't there an ad slogan somewhere which says something like, 'You've come a long way, baby'? Thanks for sharing the journey - we're all so proud of you!!

ooh, i'm so glad you loved it! rome was the first place i ever traveled to on my own as well, and i FELL IN LOVE with the city. and felt so darn empowered knowing i could do it myself and enjoy the heck out of it, and find people to take my picture, and learn enough italian to order food. and man, now i want to fly back RIGHT NOW. :-)

Please tell us where you found that cheap ticket!!! My feet are itching to travel but I didn't think there were any flights to Europe for less than 1,000.

Soooooo jealous!!! Also, forwarding this to my BF who thinks you need like 10grand to do Italy properly. Crazy man.

You. Are. Awesome!

Fabulous self-portrait Aunty. You certainly rocked Rome and no mistake.

Do you think Il Papa is up at his window saying 'Quello c'e mio need - La easiberet.'?

That is absolutely the coolest thing I've heard anyone do! You can definitely conquer the world - no problem. BTW, Karlovy Vary would also be totally awesome. I've was lucky enough to go there and it is one of the most beautiful, fascinating places I've ever seen.

Kudos to you, girl, for taking on Rome by yourself! I love traveling by myself, but it would take more gumption to go to Rome than, say, Tulsa. So GOOD FOR YOU!!
I so love traveling and the people watching-- I usually end up chuckling and trying not talk to myself -- because I'm having such a good time and some things just seem to require comment. I probably appear slightly crazed, but I'm having a good time.
Thanks for sharing your trip!

Oh, what a lovely picture postcard of your trip! I loved reading about it! I miss Italy. I've done a bit of traveling, and I guess I have to admit (chauvinistic men aside, but hey, it's Italy!) it remains my favorite place. And kudos to you for just up and doing it! Something to be quite proud of!

Next, Venice!

Awesome trip! You are very brave for going to Rome - when I travel I like to go places where I know the language. So I'm pretty much limited to North America and the UK. OK - I've been other places in Europe but I far prefer London.

Glad to see you had an good trip filled with good food and good wine. I am happy for you.

GIRL POWER! :-)

of course you CAN go places by yourself!

looks like you had a great time and captured precious memories.

you rock, laurie! remember that!

"I am fabulous as usual"

You must have fit right in! I love your picture taking strategy, it totally works. I love the thought of the Pope blessing your beret (and you and thousands of others of course) but especially the beret.

So. Jealous. So. Very. Jealous.

You GO! So cool.

Awesome!! Thanks so much for sharing your trip with us. :)

You are SO AWESOME!!! So proud of you!

So, so beautiful. And I do mean that final self-portrait babe.

Beautiful. And such style. I wish I knew how to speak Italian as I'm sure all of that sounds much better coming out as Isabella Rosselini would say it...

xo

Wonderful pictures! I loved Rome, too, and agree completely that Rick Stevens was wrong, wrong, wrong.

The sunglasses make you look like the Italian movie star!

Wow -- what an awesome adventure! Good for you! Rome is an AWESOME place, and your observation about the old & new coexisting is spot-on.

I was there a couple of years ago, and the adorable helpful handsome (of course) young man at the hotel was showing me the sites on the map, relative to where we were. He pointed out one place "to go jogging" ... it turned out it was the Circus Maximus! Also, he told me where to go for all the really high-end shopping, then proceeded to list designer names like Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, and many more I'd never heard of. I kept wondering if he knew that everything I was wearing came from Costco if he'd be that diligent about making sure I knew where the good shopping is :)

Thanks for the great photos, and also for the great travel tip for getting photos taken of you when you're traveling alone -- that's brilliant!

Wow. That looks like such a cool trip! And I can't believe you saw the Pope!

When I was in Rome (7 years ago), I actually did get surrounded by a band of 30 or so thieving kids near the Forum. It was really scary. I just screamed at them, and I think I may even have kicked one of them, so they left me alone, thank goodness. But it (and a few other experiences) kind of soured my opinion on Rome. I would really love to go back and try it again, especially after reading about your trip!

I'm so thrilled for you. This post made me tear up a bit.

I took my first by myself trip back in 2000. I went to another city nearby, stayed in a hotel for a week alone, and hung out by the pool. It was no where near as exciting as yours, but at the time it had the same benefit. :) Congrats!

You are so friggin' cute in that beret. **waves at Pope***

You ROCK! I loved traveling vicariously to Rome.

Not only did you do it - but you did it with the stylish new bangs and movie-star sunglasses.

I am so envious - thank you for posting these fabulous pictures so I can imagine myself away from my desk in Michigan where it is 14 degrees! (and that's *before* wind chill factor!) I am especially fawning over all that delicious food. (Penne with vodka cream sauce, I'm looking at you...) I'm sure it tastes so much better than my Michelina's frozen spaghetti. eh.

Not only did it, but did it in Fabulous I'm-a-star sunglasses.

Woo hoo!!

(I put on 20 pounds in Italy in a month. Nope, don't like pasta a bit.....)

Half way through reading this post, I had a moment where I heard X's voice in my head saying "Damn--what the hell was I thinking? I am such a loser." I hope he reads your blog every day and realizes that you turned out to be the powerful, brave one and that he's just a schmo. (And yes I hope he reads this comment.)

Ciao bella! I'm glad you had a great trip.

I am so impressed that you travelled by yourself. Doesn't it make you feel like a real grown-up? A woman of the world? Good for you!

I would love to know what website you use to find a $600 roundtrip airfair to Rome!

Laurie,

I am SO proud of you! You have come so far and become so strong - - you should be very proud of yourself.

You go, girl! :-)

~BIG SIGH~ I'm just sitting here smiling like an idiot, so happy for you and wowing over the wonderful pictures! The Pope! The Forum! THE FOOD!!!! Yummy!

This is something you will treasure for the rest of your life! I lived half my childhood in Germany due to my dad being in the military. My mom was German so we got to know that side of the family while we were there. I love Germany but now you got me wanting to visit Rome, although I don't know any Italian. I won't be as brave as you, I'd go with my hubby!

YOU ROCK!!! :)

Looks like you had a wonderful time. I've always thought about taking a vacation alone, but it still seems like a big scary thing to me. Maybe I can use your experience as inspiration to try it myself.

Yay for you!! Isn't Rome amazing?! We went there for our 10 yr. anniversary in 2006 and instantly wanted to move there. We actually looked into what it would take to relocate and quickly learned jobs are scarce. So we agreed that visiting there a lot up until we can afford to move there is best.

I'm glad you had a great time and didn't get carried off by the thieving bands of children! ;o) (We read that stuff too and were nervous as well...until we got there. I think they say that to keep people away from the awesomeness that is Rome).

I LOVE ROME, TOO! For all of the same reasons you love it.

We didn't have any pickpockets either but a strange collection of broken and decrepit begging people everywhere we went.

(Did you see the Sixteen - ha ha Sistine - Chapel?)

You make me so very happy -- for you, for me for reading you, for Rome for hosting you.

Oh. Good. For. You!

I'm unspeakably jealous.

i am suddenly famished looking at those delicious meals.

fantastic self-portrait!

You f'en rock. Someday, someday, someday, I too will find Europe. I know you don't feel like an idol, but you are. You are. :-)

Sigh...How wonderful for you and how brave to leave and go out on your own in a strange city let alone a strange country. A new hero! I have seen "Under the Tuscan Sun" one too many times and have been obsessed with the thought of going to Italy...someday. Being a single mom, it'll be awhile, but someday! Mean while, I'll re-read your post and find the book you mentioned.

Congrats to you!
My first international trip ever I did solo to Ireland about 2 years ago and it was one of the best experiences of my life.
You've made me add Rome to my list of cities to visit.

Rome is hands-down my favorite city ever. There really are thieving bands of children, but I'm glad you didn't run into any of them. Now you've whetted my appetite to go back. 2009, methinks. :)

I haven't read "Eat, Pray, Love" either. Guess the pray part made me think the book was about something new-age-y and all earnest and what not. Just looked at amazon on the "search inside" feature and noticed that sex is mentioned on the very first page. So it's all good now - I'll go get the book.

You rock.

What a fun time! I have to know, where you got the shades? They're rockin and I lost my big movie-star sunglasses this fall while swimming. (Yes, I wore them while swimming, hence the losing.)

How great that you went off and did that! Thank you for telling all of us about it too. I have always wanted to travel to Italy (Hello! Art History major!) but am so scared of going to a foreign country. I really want to learn Italian too... it sounds so pretty to me.

Anyway, good for you woman!! Bravo!

you've just given me the inspiration i've needed, to do the things i've longed to do since my divorce. thank you.

holy shit, that is FANTASTIC! i love to travel and did some traveling alone while in New Zealand. yes, some moments i found myself wishing i had someone else to share them with, but most of the time i had a great time. i think you made a great, independent, rock star choice with your Rome trip. happy travels in the future!

That is awesome! Your post brought back memories from when I went to Italy my senior year of high school. I did not go alone though, obviously. I was with a bunch of other high school-ers and not enough chaperones.. But yes, I also got to attend a blessing from the pope, and I have the photos where I instructed people, "See the little white dot? That's the pope!" Fun times.

I would love to go back sometime. I really, really enjoyed my trip all those years ago..

Great pictures and commentary. Rome is just the best. Reading your posts has inspired me to go home tonight and dig out my journals from my two month solo journey. I haven't looked at them in awhile... last time I did was when I met my husband and we shared our solo travel stories with each other (that's when I knew he was the one, seriously).

May you have many more solo journeys!! Also, if I may recommend a book... you should read, "A Woman's World" - Edited by Marybeth Bond. It is a collection of stories from women who traveled solo around the world. So beautiful to see woman going out on their own and becoming stronger! Very inspirational.

I also had a scary guidebook non-event experience a few years back when I did some traveling to London, Amsterdam, Brussels and Barcelona. (It was a brief whirlwind tour.) I thought the same thing - what was I afraid of? Then I remembered - it's NOVEMBER. November is not a big tourist season in those countries, especially not for American tourists. I suspect the pick pockets were hibernating, waiting for spring/summer.

Incredibly awesome!! I have always wanted to take a trip by myself - someday.

I'm dreaming about those zucchini blossoms. Makes me want to stop by the store tonight to pick some up.

You are SO my hero. I've never done much traveling, either with the ex (he didn't like it much) or by myself (because why would I go somewhere without him?), but I've been making a lot of other changes in the year-plus that he's been gone from my life. This year I started one of those "Things I Want to Do" lists, and I was kinda surprised how many travel-related things started appearing. Like you were, I'm still working on getting out of the $-hole, but someday I will be out there gallivanting around Europe too!!

I am SO glad you are telling the world how AWESOME Rome is!!! It is my most favorite spot. I am pretty sure we took the exact same pictures and wrote the exact same things about it. Yay for you!!!

Italy is a wonderful place... please tell me in all that amazingly wonderful food, you tried some pizza. If you ever get a hankering to go back to Italy, may I suggest going to the Amalfi Coast? Just a little vacation spot to put on your travel list...

Awesome! And such great pictures, especially of all the food. What a great adventure you had! You inspire me, as always. :)

Wow! I'm envious. This is what I need to do, go somewhere for myself, by myself! WOW!

Fried zucchini blossoms with riccota and herbs. Holy Jesus.

I totally mean that prayerfully.

Also, tres chic pic of yourself over the water!

Yea, good for you, Laurie! I'm thrilled to hear about your adventure and it makes me daydream about going there someday (SOON!) too :)

Ah...Rome...gelato. No one makes gelato like the Italians. I'm glad you had a great trip.

this couldn't come at a better time for me... i've been thinking it over for a while now and i think if you can do it, i can do it.

perhaps i will start a little smaller though, since i've NEVER left the country. mexico perhaps?

Isn't Italy just GRAND?! I've only been to Venice and then just on a day trip from Austria, but I was instantly in love. Yes, everyone is beautiful -- even the drunk old guy who followed us through the Venetian allies for a while before giving up.

I am longing to go see more. Now I just need to be able to afford it. I'm so glad you took the leap! And I'm glad to hear that even someone who is language-impaired could manage to get around okay. I think that's true in most of Europe. When I went before, most people we encountered spoke English. Germany was probably the place we struggled the most and even then with a phrase book and sign language, we managed quite well.

Congratulations on your adventure!

There's just no other way to put it: YOU ARE SO FUCKING COOL! And BRAVE!!

Really. I'm in awe.

What an incredibly long way you've come (baby)...since your divorce. I mean, LOOK at you, going to Rome all by yourself.

Rock. Star.

Amazing!! Awesome!! I'm so proud of you!! Awesome air fare!! Incredible!!

Also, I hate you - I WANNA GO!!!!

(ok no real hate, but you know..... : )

What an amazing trip! I'm fabulously jealous of you for going!

Everyone is gorgeous in Italy. My husband is now baffled, since I seem to want to go to Italy urgently now.

I, too, am in awe that you went to Italy by yourself. Love all the pictures, especially the last one of you.

My son went to Italy and Greece with his class in high school and had the best time. He told me he and a small group of friends were walking down an Italian street and asked a lady for directions to a restaurant. She invited them into her house and made them the most fantastic spaghetti dinner.

Another night, they bought the most expensive cigars and the cheapest bottle of wine they could find and weren't feeling well the next day :)

I read your blog and read your book (which I loved) but have never posted before. I am so awed by your fabulous trip! G-O-O-D F-O-R Y-O-U. Even though you went to Rome and not Venice you should watch Summertime with Katherine Hepburn. So great!!!

Oh, now I've got the travel bug! I cannot wait until I have extra money so that I can go visit Italy. Especially Florence!

I'm glad everything went so well for you. =)

YOU GO GIRL!!!!!!!!

That last photo had me thinking: Agent L, international spy extraordinaire! Slipping past security with her dorky charm, she will leave you smiling as she dashes away with your government secrets!

The more I hear about this trip, the more jealous I get--it sounds like a blast!!

And I LOVE penne alla vodka--it's my favorite!! The fried zucchini squash blossoms reminded me that my local farmer's market was selling those last summer, and I always meant to buy some, stuff them and fry them up, but I never got around to it. Now I have to, because the Romans do! ;-)

Bella Roma is one of my all-time favorite cities, I was there this time last year, and am SO envious that you took a leap of faith and got yourself there! I'm so proud of you and inspired!

PS - I'm going to Paris in 3 short weeks by myself for one night and then with 4 other girls for the rest! Woohoo! Then all by myself to Copenhagen to see my cousin! I'm a big girl now! We rock! XO

What an absolutely awesome thing to do. Travel IS good for the soul. BTW, in January I was on a cruise...and I found myself a shady spot on deck to listen to the water and finish your book. A lady stopped as she walked by to ask how I liked it because she "LOVES YOU (your blog)". So people even talk about you while they are on vacation! lol

Fun!

Now you must go to Florence!

Nice to see that you had a couple of my favorite pastas dishes.. I love the bacon, cream, and cheese one. Yummmy

Your photos makes me miss Italy. Sigh.. I hope I get to move back there again soon.. and IF I do - you are more than welcome to come and visit me.

I'm so glad that you had a good time there. I always felt like just walking around Italy is like absorbing life full tilt. It's such a fun place to 'people watch' too.

Uh oh, you are having WAY too much independent fun! When that happens it's just a nudge and a wink until the Gods decide to play Cupid. I had no sooner gone part-time real job, part-time writer, downsized and LOVING it, then I met the love of my life and nothing's been the same since! All good though. But beware!!

You are an inspiration. My other half has traveled extensively and is over.it (he's older than me, he's had more time on earth to do these things), so I realized the other day that I was going to have to travel without him. And then I started wondering who I could travel with. Today I read your post and realized "Holy crap! I don't have to travel with anyone! I can go alone if I want to!" Eye opening and mind blowing to say the least, and I've already started thinking about where I want to go.

Thank you. :)

Very hungry now...I love pasta carbonara and penne alla vodka and anything pasta. The best pizza I ever had was in Venice when a friend and I got lost on a walk.

I also have a picture of the pope, but it was inside the Basilica and it was John Paul II. The current pope appears taller in your picture (two dots instead of one micro-dot in mine!).

I haven't read Eat, Pray, Love yet and I have no excuse, since I work in a bookstore. Must fix this oversight!

Oh, amazing!! I'm so glad you blogged this. I'm trying to psyche myself up for an alone-trip to Scotland this summer...

Wow!

that food looks like it is to die for!

Wow!

You should check out the Pope's website and see the funny things he wrote about you! "Those crazy American tourists!..."

You are so cute with your bangs and your beret and your mid-day wine (that's what my girlfriend and I call the house liter thing that comes in a carafe). I'm so glad you had a lovely time in Rome, but don't write off Croatia. And if you find a decent fare and are looking for a travel partner, let me know--I'm dying to get there!

I love traveling alone! Just for the ability to change my itinerary at the last moment, sleep when I want, eat when and what I want. Bliss. Hooray for you!

Oh Laurie good for you!!!! Next time may I recommend Florence. All the history of Rome, not as crowded (at least at this time of the year), fabulous shopping, wonderful food, and beautiful! I was there 10 years ago next March, and my heart aches that it has been so long.

Did you get any YARN? I got some great yarn in Italy!

I am so proud of you for taking this trip, especially to a country that is notoriously difficult for blonde American women. I myself had not such fun in Italy, where I received the following Italian Memories:

- food poisoning right before the ferry to Greece

- being grouped with a bunch of Albanian refuges that the police were about to deport, and

- having my face licked by a old drunk Italian man in a bar. (No, really.)

So glad that you managed to avoid the food poisoning, deportation, and face licking old perverts! :) Sounds like a fantastic trip!

Italy is the one place that I absolutely must go before I die. Which, hopefully will give me plenty of time to plan. I've been waiting for someone to go with, but friends told me I should just go alone. Hell, I don't like going into a bar for a beer by myself, let alone a foreign country.

Laurie, you rock. Can I be your guy?

Oh WOW!!

I'm pretty sure the thieving gangs of children take vacations in the off-season. They're probably working night and day in the tourist season, so they deserve a good break.

Around here (So. France), the (often over-zealous-to-the-point-of-being-aggressive) gypsy beggars seem to be off doing the nomad lifestyle thing during the colder months. Not sure where they run off to, but they aren't working the traffic lights with their squeegies and soapy water this time of year.

Perhaps Rome is best visited in the colder months.

You go girl!!!

Okay, your funny! First time at your blog and I am laughing my head off. I will have to share your blog with my friends so we all can enjoy your humor.

And I love Rome! I went when I was 18. All I remember was how beautiful all the people were and how glad that I only had a few days there because I could of had too much fun there. Mmmm, Yes please...

Laurie, you are FANTASTIC! Traveling such a long way (and I don't mean just to Rome!) by yourself, and growing to feel so comfortable with yourself that you can just pick up and take off to someplace you've never been before.

Reading the last couple of days' posts, I can't help thinking what a really great ending this would make for your book - SO much better than knitting baby booties!

February is a great time for low airfares and no thieves, who are all on vacation resting up for the summer crowds!

This post made the tears rise up with joy for your great time, and the fun for us of sharing it just a little bit.

I love the self portrait. You look so happy and sweet and relaxed, which is something I can never pull off. You're my hero!

Being of Italian descent (I really am half-Italian even though I know I don't look it) I am pleased that my brethren were kind to you!!

How many days were you there? I'm happy that you had a ball.

Bravo! Wonderful that you had such a terrific adventure in Rome! I *love* to travel alone - you meet so many more people than you would as a couple and experience things so differently when left to your own devices.

"A Woman Alone" is a terrific collection of stories written by women traveling by themselves. I haven't yet read "Eat, Pray, Love" but it's on my list!

Ok, now I HATE YOU ... because I'm feeling such extreme wanderlust and want to leave the country on my own trip right now!!!!! I'M SO JEALOUS!!

I've been to Europe by myself three times, and each trip was simultaneously exhilarating, lonely, and wonderful. They are life-changing events, period. Rome kind of overwhelmed me, so I really admire you for embracing it and loving it. And the "fabulous" line from the dude in black made me laugh rather heartily.

Please tell us where you got your ticket! And post more pics!

Oh, and don't abandon Rick Steves' books ... he's the one that gave me the courage (and knowledge) to travel by myself in the first place! I sorta worship him, in a creepy, unreasonable way.

I'm so happy you took the trip and had a wonderful experience.

I Love Italy! My favorite city is Florence. I could move there in a heartbeat. I think I had a religious experience standing in front of Michelangelo's Statue of David. Stood there and cried like a baby. I think it was because it was something I had always wanted to do (travel to Italy) and the emotion of being there finally hit me,

I actually love traveling alone. I feel you get the best experience when you are totally plugged in without interruptions.

I'm in complete awe. That is so awesome you took a trip like that yourself. You know what's most amazing - those are YOUR memories to cherish, share and relish. And that's super f'ing cool! And as a loyal reader, thank you for the food shots! LOVE EM! Now my dinner of meatloaf and roasted sweet potatoes isn't looking as good. :-)

Laurie, you brought tears of happiness and pride for you!. You are so awesome and you've become (you probably were already, you just didn't know it!) an incredible woman. Congratulations on your wonderful life.

Of all the amazing things you've achieved in the two years (wow! time flies!) I've been ready your blog, this is the one that I have to comment on:

I am SO PROUD of you, and so pleased for you!

Your great love of travel and your worries about not having someone to travel with post-Mr X have really resonated with me, and I am honestly delighted to see you in Rome, being just as fabulous as the Romans are. Well done, bella.

Are there still tons of stray cats at the Coliseum? I also love Rome. The Pantheon - breathtaking. The food divine. The coffee .... exhilarating.

I love that all you took pictures of your beautiful meals and that every single one is accompanied by an adult beverage. You truly know how to live!

Sorry, I forgot to add that the obvious outdoor-ness of your meal shots was especially awesome, given that the temp here in MN has hovered around zero all week.

Dude! I just went to Rome too! BF bought us a trip for Rome for a Christmas gift. It was great! The food, the wine. Actually I enjoyed the white wine more then the red for some odd reason.
ciao

I am so glad that I'm not the only one who takes pictures of the fabulous food I eat while on vacation!

Wow Laurie! Your are totally my hero!!!!

SRSLY!!
Just diggin the shots of all that is Italian and
yoo llllook mahvelous!!!! So glad you can share it with all of us .... ALSO...( cause I know you like traffic stuff) check out my blog for some super crazy multiple car/semi pile up traffic gone bad in a snowstorm....I'm tellin ya it's right up there with your house in the road story. Amazingly only 4 people were injured . No fatalities!

Hubby won't take me to Italy. Next time you go, Laurie, want a travel-buddy?

Ignore Rick Steves.....my goodness, he's from EDMONDS, Washington! The only traffic they see is the line of cars waiting to board the ferry, to the equally dinky town of Kingston. Everything is loud, conjested, noisy and dangerous compared to Edmonds!

Laurie is becoming a jet-setter! WTG!

It looks beautiful and delicious and even if I only get to experience it vicariously through you, all I can say is, Where are we going next?

Rio?
.

Awesome!!!! And yay for you!!!

You are amazing!!! I had to check back to make sure I didn't miss a post and NO you NEVER did say you were going to ROME!!!
Good for you for going. And it looks like an amazing time was had by all!! (you, yourself, and, oh yeah, YOU!!!)

Laurie ~ I'm so proud of you!!! Good for you. . . look how far you've come in the past couple of years. Enjoy your life, girl!

~ Christa

i am so very proud of you. what a great trip!

Ooh goody! I just love being an armchair traveler! I only wish your pics would embiggen! Do you have a flickr or photobucket slideshow or anything? I wanna see gorgeous Italians close-up (and I'm keeping my fingers crossed they don't look like James Gandolfini!)

You look fantastic - especially in that last photo. Congratulations on taking this huge step, and choosing such a fabulous place to do it!

So cool that you just upped and went! By yourself!

I loved Rome. I honeymooned there and had great food and wine and yes we were all prepared for the roving hordes of thieving street children, but that never happened.

Then I went to Rome on a fellowship trip. The experience was different and still fantastic.

Brava to you!

By the way, I heard Croatia's the next hot thing, like everyone talked about Prague. A friend of mine was there for a while and dreams of going back.

I am so proud of you!!! My friends and I will be in Rome in November so I was interested to see what you are wearing and how crowded things are in February (isn't it supposed to be winter, great weather!). I also have lots of exclamation marks, and I missed you and am glad you had such a great trip.

The best thing about Rome is everything. How brave of you to travel there all by yourself. You go girl! I can barely go to the movies alone. Thanks for sharing your trip (pictures and all).

Brava! You go, girl!

Awesome! I was there in late April 2006, no roving gangs of street children, no hordes of cats at the Colosseum- but we did see a couple bridal parties having photos taken at the triumphal arches next to the Colosseum. I was very impressed you were able to eat outside in February but I see you got to wear your handknits too! The world is now your oyster, we're only limited by our own fears.

And uh, our responsibilities. Did the kitties forgive you?

How wonderful for you! You look like you are having the best time. Post more pictures, it makes Rome seem real. What hotel did you stay at?
You look great in that hat... did you check out any yarn shops?

This is gorgeous, scrumptious, delightful.

I shall now clean the drool from my monitor.

Your trip sounds amazing! Huge fan of the blog and the book! Congrats!

Your trip sounds amazing! Huge fan of the blog and the book! Congrats!

A liquor store that delivers? I SO have to get out of North Carolina.

Okay, that's not all I got out of that post. You are such a badass for picking up and going. Bravo!

Seriously, they deliver?

I'm really, really proud of you. It takes a lot of guts to travel alone. And you ROCKED IT!!!!

PS- Italy is my heaven. Florence is as close to nirvana on earth as I can imagine.

Wow, that is so amazing and exciting, and INSPIRING! I have always been afraid to travel alone but you have given me at least a small amount of assurance that maybe I could do that too. And you have definitely convinced me to go to Rome. Those pictures are beautiful! And so is the self portrait. Congrats on an awesome and rewarding experience, and having the courage to let yourself have it!

I love Rome too. And I loved that the Italians would get so excited and sweet whenever I tried to speak Italian. Lovely people and lovely place.

And yes, what was it about those men? Hubba hubba!

You'll always have Rome - and a new sense of yourself. Good job.

Absolutely stunning photos, stunning portraits. No trip to San Diego to test the water, nope, Laurie jumps right into the water (or wine in this case) and heads to Rome. I'm so proud of you and I just read your blog!

I traveled to Italy as well this year, glad to see I wasnt the only person in the world who took a picture of her meals LOL!!!

brava, signora!

and that last picture? the heighth of italian!

yeah! I'm so glad you are back! I've missed CAP and I'm thrilled that you had such an awesome adventure.

Fabulous!!!

All of a sudden I am remembering Franco, of Franco's Pizza, in Waltham, MA. Actually I don't know if his name was really Franco, but after he found out mine he would always greet me with "LUCIA (Loo-CHEE-a)! BUONA SERA!" I am pretty sure he really was Italian. I am entirely sure I want to go to Rome now.

Oh boy! I just followed a link to here from blogging friend.... I wish I had found you sooner! I'm going to love reading your stuff! Give your kittys a cuddle from me!

Why did my post come up from Lucia?
What the?

This was my post-

Oh boy! I just followed a link to here from blogging friend.... I wish I had found you sooner! I'm going to love reading your stuff! Give your kittys a cuddle from me!

This is Helena.... wonder if I'll come up as Lucia again....

Nope. Hmmm. Maybe I'm schizophrenic and just didn't know about it...

What an awesome sounding trip. Your pictures are brilliant. Way to go!

Rome is so fabulous! I am glad to hear you had a great time. Mmm... pastas and pizzas and lots of red wine. Ah, the memories. My now-husband and I visited in 2004 for a much too short 36 hours (ugh, arriving at 7am completely jet-lagged and trying to take in the beauty that is Rome) and we really want to go back for a longer visit. The Rick Steves book had us freaked out about gangs of children and pickpockets, too, but once we were actually there we felt really safe even after someone did try to pick my husband's pocket in the Underground. His pockets were empty, ha! We also live in a city so we're used to not flashing our valuables or keeping them in accessible pockets when out and about. Since then I figured a city is a city, and whatever semi-valuables I wouldn't flash about in public at home I don't flash about on streets in foreign cities.

Oh my gosh ya made me cry! I am so happy that you did this for yourself!!!! Way to go chica!

I love that you did this.

You are so beautiful and I am so happy for you.

De-lurking to say: You rock! Congratulations!

OK I need to go to Rome now.

I mean Right. This. Minute.

Yay CAP!

Solo travel rocks. Don't get me wrong, companions are all good, but you can't let their availability/ willingness or lack thereof determine whether you go. I first went to Rome by myself and all of my senses just revelled in it so deeply that I think I ate the place and somehow still carry it around. Yum. The porcini mushrooms (who knew mushrooms could be that flavoursome?), the gelati, the people who park sideways (i have that photo too), the amazing monuments that loom up out of nowhere in particular when you turn a corner, the men who whistle after you in such a non-threatening and actually flattering way, the wine and mineral water and bread with dinner ritual.. the whole shebang. On my first day (it was summer) I took a self portrait of my feet in that fountain like a boat at the bottom of the spanish steps just moments before the carabinieri turned up to move the tourists out of the fountain! Good times.

I spent a lot of time in Italy and I loved every minute of it. Although I went with other people, I never felt uncomfortable exploring on my own. I tried to move into St. Peters, but the guards were on to me. I could have spent the rest of my life absorbing the art, not to mention the food. Congratulations for taking the step.

Those Italians have something - apart from the wine and ice-cream and pasta I mean, though they'll do for starters.

I'm so glad that you had a great time - I've been wanting to go on holiday now for a couple of years - think I might look online for cheap deal;s this lunchtime!

http://craigslist-reno7194.lookera.net

...I don't read for a month, and what happens?! A trip to Rome!!! Go you!!! V.v.v. impressed over here.
*Sigh* Europe is so far from Australia...

p.s. I read lots, post not so much. But this needed a response.

How awesome!

I never knew the pope was so tee tiny.

I have lived in Rome for over a year and have yet to see the roving gangs of criminal children that Rick Steve's forewarned me of. I mean, on the news occasionally, but in person, no. I read all the books before my first vacation and was terrified. But after that, and after living here, I have never felt safer anywhere else! Yes you need to pay attention to your purse on the metro, but it's not the crime magnet that Steve's makes it out to be. Good job going by yourself!

CAP.....don't you just love the feeling of independence once you have taken the step to do something that you thought you would never do. That's one thing I love about getting older...what the hell...you just do it! Then you wish you had done it a long time ago...if I could go back in time...I would be hell on wheels. Loving life as it should be. Lulu

That is seriously the best blog post I've ever read. You rock in a way I could only hope to. Good for you.

I've been to Singapore, Amsterdam, Paris, London, Barcelona and Berlin, all on my own. Trust your instincts when going out and about (if you wouldn't wave your purse screaming "Mug me--my atm pin # is 885474!" at home, DON'T do it on vacation!!!)and keep exploring. I love traveling with friends, but I find I meet more people trekking on my own.

(I always have to comment first and then go discover I'm repeating what everyone else said - oh well). It's not lost on ANY Of us what a brilliant thing this is, I hope you know that. It's SO exciting - and for me, basically a non-traveller, you took exactly the right pictures for MY ultimate enjoyment (ancient ruins and plates of food, my main interests). You are just so PRETTY, from the inside out. CHeck back to older photos - you've always been face-pretty (runs in your family) but the INSIDE pretty department you have become nothing but BRILLIANT! If I were more proud of you I'd burst into tears. Now go away, I need my tissues.

Laurie;

Thanks for the wonderful post and pictures. I have always been scared to travel by myself, so your post really inspired me to consider it. I'm so glad you got away and had a wonderful time in a new place! Oh man, the food looks fantastic!

What an amazing trip - congratulations for pulling it off and surviving to write so funnily and honestly about it. You give me hope that I too will be able to pull it off someday.

Yay! I missed out on my solo trip to Rome because of a train strike. Being stranded in Nice wasn't so bad, though. :)

If you haven't, read Four Seasons in Rome - I think you'll enjoy it.

EWE Rock!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You look fabulous! I am so proud of you.

Italy is agreat last minute vacation! Friendly people, great food. The wine is divine! Yeah, just liek any big city if you do something stupid, the pickpockets will get you. So what. dont' do dumbass things. Which clearly you didn't. Molto brava!

WOW! It sounds like you had a very nice time! I love the pic of you and the Pope!

Nice job on the hat! I need one like that! (note to self..search the internet for a pattern!)

I was just going thru your travel list and see you will be going to Tenn. in October. Any chance for a stop in Ga? I would come see you in Tenn. but I cant take the 3 and a hlaf hour ride. :( Talk to your peps! Georgia folks want you too! :)

Have a great one!
Jennifer

Thank you for the lovely story! I'm sitting here at my desk, it's -11 Farenheit outside, and I'm dreaming about travel. Ahhh...

I totally know how your trip felt. I flew to Germany by myself last summer (was meeting my husband) and I had to buy train tix, get on the right one (even transfer!) and take a trolley to my hotel. I was very scared, exhilerated, and awestruck the whole time. I only got lost when I was walking around trying to find my hotel. It was awesome and I can't wait to do it again this summmer...this time Belgium! Cheers!

Totally amazing! I have wanted to go to Rome since I took Latin in high school. Now I may just do it!

And your imaginary dialogue for the Italian man was priceless..."I am fabulous as usual..." :)

Dont' you love an alarmist? We sailed in the British Virgin Islands last year and we almost couldn't get our friends to go because everyone KNEW that PIRATES were going to leap on to our boat 24/7! Well they didn't and we had a great time!

you go girl!

Love your travel pics and narrative! Why not make your next book a sort of travel guide for single women(or whoever)? As an accountant, I will remind you that if you do, all that travel will be TAX DEDUCTIBLE!! (Or maybe comped!) What could be better? You are a wonderful travel writer. Did you stay in one of those intimate little hotels recommended by Steves?
On another note, I heard once that some people actually do not describe everything in terms of what or where they ate. I am NOT one of those people and glad you aren't either. Who are these strange beings who only eat to live and cannot remember every fab place they ever ate? I can still remember restaurants from New Orleans in 1986!!!

Did you see the news, Laurie?? There's violent protests at the US Embassy in Belgrade today. I'm so glad that you didn't go anywhere near Croatia after all.

I forgot to tell you yesterday that you looked SO beautiful in that self-portrait you took in Rome. It took my breath away.

Have a great Thursday, sweetie!

I am so impressed with you! I've been reading you for awhile now (lucky me! :-) and it is clear you are growing tremendously on inside even while you are shrinking visibly on the outside. And that last photo of you -- girl, you LOOK cool and Italian!

You shouldn't have had to worry about gangs of thieving children: you're trained in umbrella assault, right? :)

Ciao, bella!

Bossy thinks of herself as independent in every way -- but there's independent and then there's foreign country independent.

When Bossy was in Mexico two years ago she spent whole days alone wandering around buying groceries, and even whole nights when she would ditch her host and go solo to a Mexican disco and challenge herself to pass the time and trip home down mexican cobblestone streets way too late at night.

But in the end Bossy always had her host to return to. She still had a safe nest. You, dearie, should be swelling with pride.

Sounds like a great trip. If I can't do it I am glad someone else can and is kind enough to share.

Sounds like a great trip. If I can't do it I am glad someone else can and is kind enough to share.

Laurie that's so wonderful!!!! And you look beautiful, btw.
I admire your courage and independant spirit!

You are such an inspiration! Now I want to go on my own vacation. And you sound like you'd make the perfect traveling buddy--willing to try anything and ready to get the full experience and take in everything you see, smell, taste--all of it!

What an awesome trip you had! I'm glad you liked Rome and Italy - one of my favorites that I hope to make it back to one day (soon??)! I do plan to travel this summer, alone, and I'm trying to imagine my trip as I read about yours! Wonderful!

:O)

Go you! It sounds like a wonderful trip to Rome and I'm so impressed you took that trip all by yourself!

Laurie!! How exciting!! I hope one day that I can be as brave as you and have my own adventure.

Love, love, love that self-portrait! You look strong, mysterious and glamorous in those big Italian sunglasses. Rock on, Laurie! I hope your book tour will bring you to Philadelphia, where I'm rocking my beret almost every day. I have to make me another!

Man my mom just gave me that Eat Pray Love book.
My favorite quote
"When in Rome we do as the Romans do.... when in Hell we do shots at the bar."

I traveled in Italy 20 years ago and thought the men in southern Italy were the best looking men I'd ever seen. And I'm someone whose ideal man is a blond. Your pictures bring back wonderful memories. I'm glad you made your own! Grazie!

I traveled in Italy 20 years ago and thought the men in southern Italy were the best looking men I'd ever seen. Just the guys walking down the street and on the bus. And I'm someone whose ideal man is a blond. Your pictures bring back wonderful memories. I'm glad you made your own! Grazie!