The click on terra cotta tiles

A welcoming staccato beat

Quick-sure heels on cobblestone

We join the rhythm on the street.

Mellifluent foreign banter

Fill the sidewalks and the bars

Then laughter tinkling, glasses clinking

Under the Italian stars.

Heady scent of sweet ambrosia

Lips stained red with deep dark wine

Swarthy locals’ smiling faces

Lovers with their arms entwined.

Tastes and smells are all around us

Food and drink beyond compare

Warm night air drapes on my shoulders

Sated, sleepy, not a care.

Street musicians serenade us

As we stroll our way back home

Memories to last a lifetime

A summer’s night in downtown Rome.