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There was a beautiful sunset tonight. I was crossing the Ponte Sisto with a few bits of recycling and quite a crowd had stopped, leaning against the wall, to take in the view up the river to the dome of St Peter’s. Nothing so unusual in that except that usually this crowd would be tourists, perhaps a tour group with matching brightly coloured earpieces and a guide, a group to be pushed past and resented for clogging up the way. But tonight it was a crowd of locals: the bloke from up my street was there sat on the wall with his dog beneath him. This was Romans taking time to enjoy their city. Rome is now in the third phase of lockdown, and the fourth is only days away. From 4th May people were allowed to return to work and to visit their relatives. On 18th May gatherings of friends were permitted and shops and barbers’ shops reopened. Next week travel between regions will become possible and there will be no more quarantine for visitors from abroad. It is fair to say that many of t...
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When Life gives you Lemons

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When life gives you lemons ... make lemon marmalade. The English College garden has three lemon trees that give a good amount of fruit. But as the students are away and correspondingly Gin & Tonic consumption is down this fruit was is danger of being left to rot. So having a little more time on my hands than normal I made lemon marmalade. I annually make marmalade from the oranges that grow in the parks and colleges so I knew the drill , but it was satisfying nonetheless.  It’s the kind of thing lots of people are doing. Enda, my flatmate, has begun a sourdough since lockdown and is now turning out a couple of loaves every few days. So when we get to the breakfast table after our 7am Mass we have homemade bread and marmalade with fresh Italian coffee- it is the best.  It is interesting how quickly one adapts, falls into a new routine, and, in an odd way, how comfortable it all becomes: run at 6, Mass at 7, breakfast and to work ... in my sitting room. Lunch at 1:30, b...
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