Sunday 6 April: Was it a block party? rave? political rally? demonstration? baptism? birthday?

I don’t know what it was, but it was a blast! Yesterday some people invited me to a party “at 13:00 (1 pm) in our neighborhood, south of the Colosseum.” I’m not sure how far south it was, but I walked/bussed/metro’d my way there, and had to take a train to get home. After passing what looked like some sort of huge, abandoned nineteenth-century factory that went on for blocks, I came to a big bank of high-rises. The festa was in a huge parking lot (I think), with at least hundreds of people eating, drinking, and dancing. It was lots of fun-all ages, nationalities, languages, and everyone laughing and partying. There was dueling music, with the euro-pop eventually winning over the hip-hop and bad metal. I never discovered the purpose of the event; maybe it was just a horde of folks having fun. I know I did! Vino and grappa flowed pretty freely, which I turned down, wanting eventually to make my way back to my apartment. I was told that if I didn’t drink, then I had to have gelato. If you ever get a chance to try ice cream made of fresh figs, go for it. I did manage to get home by dark. I even pressed my clothes for tomorrow!