We took it easy today. We’ve been traveling for three weeks now, most of it with other people, and all of it in crowds. We’re introverts, so every now and then we need a day to recharge our batteries. Today was one of those days. So no photos of Roman ruins today.

I mentioned our dinner last night at the fish restaurant that friends had recommended, highlighting the atmosphere and the fish. But I said nothing about the salad, which was a highlight of the meal.

The salad was unusual … reminiscent of many things, but not readily identifiable. It was crisp, with a hint of bitterness, and reminded us of endive and celery, but it wasn’t quite any of those. We asked our server, and he said “chicory”. It didn’t look like any chicory we’d ever seen, but it was a start. In the grocery store today we looked for chicory without success, and then spotted this. It looks exactly like last night’s salad.

A bit of research confirmed it is a type of chicory, and that it is cut into thin strips and then soaked in water for an hour, to remove some of the bitterness and make it curl. Mystery solved. Now we just need to find it in Canada. Wish us luck.

As I was getting ready to write tonight, I poked my head out the window of our room to look for tonight’s super moon, and was treated to this.

Our major outing today was a walk through the park to the grocery store. Out of the blue, Jan asked “would you stay in the same place again?” Without a second’s hesitation I replied – “absolutely”. I hope to be back, and we’ll definitely stay in the same place.