My happy place :)

Got back from Rome, Italy, two weeks ago and what a blast I had. 
It was a work trip, and amazing nonetheless, especially having not travelled for nearly two years!!
My last trip was also for work to Germany, and there's something about work trips that's so special. The adrenaline keeps you pumped, plus you've special access to places that aren't touristy, and at the same time, you've got some downtime to enjoy the sights and scenery. 

That's what I experienced and I swear, I haven't been this happy for a long time. My eyes started to sparkle again in photos. Travel is magical, your mind is stretched right open to new things once again. It's invigorating.  

I'll show you a few snippets of my time over there, before I turn in - it's nearly 2am and I've work over the weekend eeeps.

Here are some of my absolute loves:

For sure, the food. It's EATaly, c'mon - land of pasta, pizza and gelato. Singapore's pasta is just not the same at all.

Of course, the PEOPLE.

I mean, I was really really surprised that people there were soooo friendly. I was kinda shocked and overwhelmed tbh. Because we were expecting some hostility since no doubt we're Singaporeans, but three of us in the group were Chinese and there's anti-Chinese sentiment going around the world these days. But man, we were treated with so much hospitality and Italians are such jokers. They'd never fail to crack a joke with us, at almost every restaurant we went to. I've been to a few European countries, and Italians are really top-class. Truly wonderful.

Another thing that's amazing was the fact that almost every Italian whom I engaged with for either my stories or during my downtime, was part of a family-run business. The lady, is a florist and her dad opened their flower shop about 30 years ago. Our driver, you see having lunch with us, his dad owns the car rental business. The next photo of the two older gentlemen - the one who doesn't have much hair left haha is the owner of the restaurant and his dad started the restaurant in the 80s. (he was my best interviewee even tho his english wasn't the best) And finally the young chap's the son of the restaurant owner and boy, his mandarin is better than mine. The friendliest person and the absolute best. We only ordered wine that night but he served us sandwiches, plus a dessert bun called Maritozzo on the house.

I love every one of them, and because of them, I'm definitely coming back to Italy. Can you imagine, one person's actions have profound impact on another human being - and it's all because of their warmth, and lightheartedness.

Speaking of lightheartedness, the one lesson I've taken away from them is this: life doesn't have to be so serious. They're always cracking jokes. Even though at one point, our young driver lost his temper cuz he thought he was running late due to all the security closures - he was back to smiling and laughing after that. It was never a dull moment. It really taught me to never take myself so seriously. Life is a lot more than that. And imagine, these folks went through a tough period last year when Italy was the worst hit European nation with hundreds of thousands dead due to the pandemic - business must've been real crap for them. To emerge on the other side, beaming, I say kudos to them.

This was also, my absolute favourite place in Rome.

Not sure of its name, our driver just drove us all the way up to this terrace, overlooking Rome. We could even see Vatican City on the other side.

There was just something so beautiful, and magical about this place.
It was the way the light hit the trees and leaves, the warm glow surrounding us, somebody strumming soft tunes on the electric guitar, people were happy, couples were hugging, there was a gentle cool breeze in the air. I remember it, and I took that picture of the sun hitting just right on my face so that I could remember that feeling. Everything in the world looked and felt so beautiful in that moment.

I shared the last photo on my ig story once and someone messaged me saying that picture was gorgeous and urged me to share more of these photos "so that those around you may also get a sense of the surprise and elation you felt". He even thanked me because he actually felt the magic of that place. I think these photos are a little more private to me, so I've decided not to share them on ig, but here. 

I must add, that we were also really really lucky to have those blue skies. Just two weeks before we flew, I saw that it was supposed to be raining every day during the time that we'd be in Rome. A bit sad because we might not get nice footage. But just a few days before we flew, I checked and the first week turned into bright sunny days on the weather app. So damn lucky. We only had a couple of rainy shower days towards the end of our stay, and I fell sick on those days (thankfully not covid). Overall, our time there was brilliant.

Before I end, I just want to let you guys know that my spirits have been lifted. My trip to Italy is just part of the reason why I feel that way. Life is indeed starting to look better, and I see brighter days ahead. 2022 actually looks really exciting because I'm looking forward to some really exciting events in my life. Somehow, things just are looking up in general - and once again, it's reaffirmed my belief that it's always darkest before the dawn. Thank you to all those worried for me, I see your comments in the tagboard and it warms my heart to see your messages of encouragement. My mental health really took a big hit the past year, and I've recovered over the last few months.

As always, I hope life is also treating you well. If not, hang in there - pain is never permanent. Better days are ahead. Even if the road is long, the little things will help you get through the day so hold them close.

The tulips I bought from the florist in Italy also reminded me of something -