Ferragosto

June through July is high season for outdoor concerts and events in Rome. In the last six weeks I've been able to walk to three shows at the Circo Massimo: Gladiator (film with full symphony), Aida (opera), and Romeo e Giulietta (ballet); a modern dance performance at the Baths of Caracalla; a movie screening at the Roman Forum; and Oakland's own Fantastic Negrito at the Casa del Jazz, just around the corner from us.

And then August arrives, and Rome exhales.

Things slow down considerably. The bigger venues go dark after the first week. My Pilates studio and Italian language school are both closed for the month. Our neighborhood bodega and bar are closing soon. Virtually all our friends have headed to the coast or the countryside. We've been told to stock up on groceries, expect our favorite restaurants to be shuttered, and — critically — not to let anything break, since finding a plumber or a dentist in August is essentially impossible.

The tourists are still here, of course. In droves. So the museums stay open.

I'm looking forward to slow afternoons, evening walks, and maybe a game of catch in the street.