NFR New Year Across the Pond

[Kenneth Yong]

Happy Belated New Year, everybody!

I thought you might like to see a few photos of how 2023 began on the Old Continent, just to get away from all the white stuff.

So far, winter in Central Italy has been mild, to say the least, with average temperatures at their highest in the last 50 years, or so they say. To give you an idea, it's currently 13ºC (55ºF) at 9.45 AM.

My family and I welcomed 2023 with some friends at my workplace, with a traditional New Year Eve's dinner of, among other things, Zampone con lenticchie (Stuffed Pig's Trotter with lentils), Panettone and Pandoro, and Spumante, in this case a very drinkable NV Berlucchi Cuvée Imperiale Brut.

Thus fortified, we went up to the rooftop to watch Rome welcome in 2023.

Calm before midnight. Hadrian's mausoleum, left mid-ground and bridge to its right, both built about AD 134-139.

St. Peter's Basilica.

With impeccable timing, my little boy, who's 6, fell asleep 3 minutes before midnight so I had to put him to bed. Up till then he was running around
with sparklers in hand. Missed the first 15 minutes of fireworks as a consequence. There are no city organized fireworks, so it's left to the good citizens
of Rome to let off as they see fit. I managed to catch a few. Getting a little smoky.

VERY smoky. Hadrian's mausoleum barely visible.

The day after, smoke gone, slightly cloudy.

Later in the day, the clouds cleared, and we got nice blue skies.
View from the Capitoline Hill, where we had gone to listen to a free concert of music by Bach.

The Colosseum (built AD 69-80) to the left, the Arch of Titus (built AD 81) in front of it.
Way in the back, with statues of the Apostles, is the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran (first built AD 324, with various rebuilts),
oldest and most senior of the papal basilicas, and seat of the Bishop of Rome (traditionally the Pope).

Old Year, New Year, same old, same old. Feed me, please? Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis)

Thanks for looking,
Kenneth

 

[Pink Nighty]

I rang in 2011 in Rome, my god does that city know how to throw down. Tens of thousands of people in the streets. I saw no real fireworks, just sticks of dynamite thrown in the street. A m80 had nothing on those things. Thousands of bottles of champagne smashed in the street, national anthems belting out in 100 different languages. I hugged a million strangers and it will always be my favorite NYE experience.

The craziest part? By 8am the next day every inch of the streets were perfectly clean. It was shocking.

 

[Old Man]

Kenneth, thanks for the pictures of Rome. Saves me by not ever going there.

 

[Bugmeister]

Spent the week leading up to Xmas in London. At one point was wondering around Windsor Castle grounds and spotted a pretty good sized fish (carp is my best guess - couldn’t get too close as it was down in the moat area…..).

Huzzah!