Try as you might....

 Try as you might, but you just can't escape this reality.

Why is it that when I'm in Rome, I feel heavy?  I feel elated, but somehow subpar.  The city is so busy, so full of people and noise.  The wonders are endless.  There is just too much to know and/or learn.  The questions you ask your wretched self are as follows:

• What is wrong with me that I cannot walk for 6 hours straight?
• Why couldn't I ever get through Mary Beard's SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome?
• What lack of self control makes me want to eat fried rice balls all day?

However....

When you come to Florence, somehow the game has changed.  There are just as many tourists, but there is more sky.  Everyone seems to be trying to look their best.  There is a rosy glow.  A desire to wrap strands of pearls in your hair.

• You feel that you could take up smoking and never get cancer.
• You feel that with just a few adjustments, you too could look like Catherine de'Medici.
• You know that you can spend endlessly and never end up in the workhouse.
• You feel justified for never having finished ANY of Mary Beard's books because they really are annoying. 

Just breathe in this Renaissance gem of a city. But not too deeply as there are some stinky bits.