Anna and Marika are having lunch in the Trastevere quarter of Rome. Join them as they order traditional Roman pasta dishes and talk about Italian eating habits.

The Tiber Island is a charming quarter of Rome, especially in the summer, because the small bars, restaurants, discos and particularly the open-air movie theater make it an ideal spot for spending a nice evening.

At the Villa Borghese there's lots you can do. There is something for everyone. Rent a bike, rickshaw or scooter, go rowing, take in some theater, or just relax!

Anna tells us the tragic story of Cio-cio-san, protagonist of Madam Butterly, an opera by Giacomo Puccini, libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica. The opera was dedicated to the Queen of Italy, Elena di Montenegro.

Anna shares Giuseppe Verdi's tragic story of love, war and taboo in ancient Egypt.

Anna recounts the story of Tosca, an opera singer who is in love with the painter Cavaradossi. Puccini's opera was first performed in Rome in 1900.

Antonio is in Praia a Mare and talks to us about the cult of the Madonna della Grotta (Madonna of the Cave), patron saint of the city. The cult began in 1900, and every year in August the statue of the Madonna is carried in a procession, where many of the faithful take part.

In this video, Antonio speaks in more detail about Praia's Madonna of the Cave. He shows us the rock where the ship's captain set down the wooden statue in the 14th century and he shows us the room where the statue is now housed.

Marika and Arianna discuss their favorite book genres, authors, and why they like to read.

When one retires, it can free up time as well as one's mind, providing an opportunity to experiment and find out what is important. Armando, who worked as an architect before retirement, uses photography to explore the circle of life in nature.

Little by little, we discover Armando's fascination with oxidation. It seems to have started by looking at advertising billboards.

Armando tells us how the designs he is fascinated by come to be. It all has to do with billboards, and how they are marked up, torn, and over time, oxidized. The oxidation process is fascinating.

Armando begins describing the structure of his book, and talks about how he envisions a kind of journey, beginning in the far reaches of the universe, down to the tiny details of a flower.

In this segment, describing chapters 3 - 6, we can imagine storms, volcanoes, oceans, and mountains in Armando's photographs.

In chapter. 7, Armando describes how, to him, his images represent vegetation, woodlands, trees, and flowers.