The two of us
hung our underwear out to dry
on the balcony,
unprepared for rain, for luggage gone astray,
for foreign buses,
thieving teenagers on the subway,
and women begging in the market
with their nipples hanging over
sleeping babies.

The two of us stood in the rain 
to see the Sistine Chapel,
Accidentally heard the Pope
give mass on New Year’s Day,
Ate coconut fresh from the hull
after dropping our coins in 
Trevi Fountain.

The two of us 
stood in the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus,
put our hands in the Mouth of Truth,
Saw holy relics, famous sculptures,
and gilded ceilings. 

The two of us
made memories to last 
a lifetime.