Surprise Around the River Bend

As John and I went strolling along the Tevere River for the first time, we found ourselves reveling in the picturesque scenery all around us. We walked under bridge after lovely bridge, shuffled our feet through the autumn leaves, “oohed” and “ahhhed” at the stately dome of Saint Peter’s Basilica, and admired the beautiful reflections cast in the river by the Castel di Sant'Angelo.

As we were wandering, a man with a thick German accent approached us, asking if we would be interested in purchasing a pair of only partially used all-day tickets for a riverboat tour of the Eternal City. He explained to us that he and his wife had purchased the tickets knowing they would not be able to use them in full due to the short duration of their stay.

Knowing that we had just enough cash to purchase our train tickets home for the day, and feeling wary of the possibility that he might be one of the con artists we’d been warned of so often, we declined his offer and continued on down the river.

About five minutes later, the man came walking towards us again with a big smile on his face. He told us that he and his wife had decided to give us the tickets, since they didn’t want their investment to go to waste and because they were unable to find anyone willing to purchase them.

John and I happily accepted the tickets and thanked the man profusely, then hopped aboard the next conveniently located riverboat for a wonderful new perspective of Rome.  

This is just one example of the many surprise blessings we encountered during our adventures in Italy.