Toilet Roll Rations

It appears that it is not uncommon to get just one or if you’re lucky two rolls of toilet paper in an air bnb. No problem for some, disastrous for a family of 5! We don’t want to go buying multi packs of toilet roll to carry around or leave behind. So we have had to resort to rationing the toilet roll. We once raided a toilet block in our Swiss camp site. It was a chuckle for Mike and I. It really showed our different personalities. We both headed off into the male and female toilets. I went in and stuffed my shirt to look like Santa’s belly in roughly 30 seconds. Mike took what felt like forever and walked out looking like he didn’t succeed. Turns out he had meticulously folded every piece of paper and filled every pocket carefully with sheets and sheets of paper. We’re now in Rome and I find myself yelling out the the family to be mindful of their paper use!

We arrived in Rome on a fast train and found ourselves struggling to secure a “Free Now” ride which is their version of Uber. It’s easy to get short with each other when trying to spell out Italian street names to each other calmly while herding children in filthy Rome train stations. It’s things like these that remind you you’re not at home. Oh and carrying your precious belongings everywhere and not owning a car also does the trick.

Anyway! We ended up getting an Uber to our apartment. The kids thought they’d hit the jackpot when a black Mercedes van pulled up with dark tinted windows, air conditioning and a man dressed in his suit ready to help us with our bags.

The kids are doing amazing. So far. Touch wood. Etc etc. They haven’t had any meltdowns yet and are really good at walking without complaining. Don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty horrible at times. Especially when we have trains we must get to or when we arrive in a new city. Everything is foreign and overwhelming. The layer of heat is hard to ignore and we often walk in the wrong direction. But it’s character building right? Sometimes things suck and then they get better. Simple! Max always walks ahead, he’s easy to lose in a crowd. Isla is always glued to one of us with eyes taking everything in. We have to constantly reassure her we’re right behind her. And Kayden is either a metre behind us being typical teenager in no hurry or he’s attempting to trip Max up or annoy Isla. Delightful. Mike leads the way and I usually hang at the back making sure we don’t lose anyone, taking pictures or encouraging whichever child needs a hand to hold or an explanation of what we’re doing. But overall, they’re killing it.

So in Rome we are staying next to Piazza Navona in a lovely apartment. When we arrived it was still getting cleaned. We spoke to the cleaner. We’ll sort of, we used Google translate. She was going to take a while so we went straight to lunch at Mimi E Coco. 5 people around tiny tables made for two is always a juggle. So many glasses, carafes of water and sprite bottles! We jammed into our tiny bit of table real estate and enjoyed our first Roman lunch. I’d been eyeing off this restaurant on Instagram for quite a while so I was super excited to score a table first try.

It was hot after lunch and we decided to take a stroll to kill time while waiting

for our apartment. It was then that disaster struck. I needed the toilet. Like badly!!! I was 99% sure I was about to have a Bridesmaids the movie moment. I was sweating and not just from the heat. The streets were busy and I seemed to be the only one who realised the situation unfolding. Where the hell are all the McDonalds and fast food restaurants I have told my kids they will not be entering on our holiday??? Actually now I think about it, we’ve seriously not seen any in Italy? Maybe one or two in Paris and none in Switzerland. I told Mike we would have to go order a coffee at the bar in a cafe. Then you’re allowed to use the bathrooms. A waiter guided us into his empty restaurant. We asked for two coffees at the bar. He decides he wants us to sit down. That means we pay coperto. The sitting tax! Hell no. I’m about to poop myself but I’m not handing over 10 euro for all of us and then have to order something to eat straight after we just ate. We move on! I finally find a tourist centre in the middle of Piazza Navona and they allow me to use their toilet for a euro. No problem. By this stage I’d pay coperto over and over! Crisis averted.

That evening we have a golf cart tour booked with a lovely Italian lady named Francesca. She picks us up in what looks like a stretch limo/golf cart. It has 4 rows and the boys immediately shot gun the back seats. Mike makes them promise to not hang their bodies out the cart and we are off! Flying through the Roman streets with a cool breeze. We stop at all the major spots and get out for photos. The kids even collect some marble and travertine from Circus Maximus. Kayden surprised us all with his knowledge of the Roman history he learnt in year 7. He was able to answer questions Mike and I were stumped on. Bravo! Our host knew how to get the kids interested by talking about Roman sports, gladiators, funny popes and Egyptian artefacts. It was an incredible way to see Rome across an evening without walking. We do enough of that these days! The highlight for me was seeing Isla throw her coins into the Trevi Fountain. She used her right arm without hesitation. I watched her raise her up and I noticed her scars which I’m still not used to seeing. And that little girl threw her coins above several heads and across several metres into the fountain like it was no sweat. She’s breaking down her fears and stretching that beautiful little arm further and further in front of our eyes. Literally.

Our tour finished on the Spanish steps and we then walked across the city to Emma Pizzeria. This was another restaurant I booked from Perth. We enjoyed delicious pizzas, stuffed zucchini flowers with anchovies (which the two boys said tasted like stuffed crust pizza), bruschetta, meatballs for Isla and some amatriciana pasta for me. Mike enjoyed the selection of beers which is a bonus since he’s a beer snob.

By the time we got home it was rather late by our standards and Mike and I were shattered. Our accommodation is always rather small. The kids sometimes get the sillies at night and we often feel like we’re kids again on a sleepover with our friends. Except it’s that moment in the sleep over when you’re suddenly really tired but your friends are still giggling and farting and/or making fart noises and personal jokes you just can’t find funny. They think it’s hilarious. One night in Cinque Terre we heard giggling, then even more giggling from all 3. Max had army crawled under our bed then burst into fits of

giggles. I was almost asleep! I open my eyes and there’s Kayden standing next to my bed with a pair of his shorts over his head. I screamed! They thought it was hilarious once more. Not so hilarious when that night I had a nightmare of an intruder coming to Maddie McCann one of the kids and I woke everyone with my screams! Ahhhh close quarter living. The worst and best parts! I understand these are all bonding moments and just as important for us as a family as the other parts of our trip.