And whether or not we had now paid our dues, he was my blessing, and I was his.

There is lust and then there is love. They are related, but still very different things. To indulge in one requires little but honeyed speech and a change of clothes; to obtain the other, by contrast, a man must give up his rib. In return, his woman will undo the sin of Eve, and bring him back into Paradise.

We are all cups, and our destiny is poured according to measures we cannot understand, cannot influence.

But he is an Italian," was Umberto's sensible reply. "He doesn't care if you break some law a little bit, as long as you wear beautiful shoes. Are you wearing beautiful shoes? Are you wearing the shoes I gave you?...principessa?" I looked down at my flip-flops. "I guess I'm toast.

.... "death turns all men into great lovers. Would that they were equally ardent while the lady was still alive!

Verona is a very beautiful city, but Siena just never ceases to fascinate me.

Everything we say is a story. But nothing we say is just a story.