Italy, the whole postcardItaly, the whole postcard

This was the big one. Rome first — throwing the obligatory coin at the Trevi, then craning my neck at Vatican ceilings that make you feel slightly underdressed for existence.

Then Pisa, where everyone does the same silly photo with the tower and absolutely no one regrets it. Then the Amalfi Coast and Positano — towns stacked up cliffs in colours that shouldn’t work but completely do, with limoncello pressed into your hand at every turn.

Somewhere between the wine nights and the coastline, it stopped being a checklist of cities and just became the best two weeks I’ve handed myself in a long time.