There is something incredibly liberating about taking breakfast at a bar in Italy. These are not bars in the usual sense of the word, geared toward alcohol and late-night escapades, although most do serve booze too.
The bar is a convivial center point, open for most of the day. Swing by in the morning and it is a fight to the counter, past those standing shoulder to shoulder sipping espresso, through a wall of noise made up of shouted orders and clinking ceramics, all in pursuit of a cornetto al pistacchio and a cappuccino.
