Imagine a crowd of about 300 to 400 people. All ages. Holding signs. Police escorted. OK. No matter what language you speak, these are the universal signs of a protest/demonstration. A universal-ier sign involves wooden spoons banging on pots and pans. The universal-iest sign involves pitchforks and torches, but this protest was during the day and only bee-sting-ornery (not lynch-mob-angry), so wood vs. metal vs. your ears was sufficient for this crowd. Turns out that they didn't like the cut of Berlusconi's jib. No, Italy is not a bordello.

My favorite protest participant was a little boy with a wooden spoon and a metal measuring cup. This kid was taking his job of make-as-much-noise-as-possible very seriously. Throw the cup in the air and bat it as it comes down and you get not only the satisfying swatbang of the initial hit but also the even more satisfying bounceclang as it falls to the pavement. Place the cup on another metal object, like a big, empty, echoey, metal garbage receptacle and you benefit from a good two-fer. 

And then I stood in line to get into the Uffizi for an obligatory hour.
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