In Rome, I found ice in abundance at Caffe Santipietrino, Campo de fiori, 48-49. It is a small bar next door to a gelato shop and has outdoor seating as well. I was there for the wireless internet access and ordered acqua gazzata. I was stunned to have it served with a full glass of ice!

We rarely encountered ice, but as others have said, there were plenty of cold drinks. We avoided the overpriced "American" colas and stuck with cheaper ubiquitous Fanta orange, limonata, etc. or just plain cold bottled water. Our one "ice experience" was at St. Peter's Square on a hot summer Wednesday morning. And, I mean HOT! So hot they had a fire hose going....up in the air so the water fell softly down on a large segment of the crowds. If you needed the revival, you found your way over to the spray. Also, one of the stands selling drinks sold bottles of water where ALL of the water inside had been frozen hard as a rock. We were thrilled! As hot as it was (close to 100), it didn't take long for the ice to melt.

"Why would anyone want anything else?"

Because people are individuals, and individuals differ in their likes and dislikes.

And cultures differ in their tastes for food and beverages.

Korean food and drinks differ different from Italian food and beverages which differ from Syrian which differ from...

Most people do find water to be a good thirst quencher. And, of course, everyone loves Kentucky Fried Chicken.

RufusTFirefly - I hope people don't really believe that KFC tastes anything like REAL southern fried chicken. My daughter goes to school in Boston and she says all her friends/classmates think KFC is the real thing.

Rufus--you always make me chuckle!! Thanks for your wry wit.

Moldyhotelsaregross:

Bellinis are an invention of Harry's Bar in Venice. They are made of prosecco, a bubbly Italian white wine with an alcohol content that varies between 6.5% and 11.5%, and peach juice.

My guess is that you can only get Bellinis -- probably at a fairly stiff price -- at establishments that offer full bar service (as opposed to your Italian neighborhood bar). And in
Rome, you might even find that some places don't make it.

Oh, no, I wouldn't touch that southern fried chicken stuff. Nothing like the real KFC!