Rome doesn’t have the same attacks on Christmas that you get in the United States. There’s no ACLU to complain about Nativity scenes in public places. In fact, the scenes are all over the city.

But back in 1994 something happened that simply shocked the residents of Rome. Someone stole the Baby Jesus. The most famous statue of the Child Jesus in the city was taken from a small chapel in the Church of the Ara Coeli, near Piazza Venezia. The Bambino Gesu, or Bambinello, has never been returned, and it appears that police have run out of leads. There’s a copy in its place right now, and children from all over the world still send their letters to the Child Jesus at the church.

The Bambinello was originally carved by a Franciscan friar in the Holy Land. To learn more about the history — and the mystery — of the image, I spoke with art historian Liz Lev. Take a look at the video below:

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Liz, by the way, is a kind of walking history book/catechism. When I asked her about the statue’s special powers (it has supposedly been instrumental in a lot of cures of sick Romans) she gave me a warning about idol worship, saying it wasn’t the statue’s powers, but rather God’s, that were responsible for the healing.

Then, I guess to get me ready for the Christmas season, she added: “When you love an object per se, whether your shoes or your jacket, or whatever, it’s called idolatry”. Glad she set me straight before I get all those cool Italian gifts.

I’ve got three lists of cities that I add to as my travel takes me around the world.

The first is World-Class Cities. Places like New York, Paris, Hong Kong and London.

Each is a huge metropolis that’s just off the map in terms of energy. Then I have Cool Places to Live. Right now I only have Rome on that list, though I’ve been tempted to add Barcelona.

And then there are Fascinating Places. I’ve just added Mumbai to that list, which includes cities like Naples, Venice, Seville and Istanbul.

Mumbai is fascinating for a number of reasons. A population of 18 million is one. Then it’s colorful, diverse, and a little crazy. You can get your haircut for about 70 cents (including tip) and your shoes shined for about a dime. An hour-long taxi ride might cost you $4, but it could easily be less. There aren’t too many places in the world you can find those kind of prices.

But it’s not all beautiful. The poverty is hard to fathom, with people sleeping on the street in a way you don’t even see in the poorest countries of Africa. It’s dirty, and I don’t want to think about what I was breathing in during the week I was there. But it is truly fascinating, and I’d gladly go back. I only wish I had a better camera, as India looks like a photographer’s dream. But these shots will at least give you an idea of the sights and sounds of the big city that used to be known as Bombay.

Italy’s Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi just can’t seem to help himself. He says that President-elect Bararck Obama is “young, good-looking and tanned.” It sounds slightly better in Italian (it always does.) “Giovane, bello e abbronzato.” Berlusconi was laughing when he said it, but most people didn’t see the humor. And when some here complained, the Prime Minister said they were fools.

He may be Italy’s richest man, and a very capable entrepreneur, but Berlusconi has grown up in a largely mono-cultural society. Most of the blacks he’s known have been players for his first-division soccer team, AC Milan. And while he may be 72 years old, there’s something about him that’s still quite childish — the eternal prankster. But a prankster who’s not always funny.

Here’s our video from Rome.

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Now that sounds like a breakfast of champions. It’s actually a very popular lunch or dinner in Rome, and it’s called “carbonara,” as in spaghetti alla carbonara or rigatoni alla carbonara.

We got into the kitchen of a great Roman restaurant called Grano, just off of Piazza Navona, for a close-up look at how carbonara is made. We tasted a bit, and it was great, but we were still hungry, so we also tried the “amatriciana.” That’s pasta with bacon and tomatoes, and the way they make it at Grano it’s some of the best in the city.

Check out the video for the carbonara creation. I wish I could say I had made it myself, because it was wonderful.

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