I left the States a week ago with no goodbyes to say
Tossed all obligations for a Roman holiday
And as I walked along the streets, it hit me in a flash
That even mighty empires turn to trash

The smell of smoke and urine punctuated every breath
The columns had graffiti, epitaphs of glory’s death
Centurions and emperors gave way to fascist thugs
And Virgil’s kin were hustling for drugs

The weight of human history was lifted from my back
I turned my face away and now I’m on another track
They banned me from the hostel, I’m almost out of bread
And I’m sleeping in the streets where Caesar bled

So I’ll drink this wine before it turns to vinegar
And smile as time ties nooses ‘round our necks
I’m laughing as I’m shouting out at nothing
I’m standing in the ruins getting wrecked

The grappa and the cheap Chianti hold me in their grips
I’m running through the cafés stealing table scraps and tips
Accordions are drowning in a sea of mandolins
And I cannot hear my conscience through the din

“Bacchanalia” seems too grand a word for getting pissed
And I’ve been grinning far too much to be a nihilist
Call me “continental,” “cosmopolitan,” “urbane”
And call the fucking universe “insane”

So I’ll drink this wine before it turns to vinegar
And smile as time ties nooses ‘round our necks
I’m laughing as I’m shouting out at nothing
I’m standing in the ruins getting wrecked

I think I’ve learned a lesson from the Vandals and the Gauls
When culture starts to crumble you should kick it in the balls
Let Nero fiddle with himself and light another fuse
When nothing’s left, there’s nothing left to lose

And now I’m standing in the Colosseum
The sky above my head is rushing past
Italian ghosts are trying hard to warn me
That glories of the present never last

So I’ll drink this wine before it turns to vinegar
And smile as time ties nooses ‘round our necks
I’m laughing as I’m shouting out at nothing
I’m standing in the ruins getting wrecked