Ce una farmacia qui viccino?

I haven't seen any standing water in Rome, but the mosquitos are worse than in Amsterdam. My legs are covered in bites, which itch miserably.

I went out on Saturday to find a pharmacy to buy some anti-itch cream, some repellant spray (DEET or not, I don't care anymore!) and some blister band-aids. (As an aside, I figured out that even if your shoes are well-broken in, as mine are after nearly two months in Europe, walking on uneven cobblestones will still give you blisters because your feet slide around a lot.)

I went to the pharmacy near my house, but it was closed. When pharmacies are closed here, there is a sign outside the door that says where the closest open pharmacy is located. It said that there was an open pharmacy located on the corner of Piazza Navona. I walked to the Piazza Navona, which is not very far away, and walked all around the square. I didn't see any pharmacy on the corner.

I went to a Tabbac (tobacco shop - also sells maps, stamps, bus tickets, etc.). I picked up a map and asked the girl if there was a pharmacy nearby "Ce un farmacia qui viccino?" I didn't understand all of her directions, but got the gist that there was a pharmacy two streets over. I walked down that street to the pharmacy - only to find that it also was closed. There was a sign on the outside listing the address to an open pharmacy, but I didn't know where that was located. Fortuntely, there was a police officer parked alongside the road and I asked him to point me to the pharmacy. He told me to take the next right, cross over the Piazza Navona, and there was an open pharmacy just on the other side.

Yeah! I arrived at the pharmacy. Managed to find the blister band-aids myself, and told the pharmacist "problemo - zanzara" (Problem - mosquitos). He gave me some corizone cream and also some repellant spray. The grand total for my three items was 25.80E, which is $35.20 USD. I kid you not.