Rome, 2023
Posted on July 16, 2023
Rome doesn’t mess around. Its food, its history, its unmistakable architecture along narrow and cobbled streets, all of it graced by a patina developed over centuries, the city is a feast for all of the senses. It has been there and done that.
Our trip to Rome was a short one, only five days. The purpose of our visit was that my wife was attending a course and I would be tagging along and doing whatever it is that I do, which is mostly walking around and snapping photos while in search of cured meats. Coincidentally, we had also just celebrated our tenth wedding anniversary and Rome seemed like a place you’d go for such a thing.
![Kayaks parked on an iceberg](/static/6613feaecb6917060b4d474af3d13e6c/07e7c/bus-1.jpg)
![Fountain, closed to off due to renovation work](/static/6eaa37d2f512cf4cb8d2fd3beda6e6a6/86074/bus-2.jpg)
![A man, working at a flower stand, filling a bucket of water with a hose](/static/7d28de05af810a6d6fabdba1167b8cca/31f73/bus-3.jpg)
![Family walking across a large group of parked scooters](/static/7aeee039bd231f805754aa1da14c8b65/b35cc/bus-4.jpg)
Taken from a city tour bus while we waited to get into our apartment.
My favorite places to travel are the places that remind you that you are indeed nowhere close to home. Rome is one of those places. No matter the street, corner, or building, you will not find any familiar reference to some piece of something back in the states here. I enjoy that feeling because of how it reminds that I can ignore my daily concerns, live in the moment. It’s the little things, like having to mind your elbows when the occasional tiny car squeaks by so the mirror doesn’t knock the wine glass out of your hand as you gesture wildly, trying to fit in with the locals.
![A vespa-like scooter parked on the corner near a restaurant. It's on a cobbled street with several small tables.](/static/2fc4bb97976372cd629790cb97c4ce23/07e7c/scooter.jpg)
I Pizzicaroli serves some of the best Italian cold cuts I’ve ever had.
Neighborhood walks
I had most of the mornings and afternoons to myself to go off and explore. The old city streets were not designed for cars nor ever updated to accommodate them. Rome is full of textures, and everywhere you look, there's something to please the eye. No matter where you turn, you will find some interesting detail tucked away into some nook or cranny.
![Group of older gentlemen laughing and sharing a bottle of wine at a park bench. One is turned around an seems to have noticed the camera](/static/db139f946bc50a128cd5267a08f12f0a/3cf85/prati-1.jpg)
![Man about to cross an empty street](/static/962358d359ed9e5fb9e427a079acee50/a42f7/prati-2.jpg)
![Residential building with curved feature at the front](/static/967a0d4b3deb0913fab4ad0f3a6c800e/07a33/prati-3.jpg)
![On the left, a bicycle. On the right, an older man leaning against a bike rake, looking in the opposite direction of the bike.](/static/d967f90a65fb4282d77e134c56c4b630/6a297/prati-4.jpg)
The Prati neighborhood, where we stayed
My walks were close to ten miles per day, probably the most amount of walking I’ve ever done while on vacation. This turned out to be an essential balance to my daily carb intake.
![Looking down at a white wall with what translates to 'fuck covid' in graffiti](/static/c457ebb6f5631eee12f4799eacf6bc55/07e7c/along-tiber-1.jpg)
![Stairway leading down to a walking path, framed by spindles on a bridge](/static/f275e7b4d56caf3a595a9a46f67947b8/07e7c/along-tiber-2.jpg)
![Facing Vatican City from a bridge](/static/8e37829bf4bde9f72037443581b88b31/d247f/along-tiber-3.jpg)
![A half-sunken houseboat or floating night club](/static/128dd161171202c0c61980bbc1a76334/3b6b4/along-tiber-4.jpg)
Scenes along the Tiber river
Because Rome was built before the automobile age, driving around in a regular sized car, even by European standards, would be difficult. Some of the cars—if you would even call them that—were so small, they only had one seat. More of an enclosed motorcycle, really.
![Small Citroen](/static/63278e4943cddb00d9a29538c8b6cdb8/07e7c/car-1.jpg)
![Fiat parked between two trees](/static/7ff9e636ba46944b808c0b7ce83c2045/b7ade/car-2.jpg)
Very tiny cars
Rome is covered in graffiti. One thing that surprised me was how much of it was about soccer. Some people would make their objections known by crossing a team name out and putting another in its place, always with the swearing. I imagine this is how people argued before Twitter.
![Graffiti reading AS Roma Merda](/static/435e441bbf86f86c1fb6b664d5d2cfe7/f6415/soccer-1.jpg)
![Graffiti reading Lazio merda, then someone wrote Roma over that](/static/5afc84994d3f20d4eda964649fef17fa/07e7c/soccer-2.jpg)
One neighborhood known for its street art, and food, is Trastevere. Once a poor neighborhood, Trastevere became the go-to place for all the hip restaurants and bars. It’s a typical origin story. Needless to say, this neighborhood was my kind of place.
![Crowded street with people dining al fresco](/static/1d07ab3fcf7c3e090218dc80fbcf51bd/b2612/trastevere-1.jpg)
![Man standing at a corning, seemingly waiting for someone](/static/5880d82cfbffd35d6b9a997242720281/02abb/trastevere-2.jpg)
![Street art, an image of an elderly lady](/static/682361dff6bf293904dc7b835403774a/29104/trastevere-3.jpg)
![Two older men standing in front a tourist shop](/static/b563bd65a5deb61866d7984d4bcaf1aa/52cc7/trastevere-4.jpg)
You want to get lost here (within reason, obviously). The entire city is a museum, and every corner of it has a story. If I had another week, I would simply spend my time continuing to walk the streets. While I might retrace some old steps, there’s always a new detail I didn’t see before. Whether it’s the way the light hits a particular building at a particular moment, or some ancient ruin hiding in plain sight.
![People walking by a government building, dwarfed by its proportions](/static/91c756e929d92d182a44210328ec2a74/4284c/street-1.jpg)
![Two people standing outside of a luggage locker, harsh shadows on them](/static/057d34ab00f078f084c1de2b71795157/a5241/street-2.jpg)
![Roman street](/static/a01456bc38fa2aa0e8862e05907a64e0/e9442/street-3.jpg)
![Roman drinking fountain on an empty street](/static/f48a2ec72d356fea0b7de77babdc6053/8e000/street-4.jpg)
![Archway between two buildings](/static/7db025ebaa692e354e671e7f2b4da96a/07e7c/street-5.jpg)
![Ancient columns](/static/a3f8b9d9583978434ffd9080cc22ce46/a3da0/street-6.jpg)
![Light hitting a church](/static/6dd56f571cc85fad3c52c8b7e8debe84/4cb28/street-7.jpg)
![Light just moving past a doorway to a church](/static/77db07c6e2a53dac905bd27905a6260a/324d4/street-8.jpg)
![Woman standing at the entrance for a restaurant. A car is reflected in the window](/static/b957d6242280c9edb6275c93d3cc7d9f/05cc9/street-9.jpg)
![Woman with a dog approaching a table of diners](/static/679068ee6aa54d7cdbcf8d9b04a96973/6a94a/street-10.jpg)
![Old walls protruding from a building](/static/9682c84709361ce616e5210859a8f542/07e7c/street-11.jpg)
![Doorway, heavily textured](/static/6e206b5a8e5842c56a6875e2e682f119/0434b/street-13.jpg)
![A church in the late evening](/static/5f05f1a800247127ccc8c6edef03c363/47631/street-14.jpg)
![Alleyway, looking towards a church](/static/2ee385955ceab3cdc4635f364f2ee59f/9787e/street-15.jpg)
![Alleway looking towards Victor Emmanuel II Monument](/static/99eecb3ed7aba6d078f8aa6cc7019d53/e4d78/street-16.jpg)
Being a tourist
Of course, Rome is contains some of the most recognizable structures on the planet. You have to see them, with your own eyes, up close. Do you feel like cattle? Yes. Is it worth it? Also, yes. You’re going to eat a lot of pasta later, so get those steps in!
![Roman forum arch](/static/2057a4e79b3077037719058131d1f784/07e7c/tourism-1.jpg)
![Looking towards Colosseum from Roman Forum](/static/d180799a09de0789284a7e2fd9af8972/f0241/tourism-2.jpg)
![Man reading something on the Victor Emmanuel II Monument](/static/aaf256b790072f499ec7bfb8b23b99b2/c8a5c/tourism-3.jpg)
![People walking around the Victor Emmanuel II Monument](/static/6c569dc83174daa726e7957fe05c6e55/02752/tourism-4.jpg)
![Low angle view of the horse on the Victor Emmanuel II Monument as people go up the stairs](/static/18907e7f59656fd84490a1a20aedbbd1/03fe4/tourism-5.jpg)
![On the Victor Emmanuel II Monument, looking towards the city and a long, wide street.](/static/964d4e34cd1214e6ad1b3716b899cb34/07e7c/tourism-6.jpg)
![Silhouette of someone taking a photo inside a dark church](/static/b4f0a75a0301f375bc5d45856357e3db/a07c1/tourism-7.jpg)
![Exterior of vatican](/static/c57ddfaaf19afb921e676fcd0b3b683c/6acf3/tourism-8.jpg)
![Statues on top of the vatican](/static/929ff7d4c3a1ff83eafe4e324fd2e881/41e7a/tourism-9.jpg)
![St. Peter's basilica](/static/a66bf45aadc78863bea0b28954b2a85c/40c51/tourism-10.jpg)
![Close up of arch in the Colosseum](/static/1e7028fa8bba7e7656b7c8726cad477a/07e7c/tourism-11.jpg)
![The Colosseum floor from above](/static/39b646236383893129c308019bd85fd3/a7e03/tourism-12.jpg)
![Colosseum floor from above](/static/3c4aa1c79c595cfffa376e3ef5d49f00/07e7c/tourism-13.jpg)
![Arch as viewed from Colosseum](/static/2d68dea2765f32de1eb37188d74002a7/c8cfa/tourism-14.jpg)
![City view from a rooftop at the golden hour](/static/f9de86ccc5d1109eac285b83be719129/9e456/tourism-15.jpg)