Winter al fresco
Winter is a great time to visit Rome. Marc Zakian takes us on a seasonal stroll though the city streets
ROMANS ARE OUTDOOR people. The Eternal City revolves around its squares and streets – each with their own character and history. One of the best times of year to discover Rome’s piazza life is winter, when the crowds are gone and the crisp winter sun casts its special light across the city. The most Roman of Roman squares is the Campo de’ Fiori – where the city’s daily flower, vegetable and fruit market bursts into action each morning. At this time of year the stalls are piled high with gourd-shaped pumpkins and deep yellow squash – and the scent of flowers fills the air.
The Campo is great for street food. During the colder months the chestnut sellers take to the square – hunched over their metal pans with a twining swirl of smoke rising above them as they call out their wares. But the Campo’s best treat is the local pizza bread, a great warming snack, which you can sit down and eat in the nearby Piazza Navona.
Piazza Navona is a circus wrapped inside an architectural wonder. The square – actually an elongated oval – takes its shape from a Roman stadium which once stood here. Entertainment has always been on hand: in the 16th century horses raced round the piazza, dazzling the thrill-seeking crowds. Today buskers, insistent rose sellers, caricature artists, fortune tellers and mimes all ply their trades in Navona’s elegant surroundings, while in winter the square is Rome’s Christmas market.
A short walk from Piazza Navona, tucked away behind the river Tiber, is the ghetto. The city’s Jewish community arrived here before St Peters or the Colosseum were built. This area is still referred to as the ghetto (from the Italian word borghetto, meaning little village). Pass through one evening and you’ll find families standing on their doorsteps; old men with nicotine-gravel voices gossiping into the night and doe-eyed inamoratas romancing in the corner of the cobbled piazza.
The ghetto is Rome’s most authentic quarter, a place unchanged by tourism. The city’s artistic community, seduced by the area’s old-world charm, is turning the shady side street of Via della Reginella into a bustling artistic quarter, with craft workshops and the fantastically eccentric Museum del Louvre – a fanciful antiquarian shop and gallery.
The ghetto stands next to the birthplace of Roman life itself: the Forum. Here ancient and new Rome embrace each other. The spirit of the Empire seeps though the ruined columns, statues and temples. In the days of the Republic the forum’s squares were much like today’s Roman piazzas; a place to gather and catch up on the latest news. Modern-day Romans strolling though the ruins of Marc Anthony’s house, or Caesar’s robing room seem a just toga away from their ancient ancestors.
Another link between old and modern is found along the Via del Babbuino. This ancient statue called the Baboon – which gives the road its name – reclines on a fountain outside the church of St Athanasius where he has been gossiping with Romans for over 500 years.
The Babuino is one of Rome’s "talking" statues. This tradition started in the 1500s, when the city was governed by the Papacy. To avoid punishment Romans would secretly hang caustic criticism and satiric poems on a statue. This often took place under cover of night, the Romani enjoying a good laugh in the morning before the insults were removed by the authorities.
Until very recently the Babuino was still opining, with citizens venting their spleen in graffito and messages on the wall behind him. In an echo of past censorship, the messages on the wall were recently "cleaned up". But they soon returned and il Babuino, with his wicked grin and his grubby brown torso, has plenty to say about life today in Rome.
Another location for Romans to express themselves on the streets is Ponte Milvio. This is one of Rome’s oldest bridges – dating back to 2BC. Recently it has become a pilgrimage site for lovers, who seal their passion by fixing a lock to the third lamppost on the north side of the bridge, turning their back to the river, and throwing the key into the Tiber.
The love-lock tryst was inspired by Federico Moccia’s romantic novel Three Metres above the Sky. When the book was made into a successful film, Ponte Milvio’s lamppost became a maze of multicolored chains and locks bearing the names of the innamorati. With space running short on the original lamp stand, lovers wanting to pledge adopted other posts on the bridge.
Rome’s authorities were in a quandary. No red-blooded Italian would ever stand in the way of romance – in fact, on 13 April 2007, the lamppost partially collapsed under the weight of the love-locks; but the bridge is an ancient monument, and the sheer quantity of locks posed a problem. So now there is a special set of chains for lovers to attach their locks to.
Love is a very important business on the streets of Rome. Most Italians live at home with their family, so their romances are conducted outdoors. And during the winter months there is no better place to stroll hand in hand, than through the Eternal City’s romantic streets.
ROMAN HOTSPOTS
*Bars: Il Forno The bars in the famous squares charge a premium, but it’s worth paying to enjoy the view from the seated areas. For the famous white Roman flat bread with different fillings go to Il Forno (22 Campo De’ Fiori, +39 06 6880 6662, www.fornocampodefiori.com).
*Aperitifs: La Vineria Winter aperitifs have taken off in the last decade. Traditionally enjoyed at 7pm, the Roman aperitif is a glass of wine with olives, cold pasta, and salad snacks. Try La Vineria (15 Campo de’ Fiori , +39 06 6880 3268).
*Restaurant: Il Sanpietrino (Open for lunch and dinner. Closed Sundays). In the Jewish quarter, this restaurant at the bottom of a fabulous palazzo has won prizes, and has a menu inspired by one of Rome’s great chefs.15 Piazza Costaguti, +39 06 6880 6471.
*Il Museo del Louvre: This eccentric collection of art and artifacts sells everything from bishop’s vestments to antique holiday snaps. One of Rome’s hidden secrets on a street that is busy with innovative artisans. 26-28 Via della Reginella, www.ilmuseodellouvre.com
*Ponte Milvio: Tram 2 from Piazzale Flaminio to Piazza Mancini. To Ponte Milvio on foot, turning right on Lungotevere.
*Shopping: The Via del Corso is a bustling high street full of clothes and electrical shops. For designer shopping, head to the Via Condotti.
Zycie w Wiecznym Mieście toczy sie dookoła historycznych placów i ulic. Najlepszym czasem by je zgłebić jest zima, kiedy miasto przepełnia wyjątkowe światło.
Najbardziej rzymski z rzymskich placów, Campo de’ Fiori, co ranka zamienia sie w pulsujące życiem targowisko gdzie można skosztować jadalnych kasztanów.
Niedaleko Campo znajduje sie owalny Piazza Navona, na którym dawniej mieścił sie stadion. W XVI w. odbywały sie tu wyścigi koni, a dziś królują tu grajkowie, sprzedawcy róż, i wróżbici. W okresie świątecznym rynek zamienia sie w jarmark świąteczny.
Kilka kroków od Piazza Navona, mieści sie żydowskie getto. Getto jest najbardziej autentyczną cześcią miasta. Ciągną tu artyści, skuszeni jej starodawnym urokiem. Na szczególną uwage zasługuje Museum del Louvre, ekscentryczny sklep antykwaryczny i galeria.
Niedaleko getta mamy samą kolebke Rzymu – Forum. Duch Imperium drzemie tu wśród kolumn i świątyn. Gdy dzisiejsi Rzymianie przechadzają sie pośród ruin domu Marka Antoniusza czy garderoby Cezara, wydaje sie, że od ich przodków różni ich tylko brak togi. Od pieciuset lat, przed kościołem św. Antanazego stoi tam figurka pawiana. Tradycja z nią związana zaczeła sie w XIV, kiedy Rzymianie, wieszali nocami na niej teksty satyryczne. Tradycja znalazła kontynuacje. Dziś Rzymianie wylewają swoje żale na murze za figurką, Babuino ma wciąż wiele do powiedzenia o dzisiejszym życiu w Rzymie.
Inny rzymski sposób na wyrażenie siebie wiąże sie z jednym z najstarszych mostów w mieście, Ponte Milvio. Pielgrzymują tam zakochani, chcący zapieczetować swój związek zamykając kłódke jednej z lamp mostu i wyrzucają klucz do rzeki. Wszystko za sprawą powieści Trzy Metry nad Niebem mostowe lampy stały sie istną plątaniną kolorowych łancuchów i zamków.
Gdy 13 kwietnia 2007 roku lampa sie złamała pod cieżarem kłódek, założono tam specjalny łancuch, do którego zakochani mogą przyczepiać swoje kłódki.
W zimie, nie ma lepszego miejsca by spacerować we dwoje niż romantyczne ulice Wiecznego Miasta.
