Roma o Morte

I know Rome is such a common tourist destination. Fortunately enough, everyone can discover hidden piazzas, vicolos and vias to escape the crowds and taste the city from their own perspective. Here’s mine, over one hot weekend in July.

Pick your accommodation in Trastavere, like we did, and make this avangarde and historic district your primary plan for the visit, or your base from which you depart to other parts of the city.

Trastavere hosts many boutique hotels that provide a unique experience. Our choice landed with Trastavere Royal Suite, situated on one of the floors of the old tenement house by the Vialle de Trastavere. You enter the building through the same door the local residents do and you can either take the old staircase or ride the old elevator to get to the Suite. The apartment welcomes you to the lobby area with the welcome table, the kitchennette and the seating space where you can enjoy coffee or tea in the morning. From the lobby you enter one of the bedrooms the Suite offers. In essence, you feel as if you were in a private apartment that was transformed into a one-floor hotel. The Suite bedrooms combine renovated old and new furniture with modern details here and there, for example in bathroom supplies. Privacy is guaranteed and the service does not impose their presence too much.

Travel: Trastavere - Campo de' Fiori - Piazza della Rotonda | Eat: Fisheye - Ditta Trinchetti -Barnum - Roscioli Cafe - Bukowski's Bar | Experience: discovering hidden streets around Trastavere and central Rome - The City of Water - cruise on the Tiber

Have a welcome drink at Fisheye bar just downstairs in an adjacent tenement house. They will make you feel at home immediately with their relaxed and friendly attitude, or perhaps it was the drink. Who cares. We felt amazing when their DJ got started with the 80s music. The DJ you wouldn’t see too often at clubs but rather at senior clubs. How deceptive and unjust perception it was. His vigor and vibe was hundred times better and more authentic than the youngsters’. We were the only ones who stayed inside, in Fisheye’s fun interior with jokey posters, neons and fun art and their elegant bar counter in the center. Local Italian visitors preferred to take their booze outdoors, and those who knew the DJ just danced their evening away on the pavement.

Have your welcome dinner at Ditta Trinchetti, outside, like we did, as we just walked along one of Trastavere vias and got attracted by the restaurant’s daily menu written on chalkboards. We had wine, pasta and seafood. Every single bite of it was worth a taste. Add bread, salt and olive oil and I’m lost. Ditta Trinchetti is one of hundreds of trattorias you can find in Trastavere but hey, that’s my subjective dining experience that you can take, or find your own dining space in the area, right? No offense taken. In this one I guarantee you will satisfy your taste buds as the food is amazing and you will get an interesting people watching experience as tourists and locals frequent Via de La Lungaretta till the late evening.

Yes, late evening is the perfect time to walk around Trastavere. True, you will still get people flooding the area on their way to one of trattorias or bars but isn’t it part of the local flavor? The good sign is that you will still spot a lot of youth Italians crowding the bars for whom Trastavere is still a trendy area to hang out. They also marked their presence here with their artistic murals and graffiti art on the old walls all over the Trastavere plazas. You can always divert from busy squares into quieter and charming alleys with plant or lightbulb garlands hanging over you head and another trattoria to discover away from the tourists. Trastavere is also great for a late night shopping for handcrafted artwork or jewellery. I tempted myself to purchase a necklace and a bracelet from one of the jewellers here who didn’t even need to convince me. I simply cherish the fact I own a piece of jewellery from a local Trastavere artist which you won’t find at any other neck or wrist. It’s about collecting these kind of experiences as well.

First-thing-in-the-morning espresso from any local coffee shop will power you up for the walk from Trastavere to my favourite plaza in Rome – Campo de’ Fiori – with my favourite statue of Giordano Bruno. In comparison to other squares in Rome this one is tiny which makes you feel cozy in a sense. This is another site in Rome where you can spot locals mingling with tourists, the former coming here to get fresh vegetables and fruits and the latter hanging out in restaurants. In one of the corners you will find Il Forno, the old traditional bakery that serves pizza slices. Grab a couple of these, making sure the zucchini flower one is among your choice, and head out to the adjacent streets to hide away from the crowds of the Campo.

The myriad of narrow shaded streets all over Rome hide unique cafe bars, intimate cocktail bars and artisan boutiques. I almost bought a new pair of leather hand made shoes in burgundy red. What a shame I didn’t, after all. One of the streets got us to the desired late breakfast venue – Barnum -where we were bounced and told there was a line of hungry souls, waiting to be seated at a table inside or outdoors. We waited, silencing our hunger by studying little details of Via de Pellegrino, some old door, the sculpture on one of the walls, an old water dispenser, one of those which save your thirst in scorching heat. Barnum friendly hostess finally got us a table inside, and we sank into their avocado, eggs, croissants, coffee and…Milano Torino negroni…Great tastes and international staff and clientele gives this brunch place a good energy vibe.

After Barnum walk towards my second favorite piazza in Rome – Piazza della Rotonda and the Pantheon. Skip visiting the temple inside until the crazy crowds of tourists who line up to enter leave for a day. Go around this magnificent church building instead and touch its ancient walls, feel the history under your fingertips, literally. Have a bite in the Antica Salumeria, a family owned shop with pastrami, salami, cheese, olives, wines and bruschettas and everything else Italian gourmet that you can taste and avoid overcrowded restaurants all over the piazza at the same time. Buy some fun trivia from Rome in Make in the Art of Souvenir little store just opposite the Pantheon and head out towards Fontana di Trevi.

Yes, it’s nice to capture a picture in front of the Fontana, if you’re lucky to get one among the crazy crowds of tourists occupying it all day long. We arrived at the Piazza di Trevi in search of its other gem, though, hidden over nine meters underground– the Vicus Caprarius – the City of Water. This archeological labyrinth of ancient passages and corridors filled with water from Fontana di Trevi used to form a system supplying water from the fountain into the pipes of an ancient residence from the Roman Empire era which was located on the site. The excavations also revealed the Virgin Aqueduct as well as artefacts from the residence that you can see at the exhibition as you wander the City of Water. You can enter the site from Vicolo del Puttarello. Just make sure you book your visit in advance.

Don’t avoid the usual suspects such as the Colosseum, Forum Romanum and the Vatican, the true essence of Rome. Just leave them for the following day. Discover more narrow old vicolos of Rome on they way, with tiny churches and chapels tucked by old tenement houses, with little coffe shops, bars, restaurants, ice cream parlors (including a very interesting and provocative bakery on the way..) and boutiques with hand made leather shoes or unique clothing. Just walk around, and pop in for an espresso or a drink once in a while to hide away from the heat and the crowds, like I did.

But first things first. We started the day with lininig up for a table in the Roscioli cafe. The same name also covers a salumeria, a wine bar, a restaurant and an old bakery nearby. The Roscioli place we looked for was meant for typical international breakfast menu and sweet creamy Italian maritozzo to finish off. Barnum remains higher in my ranking but they didn’t serve the delicious maritozzo there, I give Roscioli credit for that.

If you want to break a day with a drink, Bukowski's Bar is the place. Flawlessly prepared negroni and a board of snacks that went with it were more than enough. The cocktail bar pleases the eye with the art, books and vinyls which you can buy there as well.

End your hasty Roman vacation with the cruise on the Tiber. Always the best idea to see the most spectacular bridges and main landmarks of a city in roughly one hour. And the river boulevards usually attract the visitors with pop up festivals or floating food platforms. The area over the river close to Trastavere surprised us nicely with such feast. A variety of restaurants, food trucks and bars spread along the river, with stalls presenting local arts and crafts, which created a unique space to hang out for those who prefer the local vibes, like I do.