Holiday in Rome? ... Be a Roman for a Day!

Becoming a Roman

Audrey was a Roman in "Roman Holiday"

Rome's history spans 28 centuries.
The city core is inhabited by 3 million.

However, when people from neighbouring municipalities converge on the city, it can become 6 million and at the height of tourist season, 12 million.

If you want to be a Roman, even for just a short time, there are some rules. On any given day every Roman is in motion - by car or motorbike

(no Audrey Hepburn Vespas - these things are built for speed).

Keep your head up/don't look in their eyes

If you've been told that Rome traffic is awful, that's wrong. It's worse than that and it can be dangerous.

Regardless of their transportation, every Roman male thinks he's

Mario Andretti.

Rule one: If you walk the streets of Rome, keep your head up for traffic.

Many streets don't have stop signs posted at intersections.

They don't slow down

But, that really doesn't matter,  drivers wouldn't pay attention anyway.

Rule two: When crossing a street in Rome,
inhale, don't look at the oncoming traffic (because you'll never believe they are going to stop), never look into the eyes of the driver - or they will think you want them to go. Don't delay - walk quickly.

There are no people in Rome over 80. No canes. No wheelchairs. 
Those folks were all killed off by motorists years ago.

The good news is that after playing chicken with these drivers for a week, we survived and, actually, unbelievably, never saw an accident.

We noticed lots of people walking dogs but the dogs look strange. They walk close to the buildings - eyes to the ground, tail between their legs - no jumping or barking. Then it occurred to us ... these animals are terrified of the traffic too!  

They just hope they never have to cross a street.

Also, about cars.

They only give each other inches to manoeuvre to get in and out.

The guy who invented that little Fiat car that looks like it should be on the end of a key chain is a genius. Every Roman has a mini Fiat.

A stylized M is the street sign you'll see directing you to the subway (Metro). There's also a very similar M street sign directing you to the nearest Mcdonald's restaurant which is either a fabulous stroke of luck on the part of the fast food joint or someone in their company is very creative. During your stay, you may find a use for both M locations.

footnote: there was a very busy McDonalds restaurant

Pantheon

in the piazza directly across from the 2,000-year-old Pantheon.

We couldn't understand how city planners would allow that to happen. Someone finally woke-up to this monster planning error.
On our most recent visit, the McDonald's
was gone.

There are no houses in Rome just apartments and condos - some in magnificent buildings that are centuries old. Space is very limited and there are lots of people.

Ancient Rome is only a walk away 

The district we lived in for 8 days was a very wealthy neighbourhood - a 15-minute walk to the Vatican. We knew it was a safe place
because the designer clothing shops are next door to each other and they go on forever.

That's Rule Three --
do some research before selecting a hotel
-- you want safety and to be close to walking through the city's history.

We walked everywhere - about 6 miles a day and never saw a supermarket or anything that resembled even a small N. American convenience store.

Where do these people get their stuff?

Competition is alive & well in Rome

And, you can't find a bank.

Regarding designer shops ... they all have customers otherwise they wouldn't be able to pay their bills.  But, we noticed high-end men's and women's shops with guys selling cashmere sweaters and cotton shirts and jackets right outside their front doors on the street. 

They deal out of the back of their cars and erect tents to protect their things from the weather.We were very surprised by the specialty stores. It's not unusual to find stores that sell only one thing. My personal favourite was a store that sells only belts and ties. There are others that are just hats and others, just scarves and others, slippers. There are no lineups at these retailers. 

 

Not quite this bad ... but close.

Have I mentioned bathrooms?
Italians invented modern-day plumbing.
However, they haven't found out about urinals or toilet seats.

You won't find these appliances in many Roman restaurants or public places. 

Rule Four: DO NOT ever, under any circumstances use the bathroom at the subway stop at the Colosseum. Ever.

Restaurants, snack bars, coffee shops, sandwich shops and ice cream spots are plentiful. They all sell precisely the same thing but they all do it differently. For example, we went into a coffee bar stood at the counter ordered coffee and cookies then sat at a table. The bill was 4.50 euros. 

The next night we went to the same bar, stood at the same counter and ordered the same thing, then sat at a table. The cashier thought we had been served by a waiter at the table and charged us 9 euros (double the price for table service).

Rule Six: if you go to a deli or snack bar, order directly at the counter and avoid being charged twice.

Although tipping is not expected in most restaurants (some ask for it on the menu) you will pay extra for bread and water served with your dinner. 

Rome's pizza isn't very good - you don't get a choice of what you'd like and none of the sandwiches served in shops are prepared fresh - everything is in advance.  Sometimes well in advance. People don't go to restaurants for a full dinner until after 7:30 pm.

We found no language barrier in Rome. We never had even one bad encounter. Everyone speaks enough English to make themselves understood or to help you.
And, they seemed to appreciate the effort when we attempted a little Italian. 


If you plan on going to the Vatican Museum,
and you should buy tickets online before you go, or, if you are hiring a guide/art historian they should have your tickets included in the price of hiring them. During the tourist season, the lineups can be long ... you may want to consider going late in the afternoon to avoid the lines.

The museum is spectacular.

A Wonder of the World

St. Peter's and the Vatican are a must.
No charge but you will have to line up.
And, your lineup time could be painful during tourist season.

If your shorts are too short and women are not dressed in a conservative manner, the Swiss Guards will stop you from entering the Cathedral.
Don't test this rule or you will have wasted all that time in line.

  Cameras and all photography are encouraged inside St. Peter's.

Train travel in Italy is spectacular. Cheap, clean, quick and always on time and, if it's late, they let you know. The train from Rome to Naples travels at 300 km per hour. Subway/Metro travel in and around Rome is equally efficient - you can go everywhere by subway. Buying tickets and getting acquainted with the stops takes a little time but once you get the hang of it, it's "agevole"!

The unemployment rate for people under 25 is staggering. However, tourism appears to be booming. The Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain and the Colosseum were all under major renovation while we were there and several other landmarks are also getting a face-lift. We saw very few homeless people the entire time we were in Rome and that seemed strange for a city that size.

S P Q R

If you go to the Colosseum, and you must,
BUY YOUR TOUR TICKETS FROM THE SELLERS OUTSIDE - COMPARE DIFFERENT TOURS
BUT MOST DEFINITELY BUY FROM THESE VENDORS.

(don't forget ... don't use the bathroom
at the Colosseum subway stop!)

They will start your tour across the street where the gladiators were housed and then you go to the front of the line to get into the Colosseum and then you get another tour of the PALATINE (across the street) ... awesome!

And, don't forget to tip your Palatine tour guide ... ours was from Mississauga Ontario. He said he visited Rome 10 years ago and couldn't leave. He and his wife chose to live in Rome so their child would be born in a Rome hospital and
"he would be a citizen of Rome forever".

S P Q R  ... (Latin) The Senate and the people of Rome.

As mentioned, we walked about 6 miles a day and saw a very unusual item on the street ... public drinking fountains. The fountain wasn't odd. The strange thing was that they were all running without a tap, non-stop, every day/all-day/all year. Can't imagine what the people of Los Angeles would think of this as they attempt to survive one of their annual droughts.

Rome is a fashion capital so clothing influences
are easy to spot. Men in Rome are back to wearing suits and ties. it's easy picking out the ones who are going to work.

Elderly men look very European with suits,
fedoras and neck scarves - they look like they're going on a date - and probably are.

The women's look ranges from designer jeans with holes in the knees to look like they were on their way to a Vanity Fair photo shoot. 

If you consider a cruise which includes Rome as one of the ports on your itinerary, you need to know that Rome doesn't actually have a port, Rome's port is in a town called Civitavecchia.

It's actually about 90 minutes outside Rome. If you want to take in Rome as part of your trip as one of the ship's excursions, you'll need approx. 2 hours just to get to and from Rome and you need to be back to the ship before it departs so it really doesn't allow much time to visit the Vatican and Trevi Fountain and Ancient Rome and the Colosseum. 

footnote: on a cruise that included Rome, we met a couple who bought the ship's full-day excursion of Rome, for $499. USD each. They slept in and missed the bus in the morning. There's no do-over and the ship doesn't refund the $1,000.

You may want to consider at least a week's holiday in Rome before or after a Mediterranean cruise.

During the time in the history of the gladiators and all the festivities at the Colosseum, Rome's population was a million people.

It would take 1,000 years for the next city in the world to reach that number. It's the reason Rome is called the Eternal City.

                     It's the reason you should be a Roman, if only for a day.

Ciao Bella!