Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Rome - Street Scenes


Walking through the center of Rome over the weekend I took lots of photos of interesting nooks and crannies that caught my eye around the city.


This notice (dating back to October 19, 1761) warns passersby not to dump their garbage in the street in front of this house. I guess littering is an eternal problem, even in the Eternal City!


This woman is begging for spare change. While Rome has always had beggars, I had never seen anyone prostrate themselves with their face down on the sidewalk like this before.


I love both the ivy-covered walls of this shop and the outdoor fruit and vegetable stand.


Another woman begging while face-down on the ground. The three women captured in this photo (counting the woman in the advertisement) are an amazing study in contrasts: east vs. west, have vs. have-not, etc.


Many alleys seem to be designated for parking endless lines of mopeds.


Another common site in these narrow alleys are outdoor cafès. For me, the pleasure of eating outdoors would be pretty much ruined by the smell of the fumes and the noise of passing cars.


There are a lot of these really tall columns in Rome. This one is located in Piazza di Spagna and a statue of the Madonna is perched atop it.


This is Montecitorio, the building that houses the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the Italian Parliament.


My family posing under a giant photo of three Italian politicians: Schifani (President of the Senate), Napolitano (President of the Republic) and Fini (President of the Chamber of Deputies).
My older son has a funny expression on his face because Schifani is not his favorite politician!


A picture of the column that Piazza della Colonna is named for.

Tomorrow I'll show you my photos of Via Condotti, where all the top Italian designers have their shops.

6 comments:

alessandra said...

Not because the name Schifani reminds him of "schifo"?
Amazing pictures, my fav are the three women, and the scooter line.

Anonymous said...

So gorgeous. I have always wanted to visit Italy, I guess I'll have to live vicariously through you until I can. You've got a follower... Cheers!

Francesca said...

Nice photos and commentary:)

Candace said...

Those women beggars seem much better to have around than the ones in Downtown Seattle, those ones are really aggressive and I always hated going to the waterfront when I lived there because it was so overwhelming sometimes!
I just LOVE seeing what it's like over there...I've always dreamed of living in Italy, even for just a little while!

LindyLouMac said...

It looks like you enjoyed your day out in Roma, great photos.
A shame you were not up here in Lazio for longer but maybe another time :)

The weather looks a bit stormy. what day was it?

Anonymous said...

This makes me miss Rome, so much. After being in Rome for just a few hours, it became our favorite city. I want to go back.

Beautiful pictures!

xoxo,
Tia :P