Trastevere
Perhaps Rome’s most charming district, Trastevere, a small outward bulge of land in the loop of the Tiber River, the name itself means to traverse the Tiber.
It’s hard to put your finger on what exactly makes this area so unique and exciting but I think because it was almost always isolated from the Rome across the river.
For the first three hundred years since Rome’s founding this area was still occupied by their rivals, the Etruscans. In 509 BCE the Romans took control but did very little with it, considering it undesirable and too removed from the focal point of Rome. It later became home to new immigrants to the ancient city, perhaps perpetuating the non-Roman character of the neighborhood. Today it is home to several foreign academic institutions, British, American and Canadian, so it is quite common to hear English spoken here by the young students. The area feels young, vibrant and bohemian — artistic even. Quaint cobbled streets, buildings covered in foliage, twinkling lights, bustling restaurants and pubs, bookstores, record stores.
Perhaps it’s no surprise that this artistic bohemian neighborhood was where Sergio Leone and Ennio Morricone both went to school.
The neighborhood is brimming with trattorias and cafes, little street food joints of fried suppli (rice croquettes filled with stringy cheese). Menu prices seem to be 2-3 euros less on this side of the Tiber River the average plate of pasta or gnocchi range from €9 - €11
I can’t say that every meal I have had in Trastevere has been exceptional, some have been quite good, I am remembering a chilled gazpacho studded with Gambero Rosso — the prized shrimp of Sicily, which was very good, or the Spaghetti Caccio e Pepe surprisingly served on a crispy sheet of thin pizza crust, or the stuffed fried olives. But there were also at least two places I ate that were rather lackluster, so even though I love the spirit of the neighborhood I find I look at menus more suspiciously here.
