Courtyards and workshops

Behind heavy wooden doors, you’ll find courtyards with orange trees and fountains, and workshops where restorers, framers and bookbinders still work by hand. Most will let you watch if you ask politely.

The trattoria with no menu

There is a family trattoria near Via dei Coronari where the owner simply tells you what’s cooking. Cacio e pepe, carciofi alla romana, a carafe of white from the Castelli. You pay what he writes on the paper tablecloth.

Rome at its own pace

The monuments will always be there. What makes Rome unforgettable is the hour you spend in a quiet piazza, watching the city go about its day.