Stay Out: The Signs of Via Della Brianza

 

We read all kinds of signs, and we enjoyed two signs that guarded the courtyard/street of an apartment complex (off via Imperia) in our Piazza Bologna neighborhood (above). We would guess that the complex dates to about 1950. Although anyone could walk unimpeded into the courtyard/street (via della Brianza), two signs, one on the right of the entrance, and one on the left, may give pause. 

The sign on the right, of older vintage, reads: "Access is prohibited for those who don't have the right [to do so]." It's not clear what "right" that is, though the sign is apparently based on a section of the legal code, noted on the sign.

The sign on the left, perhaps more recently posted but probably decades ago, reads: "Via della Brianza (Private Property) Entrance is prohibited to vehicles of strangers [estranei]." You have to like that word "strangers." Also, driving in would be difficult, given that there are potted plants in the way.

Bill 

PS - We've lived in the Piazza Bologna area - in many different parts of it - 6 or more times. This part was new to us last year. It's not far from the Policlinico Metro stop.

In Search of the 1950s: The Aqua-Blue Building on via Bari

 

We lived this year just a few blocks from one of my favorite modernist Rome buildings. Romans might call it "particolare"--one of a kind, sui generis, unique, maybe odd. You'll find it at via Bari 5, corner of via Rovigo, just a few blocks uphill along via Catania from Piazzale delle Provincie, one of two large circular piazze in the Piazza Bologna area. 

Same building, via Bari 5, from the less than 90 degree corner with via Rovigo -
 a very different look, no camera tricks employed.

he palazzina, in the mid-century-modern style, was constructed between 1958, when Jerry Lee Lewis's "Great Balls of Fire" was #1on the US charts, and 1961, when teens were doing the "Twist" to Chubby Checker's hit song. In architecture, post-modernism had yet to assert itself as the next wave, but architects everywhere were experimenting with forms that went beyond the severe rectilinear modernism of the 1930s and 1940s (a good example of that sort of modernism is Rome's university--La Sapienza, nearby). The late 1950s and 1960s were also decades in which architects and planners experimented with buildings and other structures that were elevated--in the US, "skyways"--elevated highways--were the rage, and in Rome, planners decided to place the "sopraelevata" [1966-1975] down the center of Scalo San Lorenzo (a 15-minute walk from via Bari 5). 

Above, the sopraelevata from the street.

Architect Renato Valle framed the via Bari building in aqua-blue glass (now an iconic 1950s color), and used the less-than-90-degree corner at via Rovigo to give his structure an angular shape that defined the rectilinear tradition. And it's elevated. Today, under the building, there's a gas station. Significantly, the building is owned by, and houses offices of, Enerpetroli, a company that operates 150 gas stations in central Italy. 

Unfortunately, I have been unable to find other information about architect Valle. If you can contribute, please do!

Bill 

Rome's Public Markets: a Cautionary Tale

Rome's neighborhoods remain vibrant communities in most respects, in part because the big box stores and malls that have damaged American cities are generally located far on the city's outskirts. Yet we have noticed that one element of the traditional Roman neighborhood appears to be in trouble: the neighborhood's central market. 

Our first recognition of the problem emerged in San Lorenzo, where it was clear that the central market, and the local, traditional system of food distribution, was in difficulty. Roughly half that market had been replaced by tables and chairs for drinkers (mostly) and diners of nearby restaurants and bars. And the half that remained was only partially populated. Only one butcher--a 72 year old man--continues to practice the craft in San Lorenzo. We talked to him, and he bemoaned the fate of his trade. He had very few offerings compared to butcher shops we've seen in other neighborhoods. He clearly saw himself as the "last butcher in San Lorenzo." And we counted only two fresh fruit and vegetables shops in the area. 

More than half of San Lorenzo's public market is now tables and chairs--or empty.

Friends tell us that the new indoor market in Testaccio is also troubled--more cafés and bars than traditional market offerings. The newish Trionfale market appears to be suffering too, Several years ago, the outdoor/shed market at Quarto Miglio was transformed into a children's playground and a center for street art.

The Quarto Miglio market, on a Saturday, at noon, in 2019. Only one stand was open.

An elaborate program of street art had failed to revive the Quarto Miglio market

Something similar is happening more slowly in the area around Piazza Bologna, where the large indoor public market on via Catania has been serving the community for decades. The market is located in a densely populated area--apartment buildings of up to 10 stories--that ought to be capable of supporting even a large public market. 

 At first glance the market looks healthy. 

But there are empty stalls.

We decided to do a survey. We walked the market, Dianne counting the total number of stores and stalls, Bill counting the number of empty stores and stalls. It was 10:30 in the morning, when one would expect the market to be in full swing.

Dianne's results: 148 stores and stalls

Bill's results: 49 stores and stalls closed (roughly 1/3)

Unfortunately, it's likely that the story of the via Catania market--a story of decline--is being repeated across the city. Chain grocery stores, with expanded hours, are proliferating.  Many of the daily (and mostly women) shoppers that once had their mornings free to shop at the market are now working. Young Romans are getting married at an average age of 32--and then having few children, or none at all. Fewer households having regular meals, fewer families and fewer family members to shop for. And, of course, the supermarkets have taken business away from the public markets. The future looks grim.

Bill 

For other posts on public markets, of the many references on this blog, see the following:

On Testaccio's "new" market: https://www.romethesecondtime.com/2012/08/testaccios-new-market-rst-weighs-in.html

On our favorite public market: https://www.romethesecondtime.com/2010/02/rst-top-40-26-best-market-in-romepiazza.html

The Hunt for Paolo Portoghese's 1960 Modernist Capolavoro: Now the Jordanian Embassy in Rome (and going to the dogs)

 

This gorgeous and unusual building is one of the capolavori (masterworks) of renowned Italian starchitect Paolo Portoghese.

We went in search of it last year after Bill had read an article in La Repubblica in which Portoghese had, as the paper put it, given his "J'accuse" to the degradation of modern architecture, an architecture of which he was a leading proponent. As the famed architect put it, "L'architettura moderna lasciata in balia di vandali e degrado" - "Modern architecture has been left to the mercy of vandals and decay." His prime example was his own work, now the Jordanian Embassy in Rome.

The article ran on April 26 and Bill had us out 4 days later in the Piazza Bologna/Nomentana area searching for the building, about which we knew little, not even the address nor what it looked like. After a few false starts (taking photos of buildings with barely a modern touch, thinking they might be the one), we discovered this magnificent structure tucked into an ordinary neighborhood, not too far from one of Rome the Second Time's 15 itineraries in our 2009 book. (Too bad we missed it then!)

Tucked into a street of ordinary palazzi

We also missed Portoghese's passing only one month later, on May 30, 2023, at age 91. So consider this post an homage to him, whose buildings we've admired, among them the famous Rome mosque, which we wrote about 15 years ago, in the first year of this blog.

For security purposes, understandably, 
the embassy doesn't let one get close to
the building.

This gives you some sense of the difficulty
in seeing the whole building.

The palazzo - we now know - was built for a contractor's grandson in 1960, named Casa Papanice, and eventually passed into the hands of the Jordanian Embassy in Rome (whose shields you can see on the building exterior), which has kept it closed to the public, even walled off to the public, and, as Portoghese lamented, in a state of disrepair.

Another glimpse - but you have to
know to look.

Rusting walls

The use of rounded, cantilevered, balconies against vertical striped and molded walls is highly distinctive, and the colored tiles playful. 

Speaking of playful, we also didn't realize the palazzo (before the Jordanians) was featured in several films, including the unfortunately named 1970 "Pizza Triangle" (better in Italian - Dramma della gelosia or the alternative title, Jealousy, Italian Style) by Ettore Scola and starring Monica Vitti, Marcello Mastroianni, and Giancarlo Giannini. A still from the film accompanied the 2023 La Repubblica article.

And, as usual, we found a spot for coffee nearby - at the very friendly "Chill Out Cafe" on viale XXI Aprile, Just steps from via Nomentana.

As long as you are on viale XXI Aprile, walk a few steps and across the street to the immense Fascist-era housing block Palazzo Federici (by Mario De Renzi, 1931-37), where director Scola filmed one of his own masterworks, 1977's Una giornata particolare,with Mastroianni and Sophia Loren, set completely in that apartment block on the day in 1938 when Hitler visited Rome. (Film still below.)

Dianne

A New Stadium for A.S. Roma: a Walking Adventure in Rome's near-in Countryside

Rome's A.S. Roma football club has been looking to build a new stadium for years. One effort collapsed when it became clear that the location--Tor di Valle, to the southwest of the city--would produce traffic chaos whenever there was a game. The latest idea (and at this writing it seems more likely to come to fruition) is to place the new stadium in an area of (more or less) unused land, at the intersection of Tiburtino and Pietralata--and across some railroad tracks and a highway from Piazza Bologna. Here's a map, with the location of the proposed stadium at center left (inserted as if it's there, below the road, just above the red Metro sign and to the right of the large P).

In early May, we set out to have a look at the area--not a place we had ever been. We parked our scooter on via dei Durantini (to the best of my recollection) and it didn't take long to come across a "Centro Revisioni" (for getting your vehicle its yearly test), located in a shack-like building at via del Casale Quintiliani, 115.

Not far beyond, we discovered the isolated Quintiliani Metro station (and bus turnaround). Heading down into the station, we didn't see a single person. Nor did the bus, which turned around while we were there, drop anyone off or pick anyone up. If and when the stadium arrives, the station will be busier--at least during soccer season. See the map above for the location of the Metro station. 

Plenty of graffiti, but no passengers

Up a hill, there's a carrozzeria (a car repair place), in as remote a location as the Metro station. If you can get your car there, it doesn't need repair.

Then, more run-down buildings.

We found lots of open land, sprinkled with roads (some of them of fairly recent origin) that are no longer in use--a project or projects that never panned out.

Some nice views of the nearby "city" (Piazza Bologna in the distance)?

And lots of poppies on the roadsides.

A rusted sign that I later converted into "accidental art." Ala Georges Braque (I know: "he's no Braque")

A few more businesses, including this small iron and aluminum foundry, not far from the Tiburtina Metro and train station:

A tunnel in use, but to where?

Off via dei Monti Tiburtini, a path into the future stadium site (we did not take it). This is a not a street for pedestrians--no sidewalks; we had to run now and then to avoid being on the street. 

Turning off via dei Monti Tiburtini, we found a nice coffee shop, chatted with the owner about the prospect of a stadium nearby, and returned to our scooter. A grand adventure!

Bill 

Waiting Out the Coronavirus in Piazza Bologna

The fourth in our series of accounts of life in Rome under the coronavirus is by Chiara Midolo, who lives with her husband Massimo, and their two children in an apartment not far from the Tiburtina train station. Massimo teaches political science and other subjects at UNINT (a university on viale Cristoforo Colombo on the way to EUR); Chiara teaches English at the Liceo Statale Maria Montessori (a high school near Piazza Vescovio). Their son Luca, 20, is studying physics at La Sapienza; all his classes now are taught online. Irene, 17 in May, is in her third year at Liceo Pilo Albertelli, near Santa Maria Maggiore.
 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Waiting Out the Coronavirus in Piazza Bologna

by Chiara Midolo  (3/27/2020-3/28/2020)

March 27th, and I’ve already lost count of the number of days since the beginning of the lockdown.

At first, I thought I was going to have a lot of free time but, as things turned out, I don’t.

Partly because teaching has become more challenging, what with keeping track of technologies I’ve never needed so far, reassuring students that, Yes, It’s OK to send their homework via WhatsApp –AGAIN--planning the next class with my colleague Susan, or trying to come up with a weekly schedule we can all agree on.

Partly because, being at home 24/7, just the four of us (plus Pepper [the dog]), means spending part of our days actually TALKING to each other. Seriously, sometimes, as when the kids discussed at length whether anything that matters can (or will) actually be explained by science (Luca) or if it is precisely what science can’t account for that matters more (Irene).  Sometimes, on the other hand, our conversations are just silly, and we laugh a lot.

We watch some TV, but only in the evening (Netflix, mostly); Irene and I are watching "Doctor Who" and having a lot of fun.

I’ve been working out every day (thank god for YouTube fitness videos), and Massimo has joined me in the last couple of days. In the first phase, when parks were still open, the kids used to go jogging in Villa Torlonia, but all parks are locked now. Then of course we take Pepper out, but that’s just for 10 minutes 3 times a day.

Market at Piazza dei Vespri Siciliani

Queuing at the market

Shopping for food is a bit of a problem. The farmers’ market (above) has been shut for a few days, then fenced and opened again, but only a few people at a time are admitted to the stalls, so there is always a line. So, I text my shopping list to my favorite (Moroccan) greengrocer, and then send Luca.  Once a week or so, one of us goes to the supermarket (only 1 member for each household is admitted). There is a long line to get in, and a certain furtive air in everyone, as we all go about our business
to pick it up. Same with the butcher. We make our own bread, but that’s not new.

This is the thing I dislike the most. When I’m out walking the dog, for example, I follow the unspoken rule of crossing the street every time I see someone coming from the opposite direction. And that seems sensible. But I can’t for the life of me see the reason why most people avoid even GLANCING at passers-by, as though a simple look might infect them.

The Italian flag joins the laundry

The singing and dancing at the windows at 6 pm was short-lived. As the number of casualties increased, most people felt there was little use for that; so the neighborhood is very silent. What’s become more frequent, at least in my daily routine, is video calls with 3-5 friends or relatives round 7 pm, just in time for “aperitivo virtuale”.

Chiara's street, now decorated with Italian flags--a new
phenomenon for Rome

As I write this, Luca comes back from Policlinico Umberto Primo, where he went early this morning to donate blood. His temperature was taken before the donation, and he was given a face mask and asked to sanitize his hands, but other than that everything was normal. On his way home, I asked him to stop at the pharmacy to get me some aspirin, but the queue was very long.

A sign on via Apuania. "To all doctors and nurses: Thank you! You are the pride of Italy. You are not alone: have strength and we'll get through this. We are staying home."

My brother and his wife, up in Torino, are in all probability infected: about a week ago my sister-in-law’s mother was hospitalized, tested positive, and is likely to die soon. They both have all the symptoms, but no tests are available, so they are quarantined, a bit shaken, but trying to keep their spirits up. There is nothing to do but wait, so we wait….

Ballad of the Aegean Sea: Patrizio Nissirio's new Historical Mystery

A little-known World War II war crime on a Greek Island is a major focus of a fascinating first novel by Patrizio Nissirio, an accomplished journalist and author.

The book's title, Una Ballata del Mare Egeo/A Ballad of the Aegean Sea, does not reveal its ties to Rome. However, the novel's protagonist, himself a young journalist, was born and raised in Rome's Piazza Bologna area (the setting for two of Rome the Second Time's 15 itineraries).  And it is from this mid-century, middle-class quartiere of Rome that the story unfolds. The journalist-protagonist, like the author, is of Greek descent, and he traces his family's history back to those Greek Islands that were the last part of Greece to be reclaimed - in 1945 -  after Italy invaded Greece and the Axis powers then occupied it.

Nissirio expertly weaves the story of Italians on the Greek Islands in World War II with present-day desires to explore one's family roots and the origins of right-wing nostalgia.  The mystery is fascinatingly complex and fun to follow.  Even more fascinating for me is the history on which the novel is based.  The book definitely will appeal to those who like "true crime" stories.

Nissirio's visceral love for Greece jumps from the pages of the book, as does his knowledge of the Greek islands.  These islands even today bear witness to significant signs of Italian colonization (if I can call it that), with their Fascist-era town plans and buildings that remain.

Kudos to Nissirio for a story well-told, history well-revived, and a good read.

Ah, yes, the question of language.  The book to date is available only in Italian, from amazon.it.  For those of us whose knowledge of the language is less than perfect, it is a surprisingly easy read.  And hopefully a translation and movie rights are in the book's future!

Una Ballata del Mare Egeo is available on amazon.it.

Patrizio Nissirio

Nissirio has spent most of his career with ANSA, the Italian news service, with long assignments (as in 4-6 years) in Washington, DC., Athens, and London. He is director of ANSAMed,  ANSA's multilingual information service for the Mediterranean.   He has written several nonfiction books, including one on the Greek economy.  Full disclosure: Patrizio Nissirio is a long-time friend of ours.  He helped us secure Walter Veltroni's (then a recent mayor of Rome) introduction to Rome the Second Time.  And, he introduced us to much of the Piazza Bologna area.

Dianne

Rome Aperitivo Hour: 4 RST "bar" picks.

The tasty "tagliata" at Panificio Nazzareno in Piazzale di Ponte Milvio.

For this go-round – after our trattorie recommendations previously, we are taking a second look at some quick bite places – no slow food here. Two bars that have food and two bakeries that have bars.  As with the trattorie, these are in 4 very different neighborhoods, one in the centro, 1 north of the centro (Piazza Bologna area), and 2 on the other side of the Tevere.

First, the very sweet place in the photo above right is Vesper Cafè and Enoteca, a few blocks from Piazza Bologna.  We were taken there by friends who know the young woman owner and who frequent the spot for its cocktails (mojitos are popular) and filled sandwiches.  You can see from the photos and postings on Facebook that it's a fan favorite.  Some of the tables are outside and look out over a small piazza.  Trip Advisor has a lot of reviews.  Yelp only ones in Italian.  Piazza Massa Carrara 5, 342 553 5344 (that's cell phone; no 06). 

Second, a take-out/eat-in coffee bar, bakery and buffet-type eatery all in one, this in the heart of Trastevere.  Giselda on viale di Trastevere, # 52/58, right at the corner of via San Francesco a Ripa.  Also, a killer Euro 10 buffet with wine.  Yep, RST's kind of place.  Perfect for before or after movies at the Alcazar or Nuovo Sacher.  [See glowing reviews on TripAdvisor,Yelp and Facebook.  Its own Web site is one page with basic info and the slogan, in English (!), "Your home away from home."  We did not see one tourist there.]  

The attractive outside seating at Panificio Nazzareno

Third, if you are in the Ponte Milvio area (across the Tevere from the north end of Flaminio, near Foro Italico), a true trendy hot spot for Romen's nightlife, try Panificio Nazzareno, a bakery that thinks it's a restaurant that thinks it's a bar, and for us, an outside aperitivo.

Panificio Nazzareno's restaurant before dinner hour.

We enjoyed the Ponte Milvio buzz earlier in the evening (not when it gets crazy, late night) and Panificio Nazzareno’s excellent breads and “tagliate” – slices of cheese and meats, with wine, all reasonably priced.  Some drastically different reviews on  various food Web sites, including Foursquare. http://www.yelp.com/biz/panificio-nazzareno-roma  http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187791-d4756623-Reviews-Panificio_Nazzareno-Rome_Lazio.html.  Piazzale di Ponte Milvio, 35; tel:  06 33220720.

The crazy car traffic, not to mention the people, in Piazzale
di Ponte Milvio.

Last, a straight-forward bar.  Caffè Perù, in the Centro Storico, is an old-time favorite of RST's.  Maybe it's the cheap buffet aperitivo (with wine, of course), or the highly decorated bathroom, or the crowd that tends to grab stools and chairs and sit outside, literally in the street.  Not without ex-pats, but definitely a local locale.  

Caffè Perù does not have the wine list of nearby Il Goccetto, but it's a wonderful pit-stop after a day of seeing sights in the Centro.  (See TripAdvisor and Yelp.  It even rates a review on Slowtravel Italy; not he does not provide the correct address.)  Via Monseratto, 46, 2 steps from Piazza Farnese and around the corner from Camp de' Fiori.  Open every day pretty much all day.  tel: 06 6879548.  

Dianne