Exploring Roman Neighborhoods with Anna
While living here in Rome, we have the chance to get to know not only the central part of Rome, but also the neighborhoods and less touristy spots of the city. This is one of the advantages of living with a host family and being emerged into the Italian life. Also, on various Fridays throughout our semester here in Rome, the program assistant, Anna, takes us to a different neighborhood in Rome, so that we can get to know the neighborhoods where other students live and become familiar with ones other than our own. These outings are optional, but I like to participate because I think it’s useful to get to know the other areas outside of central Rome. Anna walks us through the featured neighborhood, showing us places to eat and shop, as well as other things to do in the given area.
The second Friday we were here in Rome was our first night out, and we went to Parioli, which is a neighborhood north of the city, and pretty close to where I live. Anna walked the students to the restaurant where we would eat, called Disco Volante (“Flying Disc”) because it’s a pizzeria. My roommate, Katherine, and I had gone home to drop off our school bags, and so we took a taxi to meet them at the restaurant (we couldn’t use a bus unfortunately because of a transportation strike that day). We had a nice dinner; I ate an interesting Italian smoked cheese dish as well as gnocchi with a tomato sauce. For dessert, I got a very tasty piece of amaretto chocolate cake. Another special dessert that the restaurant had was this ice cream truffle ball, which came in white chocolate and dark chocolate varieties. The white one had a coffee center and white chocolate shavings on the outside, and the dark one had cocoa on the outside and a white center. Some of my friends got these, and I had a bite; they were amazing! We also got wine and waters for all to share.
The bill was surprisingly only a little over 10 Euro a person, which was significantly less than a lot of the meals we’d had at restaurants so far. That’s another advantage to getting to know the neighborhoods: food and shopping outside the center of the city is a lot better priced, less touristy, and oftentimes mom and pop businesses with great homemade food.
After dinner, a group of us headed to a nearby “American” pub and restaurant, called the Crazy Bull (named after an American beer), for beer or cocktails. The cocktails were interesting, because they were made with fresh fruit, and done slowly for better quality, unlike the typical hurried style of packed pubs in other places. I tried a strawberry daiquiri, which was blended with fresh strawberries, rather than a daiquiri mix, and it was sooo good! After socializing for awhile, we headed back home via taxi.
The following Friday night, Anna took us to San Lorenzo, which is southeast of our school, near Termini station. We met her outside of Termini, and then walked to a little trattoria to eat. The restaurant was a little family-run business, and a good place to practice our Italian, as none of the employees know English. I tried the spinach-ricotta stuffed ravioli with cream sauce, which was delicious! Our table also shared a couple orders of oven fried potatoes, which were good. And the dinner was so cheap! It was the kind of restaurant that we’re always looking to find (family run, don’t speak English, good prices), but never can in the heart of Rome, where everything’s so touristy and expensive. It was nice to have a quality, from scratch authentic Italian meal at a great price. That’s what we love about having a local, Anna, show us around the neighborhoods. She lets us know of some of the best places to eat for tasty food and budget-friendly prices.
After dinner, we went for dessert at a pasticeria (pastry shop). I tried three different little pastries, which were really interesting and good. We passed a creperia (crepe restaurant) as we were walking through the town, which some of us made plans to return to in the future! Overall, I thoroughly enjoy our nights out with Anna and appreciate the tips she gives us. And I like spending evenings outside the Centro Storico of Rome, where we can get away from the tourist spots and go where the locals do. To me, that’s what studying abroad is all about: trying to see and live in a place more like a local than a tourist.
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