Piazza: the place for Italian living

                       Thus far my trip in Rome has brought me constantly to the same type of places; piazzas. What I have learned, from doing my favorite thing in the world, people watching, is that people come to the piazza to get away from the day and to gather for letting go of their problems. A couple of days ago, a classmate and I went to meet our teacher in the Piazza del Popolo around 7:30 or 8:00 at night and it was almost amazing what I saw. During the day the piazza is filled with tourists taking pictures and being annoying to the locals; however, at night all the locals come out to eat dinner, get a sprits, and just hangout with friends and family. I feel like there is no place like this around where I live but I guess I do the same kind of thing when my whole family just gets together for a picnic or dinner, it is BYOB, and a bonfire concludes our night.

                       Looking at it from a historical prospective, many of the readings that we have read deal with piazzas. After reading about Margaret Fuller, an American transcendentalist from the mid- 19^th century, as a class we went to the Piazza del Popolo to try to imagine her life during this time. Another historical reference that traveled to this piazza was Frederick Douglass, an African-American abolitionists then black activist in the late 19^th century. These people traveled to Rome and wanted to experience the Rome that they had heard of from great writers and other travelers.

                       Meshing together these two thoughts, when looking at the motives for people coming to a piazza seems to be the same; it’s a great place to be seen, have fun, and be in the action. When I went into the piazza there were young people just hanging out with their friends, families walking to dinner, and a band on a stage playing as entertainment for the people passing by. When Margaret Fuller was in the piazza, she was experiencing the beginnings of the Roman revolution and enjoyed the sight of men, young and old, coming together to create a better place for themselves and their families. As for Frederick Douglass, his time was spent looking down on the piazza. Douglass climbed Pincian Hill to overlook the piazza and the whole city of Rome.  He was moved by the sight of St. Peter’s dome in the distance and also by the elegance of the piazza and the city skyline.

                       All three of us, traveling to Rome at different times, had wondered to the piazza for a similar reason; it is where all the action is and where one can become part of the Italian culture. I have been to this piazza many times but, like I said before, I had never experienced it at night with the band playing and people just hanging out. I could actually get a feel of the Italian culture because so many families come out and it is authentic. I feel almost like going to the piazza during the day is when “fake” Italians; or rather tourists trying to be Italian come out.  I would recommend, just as Douglass would, to visit the piazzas at night to really experience Roman culture and to see how the majesty of the city resonates through the people that reside here.