Navona Square apartment, Rome: Banchi Nuovi Terrace - Tips and Area

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Piazza Navona:

this vast, oval, piazza provides a beautiful Baroque backdrop for the everyday goings-on of modern Roman life, and is filled from dawn until well after dusk with excited kids, grumpy old men, critical caricaturists, multilingual fortune-tellers, pesky pickpockets and gelati-licking tourists. The square has the exact shape of the original built by emperor Domitian in a.d. 86. It started as a stadium and hosted many of Rome’s more savoury sports like jousting, javelin and racing up until the 15^th century when it was paved over. It then became the city’s main market for almost three centuries. Navona’s centrepiece is Bernini’s magnificent Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi, completed in 1651 and depicting the Nile, Ganges, Danube and Rio Plata rivers, which represented the then-known four continents of the world. Facing the fountain is the Chiesa Sant’Agnese in Agone, designed by Bernini’s bitter rival, Borromini. Any of the sidewalk cafés that surround the square provide a perfect front-row seat for unsurpassed people-watching any hour of the day or night. Be prepared to be quick or to fight for a table on Piazza Navona. The neighbourhood around the square is also known as one of the most expensive patches of real estate in Rome. The square plays host to a characteristic Epiphany toy-fair.

 

For exibitions in a wonderful setting don’t miss:

Chiostro del Bramante: Via della Pace tel. +39 06 68809035 (http://www.chiostrodelbramante.it/index.php?res=1024&page=dart.php). Stunning cafeteria too tel. +39 06 68809035 (http://www.chiostrodelbramante.it/index_caffetteria_new.php?page=book.php&res=1024)

For bars and restaurants:

Bar della Pace: Via della Pace, 5 tel. +39-06-6861216. Gorgeous corner bar good for an early-evening aperitif outside in summer and great for a nightcap inside in winter.

 

Jonathan’s Angel: Via della Fossa, 18 tel. +39-06-6893426. Run by a flamboyant artist and ex acrobat, the whole bar is plastered with colorful decoration and paintings, and has the most spectacular loo in the city. It’s fun and relaxed place with a cabaret feel even when there’s no show.

 

Cul de Sac: Piazza Pasquino, 73 tel. +39-06-68801094. Popular wine bar - near Piazza Navona - is among the city’s oldest enoteche and a book-length selection of wines. Food is eclectic, ranging from a huge assortment of Italian meats and cheeses (try the delicious lonza, cured pork loin, or speck, a northern Italian smoked prosciutto) to various Mediterranean dishes, including delicious baba ghanoush, a tasty Greek salad, and a spectacular wild boar pâté. Outside tables get crowded fast, so arrive early, or come late, as they serve until about 1 AM.

Al Bric: Via del Pellegrino, 51 tel. +39-06-687 9533. Just off Campo de’ Fiori, this wine bar/trattioria reeks with old world character, from the vaulted ceiling to the walls, decorated with wine labels. Bi-frontal windows, open to passing foot-traffic, display an incomparable selection of French and Italian cheeses, home-made grissini (bread sticks), foie gras, patè and a list of French and Italian wines selected by owner Roberto Marchetti. The menu features unusual flavor combinations, such as Roman pecorino cheese paired with chestnuts in a maccheroni sauce, or sword fish Strogonoff seasoned with thyme. Among the divine desserts, our favorite is a confection of chestnuts with cinnamon cream.

For clothes stores: go to Via del Governo Vecchio a narrow bustling street that is right accross Corso Vittorio Emanuele. Where all the new trendiest designers want to open a shop.

Full of inviting storefronts stand shoulder to shoulder, but unlike much of the city, there’s an absence of big labels of the Via Condotti. Small fancy boutiques and highest density of one-off fashion emporiums that tempt a specific kind of shopper — the young, trendy, affluent kind.

You will find stores like S.B.U, Luna & L’Altra (Piazza Pasquino, 76; tel. +39-06-6880-4995), Josephine de Huertas & Company (Via del Governo Vecchio, 68; tel. +39-06-687-6586), which sells bright, irreverent shirt dresses and candy-hued blouse. They are also the exclusive seller of Paul Smith Women in Italy. Check also out Arsenale (Via del Governo Vecchio, 64; tel.+39-06-686-1380) for something elegant. Structured gowns and floor-length skirts made by its owner, Patrizia Pieroni, (recently on sale for 310 euros) look more like sculpture than something you’d wear. Visit then Paola Frani (Via del Governo Vecchio, 33; tel. +39-06-68301537), a designer who made a name for herself with girlie tops and floral dresses. For classic secondhand garments go at Vestiti Usati Cinzia (Via del Governo Vecchio, no. 45; tel. +39-06-6861791. Beautiful sweaters and coat can also be found at Maga Morgana (Via de Governo Vecchio, no. 27; tel. +39-06-6879995).

For notable nonclothing stores check: Alchemilla (Via del Governo Vecchio, 11; tel. +39-06-6871163), which feels like Takashimaya in miniature with its small, chic silk flowers, and Utilefutile (Via del Governo Vecchio, 20/a; tel. +39-06-68809488) a place for huge, funky stone rings (from 35 euros) and useless but clever novelty handbags (from 40 euros). For a very special travel bookstore - full of atmosphere - don’t miss La Libreria del Viaggiatore (Via del Pellegrino, 78).

For Art Deco necklaces and bakelite brooches have a look at Tempi Moderni (Via del Governo Vecchio, 108) or if you want to save going directly at source of jewels and bijoux go to "San Giacomo", Via dei Reti, 23 (San Lorenzo district), telephone +39-06-44360554. Craftman jewellery at wholesaler prices. In this laboratory you can see hand-made production of the finest jewels and high-end bijoux.

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