luglio a roma

A few re-edits and some new images of sweltering Rome

piazza farnese

Don't stop in Campo de' Fiori! Escape the market and tourist chaos, and find some respite in the quieter and breathtaking Piazza Farnese, with its twin marble basin fountains, and the stunning Palazzo: one of the most important High Renaissance palaces in Rome. It currently serves as the French embassy in Italy.

First designed in 1517 for the Farnese family, the structure was altered when Alessandro Farnese became Pope in 1534, to designs by Antonio da Sangallo the Younger. Its building history involved some of the most prominent Italian architects of the 16th century, including Michelangelo, Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola, and Giacomo della Porta.

basilica di san pietro

caldo

It's asphalt-melting hot these days in the Eternal City. Today we even had a mini-earthquake to shake us from our heat-induced lethargy. More and more people are leaving for their summer vacation, so streets are emptying out, and traffic is thinning.
This pictured above is a typical Sunday afternoon situation in my neighborhood (which is usually quite active during the week): me racing my son to the gelato shop.
He always wins, must be the training wheels.

giorno e notte

taken on the same day

Back in the Eternal City.

toscana {5}

pommarola

Every summer, we harvest crates and crates of vine-ripened tomatoes picked fresh from the vegetable garden. And we make so much pommarola–canned tomato sauce–to last us a whole year. We actually still have lots leftover from last summer...

You can read more about this labor intensive yearly task (and step-by-step recipe) in this post

In the meantime, Buon Ferragosto!

estate

{in the city}

In the summer Italians leave the city, headed for vacationland. This year sandal and sunhat season came blazing sooner and warmer than ever. Rome once used to be wonderfully breezy. But that was before huge constructed behemoths in the suburbs totally blocked the sweet evening "Ponentino" westerly wind that come 6 pm, would descend from the hills every day, to bring Romans a little relief.

As the summer progresses, more and more people will leave the city. So streets will slowly begin to empty out, traffic diluted. Apartment buildings will be silent, mailboxes stuffed to full capacity. The warm hum and exhaust of air conditioning engines will finally be switched off. Business will shut down, and many restaurants and shops will hang the familiar "Chiuso per Ferie" (closed for the holidays) sign. Crowded airless busses and subways will be a distant memory. And, finally, in mid August–peak vacation season–the city will be a livable and actually fresher paradise again.

In the meantime, July is hotter than Hades.