Writing Assignment 6 - Solo Trip to Piazza Campo de' Fiore

My first experience with Campo de' Fiore was with Jackie and a few other RomeKids, when she brought us to lunch down that way. According to her, the pizza and sandwiches are the best you can get for lunch. I also had my first Italian suppli, or rice ball, down there. They're much better in Italy than they are in the US!

We walked into the Campo de' Fiore from the Typewriter. As we entered, we saw stall after stall, selling fresh fruit, vegetables, other food goods, and knick knacks. Wandering through the market was phenomenal. I could see myself buying fresh food from them every day if I lived around there. The prices were great too! Maria bought just under a pound of strawberries for 2.50 euro (just around $3.50 - try finding those prices at P-Chops!). They were spectacular too... so sweet and juicy. I'm sure all the fresh food is like that. Another American University is just around the corner, so the people there are very used to speaking English (which, honestly, almost all Italians are). 

My first impressions of the Campo de’ Fiore were that it was loud, noisy, busy, crowded. But people were laughing and enjoying themselves. It was clear that the sellers liked being there and liked what they were doing. And they were all so friendly and not pushy at all! Even the tourist trap sellers (those who attempt to sell useless things over priced to tourists) weren’t nearly as pushy as they were any place else you find them. I don’t particularly like being in large crowds with a bunch of people surrounding me, but this was enjoyable. I liked walking around the markets, looking at all the goods they were selling.

There really is no place to sit in the Campo de’ Fiore. They had set up an awning for something near the restaurant where we bought our lunches, so we camped out there and enjoyed our food. The bustle of the people in both the markets and the surrounding stores was a bit stressful to be a part of, but entertaining to watch.

At night, it’s a completely different space. All the tables and stalls that are set up for the market are gone, and it’s a completely open space. The bars and restaurants spread their chairs and tables out further into the plaza to make more room for the customers. There’s a statue in the center of the plaza which I didn’t even notice when the stalls were up. The plaza is full of people socializing and having a good time.

Night time Campo de’ Fiore is completely different that it’s daytime counterpart. My impression of the night time space is that it was relaxed, slow, a much different kind of noisy. It still had that enjoyable, fun feel. It was a place that I wanted to continue to be at.

I think the Campo de’ Fiore is the epitome of Roman life, or at least what I think it is: enjoyable, fun, friendly, sociable. It was also bizarre to see how the same place can become so different at night. It’s definitely a place I want to return to before we have to leave!