Summer Letter: A wine journalist on the nine bars worth your summer in Rome
Elisa Amorelli on why Rome might just be the best wine city in the world, and where to drink in it.
Radar Essay: Adriano Bacconi: “Italian Football has become one big Minestrone”
The World Cup is about to begin without the Azzurri. Again. Match analyst Adriano Bacconi thinks the real problem is not talent, but a country that no longer knows how to develop it.
Editor’s note
What started as a weekly digital newsletter on Substack – a curated guide to the 10 best cultural happenings in Rome each week – has now taken a physical form.
REBUILD THE VILLAGE! Ernest Bisgrove on why the future of cities may start at neighbourhood level
Ernest Bisgrove belongs to a generation of Italians often described as cervelli in fuga – literally, brains on the run. For many, departure was simply what you did. Bisgrove left Rome for Milan, then London, then Barcelona. Returning changed how he saw the city.
San Lorenzo: The New Art District?
In San Lorenzo, a dense network of artist-run spaces, studios and cultural initiatives has taken shape within just half a square kilometre, building on a long tradition of self-organised art rooted in the neighbourhood.
At the Heart of the Rebel City
Nearly two millennia ago, before paved streets and a buzzing nightlife, the landscape outside the Aurelian walls was mostly fields. The views were interrupted only by the Basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le mura, built on the grave of the martyr Saint Lawrence (whose Italian name was, you guessed it, San Lorenzo).
KITCHEN ALIMENTARI: A conversation with Tania Fauci
We ask for a table. The room is full.
Tania Fauci looks up, reaches for a notebook, writes down a name and says to come back in fifteen minutes. No phone number, no app, no hostess desk. Just paper, pen and a system that exists entirely in her head.
What Does Roman Statues Have to Do With Feminism?
At Sapienza University, a protest against gender-based violence sparked a wider debate about culture, tradition, and accountability in contemporary Italy. Set against a backdrop of recent femicides and legal reform, the essay argues that while the law increasingly recognises structural violence against women, the roots of the problem remain embedded in enduring social norms that cannot be legislated away.
The anatomy of San Lorenzo: A guided drift
The Aurelian Walls mark the southern edge. The cemetery of Verano, the largest in Rome, marks the east. Between them: one of the city's most stubbornly alive places. What follows is a selection of what’s worth coming back for, from somebody who lives in San Lorenzo.