Rome is More.

I have been lucky enough to live in many cities around the world, to know many international people and to speak various languages, but there is one thing I have never been able to learn: the Roman dialect.

I tried to apply myself in this activity between one trip and another, doing long cinematic full immersions on weekends, to try to assimilate a bit of authentic Romanism through the famous and colorful expressions of famous roman actors like Verdone, Sordi and Proietti. For a long time, due to my “linguistic” difficulty, I felt a bit like a “tourist at home”.

I still remember the amused reaction of the owner of a restaurant in Trastevere where I was having dinner several years ago with some friends. As soon as he heard me say that I was a Roman, he stopped in the middle of the room and blurted out: “yeah sure, I would not even believe it if I see you on television”.

Now that I live in Testaccio I really need to learn some Roman dialect, to prove to that gentleman that you can still be Roman and love your city even if you look a little Nordic and you have the manners of a French.

Blessed who has one eye.

There is no question on the beauty of Rome. It is a city that enchants the view with its warm light and wonders in the open, but at the same time it frustrates those who live and work there due to its great limitations and serious inefficiencies.

Despite this, it is impossible not to love her and wish for her rebirth, to be able to appreciate her even more.

The clean streets of Switzerland, the bureaucratic efficiency of the Germans, the culture of the French, the simplicity of the Americans, the sound of London … Not even one of these experiences lived abroad has managed to make me forget the beauty of Rome.

The heart never goes wrong.

When it comes to making important choices, the heart always commands.  This is why I chose to live in Rome.  It is the city where I really feel at home and that makes my heart beat, especially at sunset when the walls of historic buildings are magically tainted with orange and pink.

I have been to London, Paris, New York, Frankfurt, Washington, Istanbul, Vienna, Ottawa, Luxembourg, Bruxelles, but I always wanted to come back to Rome. And now that I live here for good, I feel that I made it, because like the roman poet Stefano Agostino says (no translation possible):

chi s’accontenta, gode … dice er detto, io m’accontento sì d’arzà ‘sta coppa, pe te ch’è ‘na coppetta … quant’è troppa la tua rosicata dentro ar petto…

Let’s wake up.

It is too easy to rest on its laurels, especially when it comes to Rome. Its beauty can overshadow everything else, putting it in the background. The real challenge for citizens and institutions is to commit to transforming it from the eternal city to a true city of the future: contemporary, inclusive, efficient, clean and green.

Words that often scare, because now even tourists are used to consider the dirt and neglect of Rome as an aspect of its folklore. But those who love this city cannot accept it.

It is easy to say that the city is beautiful without doing anything to preserve it and enhance its beauty.It is equally easy to say that it is because of bad politics if we are the first to disrespect it. If we continue like this, there will be “no tripe for cats” (roman expression used for there’s no option).

Rome deserves more from all of us. From its citizens. From its institutions. And from the millions of tourists who visit it every day. It is not just a question of civilization and urban decor but of cultural regeneration, because as the great Alberto Sordi said:

Rome is not like any other city. It is a big museum, a living room to be crossed on tiptoe

This weekend let’s take a ride together.

As an ancient Roman proverb says, “all roads lead to Rome”. A city that has inspired and welcomed photographers, directors, artists, writers,  and poets from all over the world, attracted by its incredible beauty and also by its intense  and magical colors, such as purple red, imperial gold, the white of statues,  the black of the bronzes, the ocher yellow and the verdigris.

Among these, my favorite is the ocher yellow, vibrant and carefree in all its shades. A color that I have chosen to rename with the fancy term “Romange”, to express its strong link with the city. Ranieri, my twin brother, loved that color and managed to  grasp its intensity in every drawing and canvas he made.

If you want to discover a different face of Rome, I have prepared a particular photographic tour dedicated to the colors of the city  that you will find on my Instagram and Facebook channels.

C’mon, it’s FRAday!