Ciao da Roma

 We have beautiful autumn days in Rome which are absolutely perfect for wandering around - sunny days and crisp cool/cold nights. We have done a bit of shopping and lots of walking.
Yesterday we walked up to Gianicolo and took lots of photos,

 Glimpses of the city through the trees

 Views across the centro storico of Rome

 St Peter's Basillica

 We also went to see the Tempietto di Bramante which I've wanted to see for ages.  The Tempietto is in the courtyard between the Chiesa di San Pietro in Montorio  and the Spanish embassy.  The chiesa was supposedly built on the site where Saint Peter was crucified but unfortunately it was closed, luckily the Tempietto was open.

Bramante's tempietto is considered to be one of the great buildings of the world

 On the way back down from Gianicolo Rob had the best arancini that he has ever had from a tiny Sicillian shop in Via Garibaldi in Trastevere. We'll be going back so I'll post the address then.  It is about a 4km walk from our hotel, but it is worth it :)

We had to stop in to Santa Maria in Trastevere whilst we were close by.  I love this church.

There was a strike/ union rally for call centre workers in Piazza del Popolo last night.  The various divisions of police with their anti-riot gear and massive vans  nearly outnumbered the protesters. From what I understood, regional call center workers are likely to lose their jobs and it seems as though there will be a centralization and outsourcing of services. There were representatives from Sardegna, Milano, Calabria, Sicilia and other places not mentioned by the MC.  The manifestazione was called La Notte Bianca and it looked as though it was going to be a 24 hour demonstration.

There were some good bands playing and we stayed for a while but left after an hour or so when it looked like the speeches were going to be lasting for ages.

Venezia in nero, bianco e molto grigio

There was heavy fog (nebbia) today and in the early morning visibility was very low. We wandered around shopping and taking  photos.  I thought it was a black and white day for photos.

 We often sit at this spot near the Rialto for an aperitivo in the evening

Piazza Del Fico, Rome

 A left leaning water fountain

 Gaffer tape fixes everything :)

The concierge at the hotel told us about a great little restaurant in Piazza del Fico near Piazza Navona called Da Francesco. They specialise in Roman food it was very good - we went twice :)

 Piazza del Fico with two groups of men playing chess

 The guys were very intent on their game and there were encouraging spectators

Striscia la Notizia take 2

Once again we came across a Striscia crew while we were walking back to our apartment.  I shamelessly posed for a photo with Giampaolo Fabrizio, another regular on Striscia