Things to do while in Rome...

The Dissonanze people were bringing a lot of electronic performers into the city (Mego/Mille Plateaux stuff) - they had an annual festival, but I think it's changed names. It's worth exploring the centri sociali - the one down in the old slaughterhouse in Testaccio is fantastic, both as a venue and for who they pull in. There was a club next to it called Blu Cheese that brought in electro - I-F & D'Arcangelo, that sort of thing.

The summer festival season should be underway - there should be posters everywhere - San Lorenzo & Testaccio pull up the most interesting things.

listen to radio italia network in the meantime!
http://www.rin.it/

I'm sure you can find plenty to do just by wandering around. That's my general approach to new cities/countries. I just wander around, taking in the ambiance. But that's me. You might not get much done.

I have a six hour stopover in Rome tomorrow morning until the afternoon. What's cool to check out walking distance near Stazione Termini? Ruins, ancient structures and nice food suggestions welcome.

Oh, wait. i thought this was an ILE question. Apologies (but please answer anyway).

IIRC Stazione Termini is in a shady part of Roma, but maybe that's wrong. I remember being advised to ride the metro from there rather than walk. But from Stazione Termini you can ride the metro to the Colosseum or the Forum really easily.

you can ride the metro to the Colosseum or the Forum

this sounds so bizarre

hah I know

yeah, the Termini area is relatively shady, and mostly just dull, honestly. Except the Museo Nazionale is pretty close by. But if you only have a few hours, you'd probably be happier taking the metro to the Colosseum (colosseo) or the Circo Massimo stop (which is close to the Forum), if i recall, etc.

I was in Rome last year just a couple blocks down Via Urbana from Termini. For a easy walking tour take the metro from Termini to the Colosseum. From the Colosseum it's an easy walk to Trajan's Column and Piazza Venezia along Via dei Fori Imperiali. From there you can zig-zag over to the Pantheon and the Piazza della Minerva (one of my fave things in Rome is the elephant statue there). From there, walk over to the Parliment building and then up to Via del Tritone. The Spanish Steps are near the Spagna station, otherwise you can head direct to the Barberini station and then back to Termini.

There's a fantastic gelato place six blocks down from Termini on Via Cavour, but one thing we discovered is that the best food in Rome is whatever cafe you happen to be in front of. EVERYTHING there is great - even the cafeteria inside Termini is terrific. There's a great bookstore there too.

You can buy a fucking expensive ice cream and then drop it on the pavement.

"Stazione Termini is in a shady part of Roma"

Yes, it is. Be careful with your wallets!

I'm going to Rome next week, believe it or not. Maybe I should make a list of these things to do.

Any good record shops in Rome these days?

lol just coming here to ask this^

anyone?

Oh hey I'll be there next month. I mostly want to know about food recommendations, but this looks like a pretty great music festival: http://springattitude.it/en/

food: pizzarium, boccione, supplizio, http://luckypeach.com/guides/where-to-get-the-best-pizza-in-rome-katie-parla/
gelato: fatamorgana, carapina

Thanks! That Lucky Peach article is great.

I went to Pizzarium a couple of years ago, it was really stressful because it's tiny and there are a zillion pizzas to choose from and it's crowded so you have to choose really quickly, but it was also delicious.

definitely check out the Pantheon... hidden in the middle of the city, perfectly preserved (unlike the Colosseum, it was never abandoned or looted). going to the Colosseum is such a trip, worth it to pay extra to get a guide to skip out on most of the lines. if you want to go to the Vatican, you've got to buy tix days in advance and get up at like 5 in the morning, it's a whole thing. i definitely regret not planning ahead and going there. spanish steps too. ahhh anyway i have no idea if you've already been to Rome before and done all this, when I was there I did my best to find clubs and record stores but had no luck.

most wild thing about Rome was that everyone eats pastries for breakfast.

recommend going to either palazzo colonna or palazzo doria pamphilj too. they're right in the city centre and really cool

the airport we flew out of was sweet - cool uniforms

Btw not to take over the thread, but I'm going to be in Italy for a couple weeks and have a very flexible itinerary (basically playing it by ear), so any other recommendations are welcome.

if you're in Rome, must-see:

Colosseum
Pantheon
Spanish Steps
Forum
Vatican
Galleria Borghese

i wd also recommend caracalla's baths. going outside the centre a bit to Garbatella is worthwhile, plus you get to go to the ristoro degli angeli -

http://www.ristorodegliangeli.it/

speaking of Garbatella - if you're into, ah, ideologically-driven architecture you might want to go to EUR.

bar necci in pignetto used to be favourite haunt, but the whole vibe has changed round there - gentrification - the bastards shut down my favourite la porchetta restaurant (v cheap, benches, roast pork) - and it wasn't as enjoyable the last time i went.

there *was* a good record shop here as well. unfortunately i can't remember the name and i'm not sure it was there the last time i went.

But if you're in the area many of my favourite meals in Rome have been at the Confraternita dell'Uva nearby. Very low key locals restaurant where the owners specialise in Sicilian food.

the Cinecittà film studios are definitely worth a visit. totally deserted when i went which made the experience of walking through revived ancient rome quite weird and dreamlike.

the protestant cemetary definitely worth going to (all denominations since the '60s i think). Keats, Shelley, Gramsci and all sorts of spectacular and varied memorials.

got some decent bookshop recommendations as well if you're interested.