After a quick layover in Lisbon – a place we certainly want to spend more time in! – we’re now in our new home in Rome, on the Esquiline, not far from the Termini train station. Our flat is on the second (=first) floor, looking out onto the street. Rome being a major city, the digs are, well, tiny, but luckily we’re not big people. The building itself is an old one, with all that means – not many electrical outlets, creaky plumbing, etc. But it’s got character, as they say, and with three balconies and lots of mirrors, it’s quite light. Also, we owned a house once, and painted the wall in the kitchen Pompeiian brothel red. So the color doesn’t bother us.
Kitchen and Bath
Both are small but functional; the galley kitchen has limited working space but is thoughtfully appointed. The washer – and you know how sometimes we struggle with those – is one we’re familiar with. The fridge is typically small, but we’re used to that. The stove and oven are brand-new. It would be tricky to cook an Easter dinner for twelve here, but then again, we weren’t planning to do so. As usual, we worry about the mugs: not enough, and not large enough. There is a very small teapot, which might suit our needs. We recognize several old friends from IKEA among the dishes and utensils. The toaster is excellent, with handles for the slices. And there’s an immersion blender, which we always love!
The bathroom is also small, with good water pressure and enough shelves to put our limited supply of toiletries on. As usual, there is a shower and not a tub. Some nice touches, like a heated towel rack.
Living and Sleeping
The whole is one space, with a door leading to the bedroom. There’s a small dining table, a sofa, several tables, and a small area near the door for coats etc. There’s one comfortable desk chair which we’ll probably fight over. And there’s a TV – the easiest to use that we’ve encountered in a long time. We plan to leave it on a lot in order to help with exposure to the language (yay Italian Food Network!).
The bedroom has a very comfortable bed, good light for reading, and night-tables. Plenty of drawer-and hanging-space. We are expecting a few guests, and it will be snug to have more than two people moving about in here. But Rome, like many cities, is not a place to hang out in your apartment.
Talking of hanging out, though, we expect to spend a lot of time on those three balconies. They’re small but with a view of everything going on: we expect to become the neighbourhood chiacchierones within a few weeks.
