The colors of Porta Portese Market

First true metropolis of Italy and of the ancient world in general, Rome has always been able to impress the countless visitors who over the millennia have passed through its walls: with its winding paths that lead to immortal monuments, the huge basilicas and churches hidden and full of secrets, parks and breathtaking views, despite its explosive vitality of the eternal city seems frozen in time, spell broken only by the peaceful flow of the Tiber. Among the endless wonders scattered in every corner of the city is easy to get lost and to miss places and events maybe smaller and lesser-known but no less fascinating.

This is the case of Porta Portese market, the most famous and popular flea market of the capital, located just outside of the homonymous port, along the Via Portuense and just off Viale Trastevere, in an area that for years was destined to services of big size and low prestige: exhaust artifacts of sewerage system, building material stores, the old municipal dog pound, the city seemed to end in viale Trastevere, beyond which extended an amorphous area, dotted with shacks and semi-abandoned. The Sunday visit to Porta Portese, however, despite the state of neglect and decay prevailing in the area, is still a popular leisure loved by Romans and tourists, as evidenced by the eponymous song of the seventies of the singer Claudio Baglioni.

The market of Porta Portese arose around 1945 as the new home of the black bag that was held in Campo de ‘Fiori. In this place, after the war, the Romans could buy, sell and trade the strangest objects. Today, the succession of generations of street have joined Moroccans, Indians and Chinese, making Portaportese one of the most famous markets in Italy and Europe for its multi-ethnicity and the ability to find the most unexpected objects.

Open from 6:00 am to 14:00 every Sunday market reopens welcoming visitors and onlookers in a space so large and diverse that you really can find everything from new and used clothing, old bicycles, motorcycle helmets, suitcases, bags, home accessories, plants, records, antiques, furniture, records, CDs, umbrellas, key chains, toys, cosmetics, vintage postcards, shoes, leather and all you can think of. A different and lively place, well away from the majesty of the center, but able to astonish with its colors and its stalls, which will make you discover a corner of this alternative Rome, take the opportunity to go shopping on a budget.