We've all heard the rumors about Rome. Pickpockets: watch your bag, especially when it comes to those you least suspect. "I had to break an old lady's fingers," a teacher once told me, "because it's the only way to the get them to stop". Manners: Italians are rude, especially in Rome. "You'll be lucky," she'd continue, "to make it out of the Metro without being slammed against the wall". And then, a rumor of the more positive variety, about the food: "You will never eat better and you will never want to leave".
I've come to the conclusion that travel rumors tend to be a certain combination of experience, memory and drama, so I'll try and leave out as much drama as possible, so as to avoid seeming like a rumor mill instead of a journalist. Though I'll be honest--I didn't really have much drama in Rome. Sure, I had €10 stolen from me in the Metro, one time, and I sometimes felt like I wouldn't make it across certain streets alive, but I happen to see these things as enhancing to one's experience.

Which, by the way, was so not how Ms. Dickinson said it was. Well, mostly not.

She was right about the food, though, that's for sure. To be honest, I came to Rome as a Austinite vegan and expected, largely, to go hungry during my time here, the land of Caesar fabled also to be a land of cheesy pasta and meaty pizza and romaine salad with parmesan and anchovies. The fables prove themselves to be true in many restaurants, but there are several convenient exceptions. In terms of sustenence alone, nearly every "quick stop" pizza shop I went into was more than happy to make a "Pizza Marinara" (i.e. just sauce, no cheese) with as many veggies on it as I wanted, and usually for a good price, around €4. Not feeling Italian? Not a problem. There are ethnic dining establishments all over the city, including vegan favorite Indian food. But there was one establishment that stood above and beyond the rest of the competition: Margutta, located near Rome's Spanish Steps, just two blocks from the Termini Central Station in the Beehive Hotel. Completely vegetarian and providing organic, local, seasonal-based dishes, this restaurant also offers vegan pizza at lunch, which is worth a trip to Rome in and of itself.

A rumor I'd heard about Rome--from someone other than Ms. D--is that it was extremely expensive, much too expensive for a sleepy South Austin service industry-type to sleep in anything but a hostel. This was also not true. One Step from St. Peter, a guesthouse featuring private rooms, 12-foot ceilings, a rooftop terrace, and a private garden on visible from all its interior windows, provided me a most luxurious experience for around €45/night in a single room. Located a little more than a step from St. Peter's Basilica and the Vatican, One Step From St. Peter sits about three blocks north of the Ottaviano Metro station in a charming, quiet neighborhood replete with produce markets and friendly pizzerias. Consisting of the entire third floor of its building, it was spotlessly clean, offered free internet and Freidrich, the man who owns and runs it, could not have been friendlier.

"Rome," Ms. Dickinson had said, "is good for many things. Relaxation is not one of them". There are times I wonder if Ms. D visited the same city I did, because while many of Rome's tourist attractions--the Colosseum, Palatine, Fontana di Trevi, the Spanish Steps, to name a few--are crowded, noisy and completely open to the ravages of the sun, there is a lush, green retreat with a rather large and obvious footprint that sits above the city, affording both complete seclusion and panoramic views of the city: Villa Borghese. The park, centered around the Galleria Borghese, an art gallery, has provided a place in the shade for Romans since the early 1600's, though it officially opened to the public in 1903. Most easily accessible making a climb--and I do mean a climb--up from the Piazza del Popolo, the park is a great place to open a bottle of red wine, have a loaf of bread and align oneself with the energy of the hectic city below. Or against it, if you prefer.
Conclusion? I got pickpocketed once. I escaped the Metro without any bruises. And, most importantly, I'm salivating thinking about the world of food I found in Rome. So if you have a friend who likes to start rumors about cities you've never been to, probe a little deeper: what was her factual experience? To what extent does she remember her time there? What you'll be left with is her own drama and hopefully an incentive to travel there yourself and find some of your own. For more destination profiles, plus breaking news, money and time-saving tips and more, stay tuned to the Austin International Travel Examiner.