No, thanks, maybe: gelato, sorbetto, grattachecca, San Pietrino … spoiled for choice!

We Romans are complicated people: we are not satisfied with an “ice cream”, as happens in many other places in the world. We have a thousand ways to enjoy the “cold dessert”!

Here is a small list of the typical proposals that you will find wandering through the streets of Rome. Let’s start with the sorbetto, for those who want to keep it light, perhaps at the end of a meal, to “degrease” their mouth. In fact, sorbets do not contain milk or animal derivatives, but only water, fresh or dried fruit, natural flavors, sugars, vegetable fats or dried fruit fats. Sometimes they are flavored with alcohol. So they are delicate, fresh and  very light iced creams!

Instead, both Italian gelato and the typical American “ice cream” contain milk, whether they are cream or fruit flavored. But with a small difference: Italian ice cream makes you fat less! In fact, by law it can contain a maximum of 8% fat. And a good artigianale (homemade) ice cream, if made properly, contains 5%!

On the other hand, its American competitor, ice cream, always – by law – must contain more than 10% fat! And in fact the name itself explains how there is more cream inside: cream!

A little parenthesis on the word “ARTIGIANALE” (artisanal). Not all gelato parlors can boast this quality mark. Artigianale means gelato is produced on site, and not in a factory or even just in another location. It also means using fresh, unprocessed ingredients, and also processing without “injecting” air to inflate and store, or other chemical additives.

In fact, the way to produce an industrial “ice cream” is very different from the typical Italian gelato: industrial processing takes place at very low temperatures (-18 degrees C, -0.4 degrees F) and, by law, it can be “added” up to 100% of its weight plus pure AIR! And for this reason, you can see the crystallizations, because this humid, icy air, which creates double the product at zero price and helps keep the ice cream in the freezer even for months. On the contrary, in handcrafted gelato,that can be produced only in small quantities, it is creamy and dense, and must be consumed within 2-3 days.

And one more variant, a little more wintery (but not necessarily!). A cold-hot gelato. How about an ice cream whose cone is filled with exquisite hot chocolate and then covered with frozen gelato? You can find this either in the La Romana chain of  gelato shops, or at Come il Latte.

But I was saying, the Romans are people full of inventiveness. And then we have for example the San Pietrino, which you will find exclusively in the oldest gelato shop in town: Fassi, the Palazzo del Ghiaccio. It is a small square shaped gelato, covered with chocolate in the shape of the classic “sasso di basalto” (black volcanic stone. It reminds the little “black stones” that paves the most important streets and squares of Rome. Why is it called San Pietrino? Easy: because this type of pavement was first used in St. Peter’s Square in 1500 and has since become the typical pavement of the city.

And then, how can you leave Rome without having tried the Grattachecca? The word: “gratta”, from the verb to scratch, and “checca” which in Roman dialect means “piece of ice”, gives an idea of ​​what it is. A block of ice, grated (like Parmesan!) Strictly by hand! And then, according to the customer’s choice, drowned in delicious syrups, sprinkled with fresh or dried fruit and enjoyed first with very icy and then slowly, all the way, when it turns into a cream! Along the Tiber, the river of Rome, you can find several historic kiosks where you need to arm yourself with patience and queue up to win this delight.

You will say: but is it like a granita (slush)?! Oh no, the granita is ice already mixed with a syrup, even before freezing, and then shredded by a machine, not by hand! There is a whole other taste …!

Now the choice is yours! or maybe one a day …!

Today we reveal a little curiosity about the Pantheon, the ancient temple (dating back to 27 BC), dedicated to all the pagan gods of Ancient Rome and which can still be admired today in all its grandeur.

Have you ever noticed the writing above it? The Emperor Hadrian wanted it, when he rebuilt the building after a terrible fire. And it reports the name of the first real builder: “M.AGRIPPA.L.F.COS.TERTIUM.FECIT”, that means: Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, built this when he was consul for the third time (Consuls were the chief diplomats in Rome – comparable to a Prime Minister or a President).

But the writing we see, it’s not the original one, its characters were probably plundered, being made of bronze or perhaps other precious material. Only in 1894 the writing was reconstructed, as in the children’s game “join the dots”: every single letter was reassembled following the line that joined the holes, on which the original letters were fixed. Then, the experts had the problem of which font to use, as well as which material and which hooking system. They toured the length and breadth of museums and ancient deposits in Italy, until they found, in the Archaeological Museum of Naples, very ancient bronze letters and they were inspired by these, both in the shape of the characters, and in the interlocking technique to anchor them to the Pantheon.

The letters we see today are made of Corinthian bronze, fire-gilded and then oxidized. They are hollow, nonetheless, each one is 1 meter and 50 centimeters (about 5 feet) high and weighs 25 kilos (55 pounds)!!

Next time you pass by the Pantheon, look up and think about it!

How often it happens; You’re a tourist in a city so rich in amazing monuments, wonderful statues and incredible palaces, but suddenly you notice a very unusual type of tree that diverts your attention. Your eyes gaze up as you admire the beautiful contrast between the intense green foliage and the typical bright blue sky of Rome. You can’t help but wonder what kind of tree it is! Sure, it looks like a pine tree, yet it has a unique shape. Locals call it the “umbrella pine”, or sometimes the “broccoli pine”. They’re gorgeous, and iconic symbols of the city. When in Rome, don’t miss the opportunity to capture an umbrella pine in your vacation pictures!

Summer in Rome can be a stifling 30-35 degrees Celsius (90-95 degrees Fahrenheit), which can make walking in the afternoon heat feel daunting. Luckily, you can find little ‘oasis’’ everywhere to get some free and fresh drinking water: the Nasone.

The name Nasone literally means ‘long nose’, due to the characteristic design of the metal spout protruding at mid-height which in fact, looks like a nose! Be on the look-out for other designs such as wolf heads, lions and dragons.

These fabulous fountains were first introduced in the 1870’s, and nowadays there are approximately 2,500 in town! The water coming from the nasoni is the same which supplies the city’s households, and thus safe to drink. The constantly flowing water is very safe, and keeps the water in the pipes from stagnating, which otherwise may allow bacteria to thrive. While this has been criticized by some as a waste of drinking water, only 1% of the water is lost due to the nasoni running continuously. Compare that to an approximate 50% of water lost due to old leaky pipes in the underground of the city. According to estimates, an operating nasoni costs the city of Rome 3-5 euro per day, depending on the strength of the water flow.

How to drink from a Nasone? It’s quite simple! The spout has a small hole on the top from which you can drink by closing the main hole below (where the water comes out) with a finger. Drinking refreshingly cool water ‘Roman style’ will certainly be fun during your vacation, and definitely a highlight for your children!