The Matthew Online

In the market for a bargain? Rome has you covered

By Clara Peters

ROME, Feb. 28 -- “Half of my wardrobe is from the market, and it is FABULOUS!,” says Amanda Bush, a student from St. John’s University in New York who is studying abroad here in Rome for a year. Bush is a regular market hopper.

A safe haven from Rome’s sky-high prices, the city's many markets provide a shopper's delight. Between the San Giovanni, Campo de’ Fiori (pictured left), and Porta Portese markets, a bargain-hunter can find just about anything he or she is looking for, where prices are good and variety is better.

Each of these markets offer different items. The Campo de' Fiori market offers many fresh fruits and vegetables. It also has stands for dried fruits and spices (think pasta arrabbiata), as well as stands for wine and other specialties. Dating back 140 years, this is the oldest market in Rome. It goes back even further; the market started in Piazza Navona in 1478 and was moved to Campo de’ Fiori in 1869.

 

  

All good things must come to an end; In Rome, it's 'saldi' season

 

By Marci Schwartz

ROME, Feb. 13—Roman sale season will end in just over 48 hours.

Shoppers, there are only a couple days to go before the winter sale season ends in Rome.  In the next two days, the colorful "SALDI" signs plastered in store windows will no longer be so alluring.

Roman authorities carefully regulate sales in the city only permitting stores to have them twice a year. (Similarly, the sales across Italy will be coming to an end shortly, if they haven't already done so).