Monday, March 12, 2007

The Aftermath

If you stop by Campo de' Fiori (home of possibly the most famous outdoor market in Rome) around 2 pm or so, you'll think you've stepped onto a battleground where the vegetables fought against the fruits, and the birds won out in the end.

I never stop to think much about the people who keep this city moving, the people who are out there everyday cleaning up after the nearly 3 million who inhabit this city, along with the hordes of tourists who contribute to its economy.

From street sweepers to garbage truck drivers (I think there are four garbage trucks that come by here daily), these are the people who make the Eternal City bearable and beautiful for all of us, and I see them out there, not only in Campo de' Fiori but all over the historical center, all the time, doing a great job. A big shout out to all of them today!

5 comments:

Thistlemoon said...

Nice! Yeah, it is not often we think of the people behind the scenes that keep the places we live nice and clean with their hard work. it is important to remember them!

Unknown said...

And I just thought Campo de' Fiori was a clandestine meeting place for estranged coworkers to meet my best friends.

I'm glad there are people taking good care of it.

Julie said...

I heard they make a lot of money too.

Shelley - At Home in Rome said...

Julie: I haven't heard that, but I did hear something that made me laugh, because "only in Italy.." I heard that even the street sweepers, to get their jobs, have to take a "concorso" -- one of the dreaded and ridiculous state exams. I mean, does the bureaucracy here exceed all limits of normalcy, or what?

Anonymous said...

Shelley, this was one of my very first impressions of Rome and needless to say, I started out disappointed!! I was like, "it can't be this dirty here!" We came back later that night and it was a completely different place and we were much happier!