Palazzo Crawl

Dozens of hidden Roman palazzo's opened to the public for the weekend. Ella and I took an extended Sunday afternoon wander to explore 15 of them. Dotted around centro storico side streets, it was incredible how these sprawling homes are hidden amongst of the chaos of ancient Rome.

Taverna

The two that stood out are the expansive Palazzo Taverna and the rustic, overgrowing Palazzo Capponi Antonelli. Both are on the property bucket list.

When I was in London last month I visited the Hermés exhibition at the Saatchi gallery. It was a beautiful, interactive space dedicated to the idea of flaneury and you, as the flaneur, were taken through a spontaneous wander through 19th century Paris. One of the thoughts I took away from the exhibition was how being a flaneur was being presented in some ways as a concept that is largely foreign from today's society. Instead of intrinsically enjoying a wander our walks tend to be aligned with a specific destination.

The event was set up by the Lazio cultural institute and amongst the courtyards were various craftsmen who specialised in creating wares and interior designs for the palazzos. The above focussed on molding bronze sculptures for imposing front doors.

Aside from the imminent pressure of exams, I'm looking forward to being back in the UK in late June.

TJP