Rome is home to thousands of amazing markets. Some of them are, by now, well known by visitors and locals alike and they’ve become a must when in the city. But hidden in the suburbs of the east side of Rome, a surprising one can be found, and the market I’m speaking of is the brother of the famous one in Trastevere; Porta Portese Est. Here, there’s no tourists to be seen, literally. Its appeal might be a bit rough, messy and confusing at first glance, but let me tell you, I come here almost every Sunday (when I don’t go to the one in Trastevere) and oh my, the things you can find and experience are tons! From a nice porchetta sandwich accompanied by a Peroni beer as a snack, to murals and great findings in between the hundreds of stands, Porta Portese Est has no reason to envy his bigger and more famous brother; except for maybe its location, as the East one is embedded in an enormous parking lot close to big streets. As I always say: Rome isn’t only cute alleys and wonderful historical settings, but also, pass me the term, great in being unsettling and surprising with its unusual craggy “beauty”. Walk with me through it and get ready for a fun ride!
Clothes & Stuffed Toys
When entering the market, most of what I see is clothes; clothes everywhere, of every kind, shape and quality. Groups of women scavenging and throwing their arms into piles of coats, shirts and dresses, looking for their unique piece to bring home. Prices range from 50 cents to 5€, reaching a maximum of 10. Second hand and vintage are the main characters here, as well as stands with new branded clothes like sweaters and dresses that, on the other hand, have less personality since they’re the ones you can find literally everywhere in the city, being the basic garments that follow the latest trends in popular fashion. Hunting for the “one of a kind” clothing piece is a fun and messy thing to do. Also because, speaking of fun, not only clothes are popular but stuffed toys have a big part in creating the colorful backdrop of this market too; plenty of stands that sell clothes are also giving a huge portion to Tweety, cats, dolphins and Hello Kitty soft toys. Why? I honestly can’t explain this phenomenon, but I assure you that it’s going on since I was small, as I remember being quite persistent with my mom to buy me one (or some) when visiting markets around the city.
Porchetta & Books
How do you bring a market to perfection? Food, naturally. Plenty of food trucks can be encountered while strolling, tempting you with big signs “Panino con porchetta, würstel, salsiccia” and communal wooden seats that, weirdly, are perfect during COVID since people don’t like to sit close when sitting at those anyway. The grilling of meat at 10 o’clock in the morning might be a challenge for your stomach or maybe the perfect excuse to go for it, but I see lots of people eating their panino and drinking their beer very easily, as long as it’s Sunday morning and you’re together at a huge and fun market, I guess you’re discharged from being labeled “crazy”, but instead a genius.
While the smell takes over, I see books and I feel at home. There are two kinds of book stands: one with second hand and old books and the other one with brand new books mixed with kids activity books. I love how they are displayed at markets, and especially here, on a nonsensical, pretty manner; you need to have the patience and the luck to go through them, to pull a pile of them, or just a few before you find the one. Books at markets rarely like to be found, instead, they like to find you!
Bread, Cheese, Homeware & Graffiti
Every day items are also part of this colorful blend of products that I’m able to witness and enjoy. Spread out amidst clothes, trinkets, pans, homeware and people eating, another essential element is presented in front of my eyes and it always looks extremely inviting: olives, salami, dried sausages, cheeses and bread, I feel like I’m in deli heaven. These stands that you find in these markets are either of physical shops that take advantage of being out there for business in the weekends and where people gather, or they are independent farms, aziende di produzione (small businesses) coming all the way from the countryside of Lazio. A perfect excuse to grocery shop for unique and delicious specialties.
Close to them, everything you need for your house is at your fingertips: tablecloths, napkins, toilet paper, light bulbs, bed sheets and cutlery, to name a few. The beauty of these huge open air markets is that they literally offer you everything from A to Z, like a massive outdoor mall, but better. I always end up buying toilet paper last minute, while I’m pleasure-shopping on a Sunday morning; isn’t that convenient? Surrounded by a very urban, cemented and grey area, the parking lot where the market takes place hosts lots of graffiti, some of them being very cool to look at. They effectively improve the whole background of the area, otherwise too industrial and harsh.
Trinkets & Roman People
I left this part for last, since it’s my favorite to talk about. It’s fundamental to know that the market is “divided” into two big parking lots crossed by a street that normally is open to cars (closing only on Sunday mornings) and the sidewalks right alongside this street are probably the gem of Porta Portese Est. There, Roman people are selling their wonders, the vintage pieces, Italian themed gadgets, keychains, books and historical collector items; real candies for the eye. The buzzing vibe that you breath, while in the core of the market, transforms here into a more relaxed, laidback kind of shopping, where a chat and a laugh is more than welcome and browsing becomes extremely gripping, gifting the real essence of this suburban flea market, greatly representing its name!
roman gal goes around 
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