My wife and I just finished our honeymoon and our first visit to Rome. We were looking for the more authentic Rome experience in contrast to staying at a place in the tourist hub, which can be fairly obnoxious considering how many tourists, students, merchants and roma gypsies fit into such a small areas. In Pigneto, we wanted to learn how true Italians in Rome lived. If the Heart of Rome is found between the Vatican and the Palazzo Venezia, then Pigneto is Rome's pulse beating rhythmically in one of its distant extremities. As an up-and-coming neighborhood of the city, Pigneto will change dramatically within the next decade. Currently, it's a very artist friendly neighborhood. Public transportation is easily accessible from the apartment with a train to Roma Termini two blocks away and a new metro station under construction, but travelling to the main tourist spots can get a bit inconvenient, if only due to the distance or increased potential of interacting with gypsies on the way to or from home. Pigneto is safe and many places close around 10 in the evening most nights and a little later during the weekend. It's a much more lively neighborhood during the day. There is a small, 1-2 block strip of restaurants about a 2.5 minute walk from Marzia's apartment. The three my wife and I frequented for dinner were all delicious. Frattoria had the best coffee, gelato and apple torte. We went to a couple of other restaurants about a 10 minute walk from the apartment where more of the local artists seemed to frequent but were most pleased with those close by. The graffiti issue in Rome was fairly conspicuous in Pigneto. Capturing the very subtle difference between vandalism and true art, my wife and I appropriately appreciated many beautiful murals while shunning the tags and other numerous acts of vandalism which tainted too much of Pigneto's beautiful buildings. Ultimately, my wife loved the neighborhood. We look forward to returning one day to witness of its growth and evolution.

Marzia was an excellent host. She was extremely hospitable and the room was beautiful, precisely as the pictures and corresponding descriptions show. The room, bathroom and shared kitchen were all very clean and had a more modern feel to them. The bed was firm but comfortable. She has an excellent library. With the likes of James Joyce, Stephen J Gould, Feyman, Hofstadter and Nietzsche, I was tempted to spend my week reading instead of exploring the city. The room is spacious and with Marzia working primarily in the evenings, privacy was not an issue. A bit of advice -- weather permitting, try sleeping with the windows opened a bit, so you can wake up to the smell of the cooking from your neighbors in the complex in the morning, which smelled delicious, often motivating us to get out of bed to go eat and explore.