While much of Rome is splendid and grandiose, it’s a great walking city and it can be intimate as well. Regardless of your sightseeing agenda, getting out early lets you enjoy some of the world’s great public spaces while they’re just waking up. A morning spent wandering is filled with surprises. Playful fountains decorate squares, ancient ruins hide in plain sight, and side streets open onto botanic delights. Poke around. Explore.

Rick: Scusi, signora. Dove Campo de' Fiori?
Woman: È là.
Rick: Grazie.
Woman: Prego.

Another colorful Roman gathering place is Rome’s most famous produce market, the Campo de’ Fiori. Literally the “field of flowers,” this has long been a fragrant and vibrant market. The market thrives in the morning. What’s seasonal during your visit will be a favored by local chefs and featured on their daily menus. We’re here in May — with asparagus, zucchini, artichokes, and the quintessentially Roman puntarelle. Whether you come for the produce or simply a stroll, Campo de’ Fiori is a delight. But it’s just one of Rome’s many treasured public spaces.

As the rhythm of daily life hits its stride, the famous Spanish Steps — today adorned with azaleas — is filled with people. For over 200 years, romantics have gathered here to enjoy a little dolce vita with their sightseeing. And it remains a popular place to savor the joy of simply being in Rome.

And, in good Roman style, the top of the steps is marked by an ancient obelisk. Locals brag there are as many Egyptian obelisks standing in Rome as in all of Egypt. To stoke imperial egos, they were shipped in ancient times across the Mediterranean to decorate great squares right here in Rome.

Perhaps the city’s most ostentatious monument celebrates modern Italy’s first king. In 1871, Rome became the capital of a newly united modern state of Italy. To mark the occasion, the thunderous Victor Emmanuel Monument was built — that’s the king up on the huge horse. It was designed to stoke the spirit of the fledgling nation by harkening back to the glories of ancient Rome. In fact, if you want to envision ancient Rome in its pomposity today, imagine a vast city made of buildings like this.

The square in front is where, in the 1930s, the fascist dictator Mussolini held rallies to whip up nationalistic fervor, ultimately sending a generation of Italian men off to a catastrophic war. And to this day, here on the national altar, burns the eternal flame remembering Italy’s Unknown Soldier.

Riding the elevator to the top of the monument, we enjoy a sweeping view of the Eternal City. Locals love this perch because from here they can see nearly all of their beloved Rome. The view is dotted with the domes of great churches…and hiding out in many of those…are centuries of great art.