Vespa
The scooter that put post-war Italy on two wheels and rode through Roman Holiday.
Piaggio launched the Vespa in 1946: a scooter with a steel body that covered the engine and kept your clothes clean, cheap enough for a country that had to get moving again. Its name means wasp, after the buzz of its engine and the shape of its body.
In 1953 Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck rode one through Rome in Roman Holiday, and the Vespa became the very picture of la dolce vita. Rome’s streets still buzz with them.
More in Rome
ColosseumThe great amphitheatre of ancient Rome, opened in AD 80 for gladiator fights before some 50,000 people.
PantheonA temple to all the gods rebuilt under Hadrian, with the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world.
Trevi FountainRome’s grandest fountain, where a coin thrown over your shoulder means you will come back.
Piazza NavonaA long Baroque square on the outline of Domitian’s stadium, with Bernini’s Fountain of the Four Rivers.
Roman ForumThe heart of ancient Rome: temples, basilicas and the Senate house, in a valley between the hills.
VittorianoThe huge white marble monument to Victor Emmanuel II on Piazza Venezia, nicknamed the typewriter.
Campo de’ FioriA lively square with a morning market and, in the middle, the hooded statue of Giordano Bruno.
Column of Marcus AureliusA marble column carved with the emperor’s wars along the Danube, standing on Piazza Colonna since the 2nd century.
Largo di Torre ArgentinaFour temples of the Republic sunk below the street, beside the spot where Julius Caesar was murdered.
NasoniThe little cast-iron drinking fountains on Rome’s street corners, running with fresh water all day.
SampietriniThe small black cobblestones of basalt that pave the streets of old Rome.
CarbonaraPasta with egg, guanciale, pecorino and black pepper: Rome’s own dish, with never a drop of cream.