San Lorenzo, Rome
Feb 24, 2020, 03:11 PM
Recorded by Emiliano Venanzini.
"San Lorenzo: a district built near the end of 19th century, originally inhabited by factory workers, rail workers and artisans. Lying beside one of the biggest university of Rome, La Sapienza, the district's population has been gradually replaced by students coming from all over Italy.
The district has changed a lot: pubs, clubs and street food have replaced smiths, glass artisans etc. But the gentrification here is of a "cheap" kind and San Lorenzo is not a trendy area: it's where you drink for less and find easy weed; there are several forms of social unease, but it's also an area with a good integration of immigrants.
"San Lorenzo: a district built near the end of 19th century, originally inhabited by factory workers, rail workers and artisans. Lying beside one of the biggest university of Rome, La Sapienza, the district's population has been gradually replaced by students coming from all over Italy.
The district has changed a lot: pubs, clubs and street food have replaced smiths, glass artisans etc. But the gentrification here is of a "cheap" kind and San Lorenzo is not a trendy area: it's where you drink for less and find easy weed; there are several forms of social unease, but it's also an area with a good integration of immigrants.
- 0:23 a worker uses a jackhammer
- 1:03 ambulance passing close
- 1:12 in front of the university child neuropsychiatry building, students talk in English about immigration, one mentions the many immigrants gathered around the train station (Termini station)
- 2:47 a man and a woman are talking about someone who has been rude or mean to them or to someone else
- 3:10 another man, somewhat old and likely with same kind of problems of the two before, talks about something to do at Christmas. His accent is the one we call "romano verace" (truly Roman)
- 4:00 the water noise comes from one of the typical Roman public drinking fountains, called "nasone" (big nose)
- 4:35 a homeless woman, in full breakdown, starts shouting, crying and swearing in her mother language. She walks frenetically on the road and you can hear her incredibly quick steps: it's not possible to hear that, but part of the rapidity is also due to her shortness, shorter legs = quicker pace. One thing you can tell from the audio however, is that she is wearing plastic slipper on her feet, on a cold 16 December. After a while she starts swearing in Italian, shouting "bastard" and "shitty" to someone who wasn't there."
Part of the Future Cities project - find out more at https://www.citiesandmemory.com/future-cities