One part of the eternal city that epitomizes the free-willed spirit of Rome is the Piazza Campo de'Fiori. A large languid city square in the heart of Rome, it is a place where you can hear the Roman heart-beat. Encircled by buzzing cafes, bars, and inns since ancient times, the place is home to a thriving fruit and vegetable market in the mornings and a throbbing and pulsating nightlife. The Piazza was once nothing but a flood plain of the river Tiber, and the first church was built there in the pontificate of Boniface IX. Later on, the Orsini Palace, which used to once stand there, was rebuilt. The square was actually never formally conceptualized but remained the focus of commerce and street culture, catering to the outpourings from the streets surrounding and leading up to it. These streets accommodated various trades like cross-bow making, tailoring, coffee making, hat making, and the like and were therefore named after them.At the center of the Piazza stands the philosopher Giordano Bruno's evocative statue commemorating his ideas of free speech. He had been burnt alive at the very spot on the orders of the Roman inquisition.The Piazza Campo de'fiori' today is a happy place of frenetic activity. The afternoons see the local footballers play passionately, followed at night by revelers, both local and foreign thronging the outdoor cafes and living life the Campo way. There is never a dull moment here, be it morning, afternoon, or night. It is the place to be in Rome.