I've been reading/hearing about the bad garbage situation in Rome. Can anyone tell me what it is like around the Piazza Navona?

No help but read about it also. The seagulls and rats love it. I was in Paris during a long garbage strike and I walked in the street instead of sidewalks. It was gross but on the high-end streets, they paid private people to haul it away. The rat problem was so bad that it was nice seeing them haul away garbage every night and hose the streets down last visit.

I was there a few weeks ago, and didn't notice any particular problem. The outlying areas of the city are the most affected.