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Rome apartments - Rome guide

» Italian-Tourism.com » Rome guide

Situated on the River Tiber, between the Apennine Mountains and the Tyrrhenian Sea, the ‘Eternal City’ of Rome (Roma) was once the administrative centre of the mighty Roman Empire, governing a vast region that stretched from Britain to Mesopotamia. Rome saw a second period of development during the 15th-century Renaissance, when the Papacy took up permanent residence in the city. Although Rome’s power has since waned, the city remains the essence of European civilisation.

Ruins dating from Rome’s glory days lie within an area known as Roma Antica (Ancient Rome) and include the monumental Colosseum and the Foro Romano (Roman Forum) – a crumbling legacy of pagan temples, broken marble and triumphal arches. Buildings from the Renaissance period are concentrated within the centro storico (historic centre), situated between Via del Corso and the Tevere (River Tiber). Here, a labyrinth of narrow, winding, cobbled side streets opens out onto magnificent piazzas presided over by Baroque churches, regal palaces and exquisite fountains. The romantic Piazza Navona with Bernini’s Fountain of the Four Rivers, Piazza di Spagna and the sweeping Spanish Steps, and the Trevi Fountain immortalised by Fellini’s La Dolce Vita (1959), all lie within walking distance of each other. Modern life continues amid this theatre of breathtaking monuments, as thousands of years of history are animated by more recent innovations.

Across the river, to the west, lies the Vatican State – home to the Pope and spiritual centre of the Roman Catholic Church. South of the Vatican, one finds the bohemian quarter of Trastevere, packed with trattorie and small wine bars. Further south still is the Testaccio district, renowned for nightclubs and live music.

Tourism is a major source of income and visitors come and go throughout the year. The city is blessed with a warm Mediterranean climate, making Rome particularly pleasant to visit in autumn and spring. In August, it is hot and sticky and most of the locals head for the coast – many shops and bars close for the summer break and the streets are strangely empty save for visitors. Celebrations for the year 2000 prompted the completion of a massive urban renewal scheme. Tons of scaffolding were finally dismantled to reveal beautifully restored facades, cleverly revamped museums and a rationalised public transport system. Today, citizens and visitors alike continue to benefit from the improvements carried out for the Jubilee celebrations, when the Eternal City celebrated the fact that the millennium was 2,000 years since the birth of Christ.

PLACES OF NOTE
 

St. Peter's Basilica (San Pietro in Vaticano) is a Catholic major basilica in Vatican City, an enclave of Rome. This building is often described as the largest church ever built (it covers an area of 23,000 m² and has a capacity of over 60,000) and one of the holiest sites in Christendom. Construction on St. Peter's was begun in 1506 and finished in 1626. Tradition says it was built at the place where St. Peter, one of the apostles of Jesus and considered the first pope, was crucified and buried. The church hosts the tomb of St. Peter under the main altar. Other popes are also buried in the basilica, as well as below it.

Colosseum or Coliseum, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, is an amphitheatre in Rome, capable of seating 50,000 spectators, which was once used for gladiatorial combat. The construction of the Colosseum began under the Emperor Vespasian in AD 72 and was completed by his son, Domitian, in the 80s AD. The Colosseum hosted large-scale spectacular games that included fights between animals (venationes), the killing of prisoners by animals and other executions (noxii), naval battles (naumachiae, via flooding the arena), and combats between gladiators (munera). It has been estimated that about 500,000 people died in the Colosseum games.

Trevi Fountain (Fontana di Trevi) is the largest and most ambitious of the Baroque fountains of Rome. The fountain at the juncture of three roads (tre vie) marks the terminal point of the Aqua Virgo (Acqua Vergine), one of the ancient aqueducts that supplied water to Rome. The Fontana di Trevi is the 'Three Coins in the Fountain' fountain, the one that drenched Anita Ekberg in Federico Fellini's La Dolce Vita. According to legend, it is lucky to throw coins with one's right hand over one's right shoulder into the Trevi Fountain. Throwing one coin in will ensure that the thrower will return to Rome. Throwing two coins ensures that the thrower will fall in love with a beautiful Roman girl (or handsome boy), and throwing three coins ensures that the thrower will marry that girl or boy in Rome.

Basilica di San Paolo fuori le Mura — also known in the English language as the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls — is one of five churches considered to be the great ancient basilicas of Rome in Italy.
 

Pantheon is a building in Rome which was originally built as a temple to all the gods of the Roman state religion, but has been a Christian church since the 7th century AD. It is the only building from the Greco-Roman world which is completely intact and which has been in continuous use throughout its history.

Spanish Steps (Scalinata di Spagna) in Rome ramp a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and the church Trinità dei Monti above. The monumental stairway, of 135 steps, was built with French funds in 1721-1725, linking the Bourbon Spanish embassy to the Holy See, today still located in the piazza below, with the Bourbon French church (its monastery founded in 1495) above.

Piazza Navona, which follows the plan of an ancient circus, was built in monumental style by the family of Pope Innocent X (Pamphilj). Built over the ruins of the 1st Century AD Stadium of Domitian, Piazza Navona is the pride of Baroque Rome, with sculptural and architectural gems by the masters, Bernini (the Fountain of the Four Rivers in the center, representing the Danube, the Ganges, the Nile and the Rio della Plata, the four corners of the earth), and Borromini with Rainaldi (Church of Sant'Agnese in Agone), Pietro da Cortona painted the gallery in the Pamphilj palace. Piazza Navona contains two additional fountains sculpted by Giacomo della Porta - the Fountain of the Neptune, located at the northern area of Piazza Navona, and the Moor Fountain, located at the southern area of the piazza.
 

Appian Way (Via Appia) is a famous road built by the Romans. It is the most important among the Roman roads; it was called regina viarum, the queen of the roads.

Baths of Caracalla were Roman public baths, or thermae, built in Rome between 212 and 216 CE, during the reign of the Emperor Caracalla. The extensive ruins of the baths have become a popular tourist attraction. The Caracalla bath complex of buildings was more a leisure centre than just a series of baths. The "baths" were the second to have a public library within the complex. Like other public libraries in Rome, there were two separate and equal sized rooms or buildings; one for Greek language texts and one for Latin language texts. In the early 20th century, the design of the baths was used as the inspiration for the design of Pennsylvania Station in New York City by the architect Charles McKim.

Arch of Titus is a triumphal arch with a single arched opening, located on the Summa Sacra Via to the west of the Forum in Rome. It was constructed shortly after the death of the emperor Titus (born AD 41, emperor 79-81). The arch commemorates Titus' capture and sack of Jerusalem in 70.

Piramide di Caio Cestio, or the Pyramid of Cestius, is an Egyptian-style pyramid in Rome, Italy near Porta San Paolo.

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