Downtown Rome Tour

Downtown Rome Tour

Downtown Rome Tour

Plenty of surprises!!!!

This walking tour begins at Trevi Fountain. This is known as Rome's "wish fountain", where a small coin dropped into the Trevi's waters assures your return to Rome. We will then then continue along the side streets of Old Rome, the city's historic center. We will  pass near Colonna Square where in the middle of the square, you can see a 90 feet high second century a.d. Roman Column dedicated to the Emperor Marcus Aurelius (the same emperor you saw in the movie Gladiator with Russell Crowe).

Just around the corner a narrow street will lead us to a wonderful church St. Ignatius is well known for its  moving ceiling!!!!

We will pass  in front of the and we stop inside to marvel at the concrete dome the ancient Romans poured in the 2nd century AD.We will admire the light streaming in through the opening at the center of the dome. Seeing the Pantheon for the first time leaves even modern architects amazed at how it was built by the ancient Romans. In this square, we will have a break for a delicious cappuccino. One block away from Pantheon, we can even visit St. Louis of French church if it is open at the time of our tour. This church houses  three wonderful paintings of Matthew’s life by the famous Italian painter Caravaggio.

Our tour will end in piazza Campo de' fiori, with its animated market. The colorful stalls of Campo de' Fiori's fruit and vegetable vendors displaying their bountiful produce will be a feast for your eyes. You may also want to pop into Campo de' Fiori's famous bakery ("forno") to sample, stand-up, a slice of the exquisite thin crust Roman pizza fresh from the oven.

Before the conclusion of the tour,  I will show you the off beaten track spot where J. Caesar was killed.

 

One day in Naples

One day in Naples

One day in Naples

Once arrived at the train station, we will make our way through the unruly traffic, honking horns, locals shouting in thick dialect across alleys lined with wet laundry, shrines to the Madonna with blue neon and plastic flowers set into palazzo walls, churches decorated with carved skulls, women squeezed into their shirts and spike heels, helmetless teenagers on mopeds racing the wrong way down slippery one-way streets – It will be immediately clear that two ancient forces drive this unbelievable chaos of a city: life and death.

Everywhere the smell of coffee – our first stop will be in a Coffee bar to try it and the delicious pastries as sfogliatella, babà, pastiera.

Second stop the old part fo the city called SpaccaNapoli, from the Italian word spaccare to split, after the ancient street slicing down the middle of the old city first settled by the Greeks.

The greeks founded the city in 8th century b.c. and used the underground tufa-rock as building material. That’s the reason why you can visit the underground galleries network used as quarry by Greeks, as an acqueduct by Romans and as an escape way during the Second World War.
During our day trip this will be our third stop!

The old part of the citiy has incredible churches to visit as St. Chiara, San Domenico, The Jesuit Church but  is, first of all, the shrine of two great wonders of Naples: Caravaggio’s Seven Acts of Mercy in the Pio Monte della Misericordia surely one of the strangest and most breathtaking paintings in all of art history, a weird chiaroscuro tableau that unites an old man suckling a woman’s breast, a disembodied pair of dirty feet, men in armor struggling in the semidarkness, and high above them a mother and child and two angels, Neapolitan boys really, who cling to each other midfall in a strange and tender embrace.

And the San Severo Chapel – Masonic-inspired baroque chapel that we’ll find Giuseppe Sanmartino’s incredible sculpture, Cristo velato (Veiled Christ), its marble veil so realistic that it’s tempting to try to lift it and view Christ underneath. This fourth stop will leave you breathless.

Our fifth stop the Cathedral of Naples (Duomo) with San Gennaro Chapel.
The treasure of San Gennaro is said to rival Britain’s Crown Jewels and those of the Russian tsars in value. It includes a bishop’s mitre encrusted in stones, and a large necklace composed of thousands of gems, donated by many crowned heads of Europe.

Our sixth stop the famous main square Piazza del Plebiscito with the Royal Palace and the great view over the bay and the volcano Vesuvio.

We will end on Castel dell’Ovo that is the oldest standing fortification in Naples.

 


Photo reference: Baku, Vikashegde via Wikimedia Commons and Nunzia Marlino

Borghese Gallery

Borghese Gallery

This 16th century Villa, surrounded by a wonderful park, was built by Borghese family. The Borghese Gallery houses probably the collection you have heard most before coming to Rome. The great masterpieces are the works of Raphael, Caravaggio and Titian and the wonderful sculptures of Bernini like David, Apollo and Daphne and the most celebrated sculpture Paolina Bonaparte by the 18th century Italian artist Antonio Canova.

Please note: advanced booking required. Reservation is mandatory for entrance to this museum as the Galleria Borghese only allows entrance to a certain number of visitors at a time.