Rome - Sightseeing

There is simply too much to see in Rome – the Vatican City alone can easily swallow up an entire weekend. Most visitors are overwhelmed and remain torn between running from sight to sight in order to ‘do’ everything or lingering over a couple of monuments and museums. The latter option is strongly recommended – even then, it is best to punctuate cultural trips with ice creams, coffees and serene walks in the city’s parks (the Villa Borghese is one of the loveliest). As for most holy sites, clothing that covers up midriffs, shoulders and legs is recommended, particularly for the Vatican.

The centro storico is the obvious starting point, with the greatest concentration of classical and Christian sites enclosed in a relatively small space. Stumbling upon ancient frescoes, Renaissance fountains and beautiful piazzas are part of the pleasures of wandering around Rome’s streets. Rome has over 400 churches and four major basilicas – St Peter’s, St John Lateran, St Mary Major and St Paul’s. However, it is San Clemente (on Via San Giovanni in Laterano) which encapsulates the multi-layered labyrinth of Rome. At street level, there is a 12th-century basilica with beautiful mosaics. Down one level is a well-preserved Roman basilica. Deeper still are more ancient Roman remains, until finally, at the deepest level, is the temple to the oriental cult of Mithras.

The Ministry of Culture organises the Settimana dei Beni Culturali (Cultural Week) (tel: (06) 67231; website: www.beniculturali.it), which is usually held in April or May and allows free entry to all state-owned museums, public monuments and excavation sites.

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