Independent Sight-Seeing
See your Blue Guide of Rome for a more complete list of museums (Index, p. 604), restaurants, fountains (Index, p. 599) and obelisks (Index, p. 605), churches and temples (Index p. 609-11), kinds of food et cetera. This list is especially for things to do will enhance both your fun and your understanding and, hence, your Final Portfolio.
1. Of the museums we will not visit as a group, here some good ones:
a. Museo Nazionale Romano and, esp., Palazzo Massimo
b. Palazzo Altemps
c. Palazzo Barbarini
d. Museo delle Mura (at the Porta San Sebastiano)
e. Centrale Montemartini (below)
2. Want to get (a little) out of the city center? Public Transportation Required!
a. Combine a big museum with a big church: San Paolo fuori le Muri and Centrale Montemartini (ACEA): See Blue Guide, pp. 471-74.
b. Full day: Nettuno (Next to Anzio, on the coast south of Rome.). Easy and inexpensive train ride from Rome, but you need to leave in the morning. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nettuno and linked sites. Find the cemetary of the American soldiers, the beach, the medieval town, and the museum
c. Find and visit the University of Rome, La Sapienza, Blue Guide, p. 469. Can you begin to learn anything about what it might be like to be a student there, as opposed to CU? (The University is in the San Lorenzo district, virtually unexplored by tourists. The church of San Lorenzo is in the area and is worth a visit. There is, however, nothing charming about this area!)
d. (Do not go without good directions or without being interested in modern architecture! This is NOT an easy find!) Find and visit a new church in the city of churches: The Jubilee Church, by American Architect Richard Meier, in the Tor Tre Teste area outside of the center. http://www.richardmeier.com/
3. A few other spots that might repay attention:
a. Regarding Ancient Pagan Rome
i. The Baths of Caracalla: What happened there? Why so big?
ii. The Palatine Hill: We will probably go as a group.
iii. The Domus Aurea
b. Regarding Christian Rome
i. The dome of St. Peters: Climb it!
ii. The gardens behind S. Peters
iii. Any of the Catacombs (Blue Guide, Index, p. 596)
c. Regarding Modern Secular Rome
i. The plaque in memory of Aldo Moro: We will go as a group.
ii. Porta Pia: Blue Guide, p. 480
iii. The Janiculum (Blue Guide, pp. 385ff.)
1. Look for the statue of Garibaldi, the other statue of his wife Anita, and other reminders of the Risorgimento
2. Enjoy the views of the city
4. Churches that might be of interest that are not on one of our tours:
a. For Mosaics: S. Prassede, S. Pudenziana
b. For Bones: S. Maria della Concezione
c. For large size and importance: S. Maria Maggiore, S. Paulo Fuori le Mura
5. Good places to wander and get a little lost
a. The Campus Martius: All around Pza. Navona, Campo dei Fiori, the Pantheon
b. Trastevere: All around S.M. in Trastevere, but also further south
c. The Via Appia Antica: Blue Guide, pp. 485ff
6. Consider a walk to Monte Testaccio and the Protestant Cemetery. Testaccio has a very impressive history (Blue Guide 470-71), and it also an interesting district. This whole area is relatively untouristy.
From the NYTimes: Oct 9, 2010
The Maxxi (Via Guido Reni, 4; 39-06-3996-7350; fondazionemaxxi.it), opened in April, is still the talk of Rome. Designed by Zaha Hadid, it is the city’s most ambitious contemporary art museum, and offers playful views with its odd-angled ramps, hidden corners and oblique windows. And although still young, its permanent collection features works by a respectable range of contemporary artists, including Francesco Clemente, William Kentridge and Gerhard Richter.
The Auditorium (auditorium.com), a multifunction complex, designed by Renzo Piano, which has become a cultural hub since opening in 2002
Skip dessert and grab a cone at the Gelateria dei Gracchi (Via dei Gracchi, 272; 39-06-3216668) or Al Settimo Gelo (Via Vodice, 21a; 39-06-372-5567; alsettimogelo.it), two of the city’s best gelaterias, in a city full of them. At Gracchi, the fruit and nut flavors taste fresh off the tree, and might just be worth the price of the plane ticket.
PROVINCIAL MARKET : For great food, friendly service and low prices — and priceless views of Trajan’s Column — head to the Enoteca “Provincia Romana” (Largo del Foro Traiano, 82-84; 39-06-6766-2424). The sleek new wine bar was started by Rome’s province of Lazio to promote local products and wines. The meats and cheeses are excellent, as are its salads. Sit and enjoy the scene, or take a delicious pressed sandwich of spicy grilled eggplant with fresh mozzarella and basil (about 3.50 euros
Stroll around San Lorenzo (madeinsanlorenzo.it), a former working-class district near the Termini station that’s come alive with chic boutiques and workshops.
Hole-in-the-wall in the Testaccio neighborhood and opened Pizzeria 00100 (Via Giovanni Branca, 88; 39-06-4341-9624; 00100pizza.com), named for the grade of semolina flour. The popular pizzeria specializes in “trappizzini” — triangular pieces of thick pizza bianca, which they fill with pillowy meatballs, tripe and other savory stuffings (from 3 euros).
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