Rome - sightseeing

Located in Piazzale del Verano, near the eponymous cemetery, this church (also known as San Lorenzo al Verano) was originally built on the sepulchre of Saint Lawrence in the 4th Century, but in 1216 its size was increased by incorporating a smaller church that was right beside it. This church is a great example of what happened to the building material of pagan temples: all of the pillars inside the church come from former temples.

If the exterior is not particularly beautiful, the inside is extremely fascinating, with beautiful marble floors: the church seems richly adorned and simple at the same time, so to say. The crypt is particularly beautiful, with its golden decorations.

The biggest amphitheater in Rome, and the first permanent one, it had seating for 50,000+ spectators, had eight different exits, and could be covered in case of rain, just like a modern stadium. It was built between 72 and 80 AD, and inaugurated by the Emperor Titus. Its original name was Amphitheatrum Flavium, and the present one derives either from a big statue of Emperor Nero that was in its vicinity, or from a Temple devoted to the Goddes Isis.

Its wooden arena floor had passages and lifts for gladiators and beasts alike; the arena did not host only fights between gladiators, prisoners and beasts, but also naval battles, with a special system that allowed for the flooding of the floor. It three-tiered structure, with Doric pillars on the bottom story, Ionic on the second, and Corinthian on the third is huge and imposing, but since it has been used as a quarry for centuries (especially during the Renaissance), only a part of its outer ring, and almost no decorations are left.

A ticket into the Colosseum just gives you entry, there is no information in Italian or English, which is a little upsetting to be looking at one of the most important sites without any idea when it was built, by who and what really went on here. When lining up for tickets your bound to be hassled by tour operators and I suggest you take the opportunity, you will come out full of knowledge.

One of the biggest museums in Italy, and one of the best for paintings and ancient sculpture. It contains the famous Sistine Chapel and a series of rooms frescoed by Raphael, both absolute masterpieces and worth the ticket by themselves.

The museums contain also a huge paintings collection, with pictures by the most prominent Italian painters since the Middle Ages, going from Giotto to Perugino to Leonardo and Caravaggio. There’s an Egyptian and an Etruscan section, and a collection of ancient sculpture with few equals in Italy.

While there are galleries crammed with torsos, heads and statues (many of which are often seen in school history books), the most beautiful pieces are the Lacoon, which is a perfect example of the more plastic Hellenistic sculpture style, and the "Apollo del Belvedere", Goethe’s favourite and one of the best examples of the classical concept of beauty and harmony, even if it is a Roman copy and not a Greek original.

Due to their popularity, it is strongly advised to get to the Vatican Museums very early in the morning. In summer, the queue can be more than one kilometre long as early as 8:30 in the morning!

Built in 27 BC by the consul Agrippa (check the huge inscription on the front architrave), then rebuilt in 120 DC under the emperor Hadrian, the Pantheon gently dominates the eponymous square (Piazza del Pantheon) in the very centre of Rome.

The building is a great example of the great achievements of Roman architecture: the dome, which is actually bigger than Saint Peter’s (although the building itself is much smaller), is built in cement and, when seen from inside, has a very sophisticated coffer ceiling which creates a sense of vastness and a series of perspective lines that are really breathtaking.

The Pantheon was a temple dedicated to all of the Gods (hence the name), and although it has been converted to a Christian Church already in Byzantine times, it does not look like one at all, and the altar and Christian paraphernalia, as well as the tombs of some kings of Italy, look a bit like occupying troops in enemy territory.