Gammarelli: the tiny shop you must see
by monica71
It was really hard for me to decide where to put this information since it covers both, a custom of the country and a thing to do while in Rome, but I decided in the end to put it in this category, so here it is:
Gammarelli is a tiny family-run shop by the Pantheon that has a nice tradition: it is the only place where the Pope orders his clothes. And this goes back at least over two centuries. If you enter the store (which I highly recommend you do since you are in front of it!), check out the pictures hanging on the walls: papal photos dating back to the reign of Pius XI in the 1920's and framed certificates proclaiming Gammarelli the official pontifical haberdasher.
While I was in the store, the sales people mentioned to me that during papal elections, Gammarelli delivers three sets of robes to the Apostolic Palace: tall and large, tall and slender, short and heavy. This is being done in order to make sure that the new pope has an outfit to wear while greeting the crowds in St. Peter's Square right after his election. Tailor-made robes are stitched later.
Elephant Obelisk
by sandysmith
Obelisks galore can be found dotted around Rome but a little cute one is found in Piazza Minerva where Bernini's elephant supports a 6m Egyptian obelisk which belonged to the Temple of Isis, that formerly stood nearby.
Archeobus and the origins of Rome
by Karahan
This green bus takes you to all main archaeological ruins and important buildings. It has got more than 15 bus stops. The service is active everyday in summertimes. Departures every 40 minutes from Stazione Termini from 09:00am to 04:00pm. The journey lasts about 2 hrs.
You can buy tickets at Piazza dei Cinquecento and on board. 10% discount for online orders. Price is 13 euro with stop&go stlye.
Archeobus ticket also allows you to visit the catacombs of San Sebastiano, San Callisto and Domitilla at a special price of 3 euro. And also rent a bike at the Appia Antica info point for 2 euro. They have some special offers too. You can check their website.
A family restaurant
by uglyscot about Novecento
a friendly restaurant which is very popular with the locals. Food is local Italian fare and much of the cooking takes place in full view of the clientele.
And we were able to watch the connfecyioner spin sugar to decorate a dessert that looked positively out of this world.
On our second visit we were treated like old friends. I enjoyed the risotto with herbs and spinach, but the both mushroom and margherita pizzas ,and veal cutlets were plentiful and excellent too.
The Coliseum
by Besties
Possibly the most well-known sight in Rome, we had to see this and were not disappointed.
There is so much history to this place and actually standing there, thinking about all the horrible and amazing things that went on there all those years ago is quite awesome.
Ok, so there's not much left of it (apparently the Romans 'recycled' much of it for other buildings) but there's enough to get a good idea of the scale of this ancient entertainment complex. It's easy to imagine the steeply tiered seats filled with tens of thousands of screaming Romans and you can see the two levels of under-floor ‘backstage’ now there’s no floor left!
There are lots of scouts outside, trying to tempt you to take their walking tour. For once we decided to take one of these tours and were glad we did. We paid 17 Euros for a guided walking tour (we would have had to pay 10 Euros to get in on our own anyway) and we were taken right past the hour-long line of people waiting to get in. The tour guide was excellent: very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. There’s so much to be gained from having a guide here!
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Column of Marcus Aurelius
Temple of Hercules
La Maddalena- the most beautiful church in Rome
People with rowing boat. Doesn't seem like January
