Hills of Rome, Rome

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Favorite thing: Capitoline, Quirinal, Viminal, Esquiline, Caelian, Palatine, Aventine - the seven hills upon which Ancient Rome was founded. Archaeological evidence shows there were settlements on each hill long before the Romans came. Once they were quite distinct - marshy gaps seperated each hill but they were drained long ago and now the city fills them all. What would you see today if you made your way to the top of each hill in turn?

The Capitoline - once the very heart of the city, the Church of Santa Maria in Aracoeli has stood at the very top of the Capitoline since the 7th century.

The Quirinal s crowned by the Piazza di Quirinal where one of Augustus' obelisks stands guard outside the Presidential Palace.

No such glamour for the Viminal, the smallest of all the hills. It's almost completely covered by Termini, Rome's main station.

The biggest hill, the Esquiline, is crowned by the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, one of the city's four parochial basilicas.

The highest point of the Caelian Hill was, for a few years, the site of one of Mussolini's conceits. In an act of great hubris, the wannabe-emperor placed an Ethiopian stelae here in the manner of his imperial role-models. It was recently restored to the place it was looted from in 1937. Now there's just the white box of the FAO Headquarters (the tallest building in Rome) to remind us of his dreams of empire.

For all its imperial palaces and ruins, the highest point of the Palatine is now given over to a beautiful garden, the Orto Farnesiani, created by Cardinal Farnese on the 16th century.

The belvedere on the Aventine Hill has some of the most spectacular panoramic views in Rome. Keep walking up the hill to the very top and peep through the keyhole of the door to the headquarters of the Knights of Malta and the view, though tiny, is just as breathtaking

Favorite thing: This is the "Roman Capitol" (il Capitolio), and right on both sides of this central square in front of it you will find 2 identical buildings which house the Musei Capitolini, which are REALLY big and full of interesting pieces of art. You will spend a good time getting here (you have to walk uphill) and touring the museums, and it's worth it!

Favorite thing: Our Italian cab driver insisted we must see ONE MORE THING before leaving Rome ... and so on our way to the airport he drove up into the hills to this door. You must look through a little hole in the gate to a wonderful garden...and you can see the Vatican perfectly framed in the distance. It's a MUST, he says. The gate and garden were designed for this....and it would be a pity if noone was taken there to see it after all that planning. :-)

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Fondest memory: Palentine Hill is one of the talked about "seven hills of Rome". We heeded the advice of the guidebooks and walked right on by the Colosseum, making a right onto the Sacred Way. To the left of the arch of Titus leading into the Forum, is an unassuming ticket kiosk. Here we bought our tickets, with no line what-so-ever. Palentine Hill was almost all to ourselves. How much fun it was to walk among ancient history alone. There was one other couple scrambling around the rocks and a small group of about 5 with a tour guide. That was it!

Have you ever done this? Sort of stood close to a tour guided group pretending to be looking intently at the scene before you, but all the while, listening to the good bits the guide is giving out? No need to pay when you can eavesdrop...

Then, after leaving Palentine Hill, we waltzed right on by the long..........line..... waiting to get into the Colosseum. The ticket you buy on Palentine Hill also covers the Colosseum. The walk-right-on-by side is to the left when you get to the Colosseum.

Favorite thing: After the unification of Italy in 1870, it became the official residence of the king, then in 1947 of the president of the republic.- Beside the palace there is a stairway that you can use to go to the Trevi Fountain.-

Antiguo palacio pontificio, hoy es residencia del presidente de Italia. A su lado se encuentran unas escaleras que llevan a la Fontana di Trevi. Bajar por las mismas y luego tomar la Vía di San Vicenzo y uno se encuentra de frente con la Fontana.-

Favorite thing: Just like churches and fountains, Rome has hundreds of squares. The biggest and best known are Piazza Navona, Piazza Venezia, Piazza del Populo or Piazza Espagna.

Our favourite was Campo dei Fuori, a square that has been used for a colorful market from the second half of the 19th century. Do go in the morning to enjoy the hustle and bustle there and have a cappucchino in one of the surrounding cafés!

Favorite thing: Rome is built on seven hills. When Romulus and Remus found this site they must have been very pleased. In that days seven planets were worshipped ( Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn), so seven was considered a good number. The hills were named: Palatine, Aventine, Capitoline, Quarinal, Viminal, Esquiline and Caelian. In between the hills was marshland where the Romans buried their dead. As Rome began to grow from a village to a city the draining of the Forum Valley was needed. It was going to be a public square.

These seven hills are still there and reflect in the names of the Roman quarters. The hills are not very high, but sometimes you encounter stairs when you walk the streets of Rome. This is the Via di San Francesco di Paola. It leads from the Via Cavour to a building of the university.

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Fondest memory: If you happen to be at the Quirinale at around 3:00 in the afternoon, you will see the changing of the guard in the piazza, which has some awesome sculptures. This is the official residence of the president of Italy. Keep in mind that the Quirinal Hill is the highest in Rome, so you have a steep climb, especially if you are starting out from Via Nazionale!( okay, not exactly a fond memory!)