Things to see and do in Rome

In this first post of 2 I will give some advices for you as a visitor. What you can’t miss and what you could miss.

First of all let us get clear with how Rome is structured… In the central of Rome you can always get around by foot and it is not necessary to take the public transportations. Then if you would like to go to the outskirts of Rome then you have to rely on the transports mentioned above.
I suggest that you don’t take any prepaid guided bus tours since they only take on the bus and then drive you quickly pass the monuments. Take a walk instead!

In the centre of Rome you have monuments that you can’t miss and I will list some of them here so you can check them off.

Fontana di Trevi: The most famous fountain in the world. If you don’t know about it you should know that it was built in 1762 and it has figured in the film “La Dolce Vita” with Anita Ekberg. You will find the fountain in Piazza Di Trevi in the central of Rome.


Piazza di Spagna: This is a beautiful post in Rome and all around the year you will see people sitting on the stairs and eating ice cream.

In the piazza you will find the marvelous fountain “Fontana della Barcaccia” which have the form of a giant fish. When you are in the zone take a look at the luxury stores, you will find all the top notch brands like Prada, Gucci and Armani to mention a few.

The Vatican: Take this opportunity to visit the heart of the catholic church and if you are lucky you may even see the pope! But be advised, you are probably not the only one to visit the Vatican so I suggest that you go there early to avoid the big crowds.

Things to see in the Vatican then; well don’t miss the Sistine Chapel and take a tour to see the tombs of the previous popes.
If you go there on a Sunday you will experience the weekly convention where the pope speaks from his balcony.

Villa Borghese: I giant park in the centre of Rome, you can compare it to central park in New York.

Here you find an oasis of green and nature in the sometimes chaotic Rome. There is a Zoo in this park but please take my advice and don’t go there, it’s not worth the time neither the money.

This is the end of part 1 in visiting Rome hope you like it and please leave a comment to let me know what you think and what I can improve... stay tuned for part 2!
Ps. Bring the waliking/jogging shoes

How to survive the subway in Rome

Well in all civilized countries there is a public transportation that works. This however is not the case in Rome. The trains are old, they don’t work very well and they are too crowded. Furthermore there are only 2 metro lines in Rome, Metro A and Metro B and they only meet in one place, Termini! They cover a very small part of the town so if you are unlucky and have to go to some other place in Rome you have to get the bus (which will have its own post later on).

So things to think about: You buy the ticket in advance, this you can buy in a “tabbacheria” or any small shop. This functions as an entry ticket and you have to keep it all the way. The ticket is valid different depending on what type you get.

When you get on the metro you will notice that people in Italy don’t understand that they have to continue to move into the metro but everybody wants to stand in front of the doors. So when you manage to get inside, hold tight because the drivers are very aggressive in their driving so you will always see somebody fall or step on anybody’s foot. If you step on anybody’s foot, just say “Scusa” and everything will be fine.

When you get to the stop Termini, be advised. It is like the landing in Normandy. Inside the metro you have 150 persons that want to get off and outside you have 200 that want to get on. So when the “biiiip” sounds and the doors open it´s like being a quarterback on Any Given Sunday.

Keep your bags close to you, don’t look back, leave no man behind and never stop and you should get of healthy and well!