Rome for us is like being at home.
We have lots of friends and family in Rome.
We always have a family reunion on Via della Pace at the Forno Giallo. 9 pizzas & 4 platters of fried stuff -- beer, wine, soda --- lots of laughs, fun, and stories.
My husband's mother's family was from Rome. Some stayed. Some went to the States.
After dinner we strolled by Pasquino to say hello. One hundred years ago my husband's family lived upstairs.
We then went down Via del Governo Vecchio, crossing to Via dei Cappelliari, stopping by one of our cousins homes just before Campo de' Fiori for an espresso and a look at family albums from Rome.
You'll meet our cousins Maurizo and Remo soon - they host the video tour we took Sunday of off-the-beaten path places to see in Rome. All video of Rome coming soon to Web Vision Italy.
We are off to Montalcino for a few days. We'll see Rome again next week.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Italy Travel: The Great TrenItalia Robbery
One of the great and convenient ways of travel in Italy is by train on TrenItalia. However, be ever vigilant.
Case in point 1. While you are getting settled in, gypsies jump aboard selling water, sandwiches, etc. But what they really do is, in the commotion of everyone settling in, they take off with your change and leave the train.
DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING UNTIL THE TRAIN IS RUNNING.
And even then, only from an officially uniformed employee..
Case in point 2. Eating in the restaurant car is a fabulous experience and great fun. But remember as the train makes various stops, the gypsies can jump on and jump off and sometimes with your handbags or luggage.
YOU NEED TO WATCH YOUR LUGGAGE AND YOUR HANDBAG DURING YOUR ENTIRE TRAIN RIDE, MOST ESPECIALLY WHEN STOPPED AT A STATION.
By the way, we have traveled for the past 3 weeks in Italy via train and have only had good experiences, including a delightful lunch.
So use the trains and enjoy, but be alert.
Case in point 1. While you are getting settled in, gypsies jump aboard selling water, sandwiches, etc. But what they really do is, in the commotion of everyone settling in, they take off with your change and leave the train.
DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING UNTIL THE TRAIN IS RUNNING.
And even then, only from an officially uniformed employee..
Case in point 2. Eating in the restaurant car is a fabulous experience and great fun. But remember as the train makes various stops, the gypsies can jump on and jump off and sometimes with your handbags or luggage.
YOU NEED TO WATCH YOUR LUGGAGE AND YOUR HANDBAG DURING YOUR ENTIRE TRAIN RIDE, MOST ESPECIALLY WHEN STOPPED AT A STATION.
By the way, we have traveled for the past 3 weeks in Italy via train and have only had good experiences, including a delightful lunch.
So use the trains and enjoy, but be alert.
Italy Travel: The Rinse Cycle
Italy has an obsession with street washing.
If your hotel room or apartment faces the street (always our choice), be prepared to be startled by the massive machines that wash, scrub, and rinse the streets every pre-dawn in all the cities/towns/villages.
In Rome it happens even mid-day.
So should you look out your hotel window at the street and it's wet, it may not have rained, it's just the rinse cycle.
If your hotel room or apartment faces the street (always our choice), be prepared to be startled by the massive machines that wash, scrub, and rinse the streets every pre-dawn in all the cities/towns/villages.
In Rome it happens even mid-day.
So should you look out your hotel window at the street and it's wet, it may not have rained, it's just the rinse cycle.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Rome Italy: Gregorian Chant Benedectine Monasteries
Benedictines are well-known today for the Gregorian chant, which is done daily about 05:40.
A liturgical chant existed in Rome before Saint Gregory in the 6th century.
But Saint Gregory the Great gave it new prominence. After Saint Gregory the Gregorian chant tradition continued to develop and be enriched right through the upheavals that brought an end to the Middle Ages.
The monasteries, especially those of the Benedictine Order, have done much to preserve the Gregorian Chant heritage.
The Order of Saint Benedict (Latin name: Ordo Sancti Benedicti) is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict.
Within the order, each individual community (which may be a monastery, a priory or abbey) maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests.
The monastery at Monte Cassino established in Italy by St. Benedict of Nursia (A.D.529) was the first of a dozen monasteries founded by him.
Even so, there is no evidence to suggest that he intended to found an order. To the contrary, the Rule of St Benedict presupposes the autonomy of each community.
Despite the absence of a Benedictine order, since most monasteries founded during the Middle Ages adopted the Rule of St Benedict, it became the standard for Western Monasticism.
The Benedictine monasteries went on to make considerable contributions not only to the monastic and the spiritual life of the West, but also to economics, education, and government, so that the years from 550 to 1150 may be called the "Benedictine centuries".
The largest number of Benedictines are Roman Catholics, but there are also Benedictines within the Anglican Communion and occasionally within other Christian denominations as well, for example, within the Lutheran Church.
While in Rome maybe you’ll find one here who’ll accept you:
http://www.osb.org/geog/search.asp
Buon Viaggio!
http://www.webvisionitaly.com/category.php?id=145&ref_genre=&ref_item=87
A liturgical chant existed in Rome before Saint Gregory in the 6th century.
But Saint Gregory the Great gave it new prominence. After Saint Gregory the Gregorian chant tradition continued to develop and be enriched right through the upheavals that brought an end to the Middle Ages.
The monasteries, especially those of the Benedictine Order, have done much to preserve the Gregorian Chant heritage.
The Order of Saint Benedict (Latin name: Ordo Sancti Benedicti) is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict.
Within the order, each individual community (which may be a monastery, a priory or abbey) maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests.
The monastery at Monte Cassino established in Italy by St. Benedict of Nursia (A.D.529) was the first of a dozen monasteries founded by him.
Even so, there is no evidence to suggest that he intended to found an order. To the contrary, the Rule of St Benedict presupposes the autonomy of each community.
Despite the absence of a Benedictine order, since most monasteries founded during the Middle Ages adopted the Rule of St Benedict, it became the standard for Western Monasticism.
The Benedictine monasteries went on to make considerable contributions not only to the monastic and the spiritual life of the West, but also to economics, education, and government, so that the years from 550 to 1150 may be called the "Benedictine centuries".
The largest number of Benedictines are Roman Catholics, but there are also Benedictines within the Anglican Communion and occasionally within other Christian denominations as well, for example, within the Lutheran Church.
While in Rome maybe you’ll find one here who’ll accept you:
http://www.osb.org/geog/search.asp
Buon Viaggio!
http://www.webvisionitaly.com/category.php?id=145&ref_genre=&ref_item=87
Rome Italy: A Walk Around the Block
Our block is Rome.
Today's Rome itinerary wandering for one day in Rome.
We walked from our apartment in Piazza Farnese through the open-air market at Campo de' Fiori, past Via del Governo Vecchio, with the young fashion designers, and past Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, down the Corso to Piazza del Popolo, where we had an appointment, naturally at a caffé in Rome.
Done with our business we zig zagged back to our apartment.
First to Via dei Condotti, with stops at the stores with the most beautiful handbags, shoes, expensive silk ties, etc..
Then to Campo Marzio, passing bakeries, and the luscious caffés at the Piazza Lucina.
Then to the right past the Church of the Portuese, on Via dei Coronari, neighborhood of the antique dealers, then to Via dei Bianchi Vecchi, a crossover to Via Giuia, celebrating its 500th anniversary, and we arrived at our apartment a neighbor of the Michelangelo arch.
What's your favorite block?.
Today's Rome itinerary wandering for one day in Rome.
We walked from our apartment in Piazza Farnese through the open-air market at Campo de' Fiori, past Via del Governo Vecchio, with the young fashion designers, and past Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, down the Corso to Piazza del Popolo, where we had an appointment, naturally at a caffé in Rome.
Done with our business we zig zagged back to our apartment.
First to Via dei Condotti, with stops at the stores with the most beautiful handbags, shoes, expensive silk ties, etc..
Then to Campo Marzio, passing bakeries, and the luscious caffés at the Piazza Lucina.
Then to the right past the Church of the Portuese, on Via dei Coronari, neighborhood of the antique dealers, then to Via dei Bianchi Vecchi, a crossover to Via Giuia, celebrating its 500th anniversary, and we arrived at our apartment a neighbor of the Michelangelo arch.
What's your favorite block?.
Rome Travel: A Walk Around the Block Rome
Our block is Rome.
We walked from our apartment in Piazza Farnese through the open-air market at Campo de' Fiori, past Via del Governo Vecchio, with the young fashion designers, and past Piazza Navona and the Panthenon, down the Corso to Piazza del Popolo, where we had an appointment, naturally at a caffé in Rome.
Done with our business we zig zagged back to our apartment.
For more walking maps for Rome visit:
Rome Centro Storico: Rome Walking Tour Map: The Heart of Rome
First to Via dei Condotti, with stops at the stores with the most beautiful handbags, shoes, expensive silk ties, etc..
Then to Campo Marzio, passing bakeries, and the luscious caffés at the Piazza Lucina.
Then to the right past the Church of the Portuese, on Via dei Coronari, neighborhood of the antique dealers, then to Via dei Bianchi Vecchi, a crossover to Via Giuia, celebrating its 500th anniversary, and we arrived at our apartment a neighbor of the Michelangelo arch.
Tell us about your favorite block.
We walked from our apartment in Piazza Farnese through the open-air market at Campo de' Fiori, past Via del Governo Vecchio, with the young fashion designers, and past Piazza Navona and the Panthenon, down the Corso to Piazza del Popolo, where we had an appointment, naturally at a caffé in Rome.
Done with our business we zig zagged back to our apartment.
For more walking maps for Rome visit:
Rome Centro Storico: Rome Walking Tour Map: The Heart of Rome
First to Via dei Condotti, with stops at the stores with the most beautiful handbags, shoes, expensive silk ties, etc..
Then to Campo Marzio, passing bakeries, and the luscious caffés at the Piazza Lucina.
Then to the right past the Church of the Portuese, on Via dei Coronari, neighborhood of the antique dealers, then to Via dei Bianchi Vecchi, a crossover to Via Giuia, celebrating its 500th anniversary, and we arrived at our apartment a neighbor of the Michelangelo arch.
Tell us about your favorite block.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Rome Italy: Beauty Calls at La Vetrina
We took yesterday to relax and take care of ourselves with the Italian touch. Beard trimmed and I had my hair done at La Vetrina
We also stopped by Campo De' Fiori to see the herb specialist who now thinks he's more important in USA than a president.
And of course always fun to go back to Nabiz to see the last styles and desgins.
We also stopped by Campo De' Fiori to see the herb specialist who now thinks he's more important in USA than a president.
And of course always fun to go back to Nabiz to see the last styles and desgins.
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