Rome

Why Rome?
Sense of History
Amor

Why Rome?

Rome is my favourite city in the world. It's not an easy city to appreciate at first try, being noisy, dusty, and often hot and crowded. But in every trip I have made - over 20 years there must have been 100 - I have found something new to see or appreciate or learn.

Sense of History

The uniqueness of this city lies in the layering of history, and all in the context of a modern, thriving city, so that it has not become a relic or a museum piece like Venice. This is a gritty metropolis, where the evidence and drama of human life lived at a similar intensity over 2500 years is all around you. From the Romans of the Republic to the Romans of the Empire; through the Byzantine Dark Ages to the medieval popes; to the Renaissance and the Baroque period, then italy of the Grand Tour and the Risorgimento; and right up to Mussolini and the present day - all roads lead to Rome, if not the cradle then at least the nursery of western civilisation.

Amor

Wander the streets and look at the buildings - 17th century apartment blocks will often have old bits of roman temples embedded in their walls. The stock exchange has as one wall the columns of Hadrian's temple. Meanwhile San Clemente, a spectacular church near the Colosseum, has three distinct layers to it - formerly a private home for clandestine christian worship in the first century, it developed into a temple to Mithras and finally a medieval basilica - the excavated layers reveal each period, one simply built on top of another. One of the best ways to get a sense of the legacy of Rome and its continuity is to rent a copy of Fellini's Roma - Amor spelled backward by the way. The other is to rent a moped - and tear down the Via Appia, the Appian Way, the oldest road in Europe still in use, whose volcanic cobblestones have "felt the tread of Hannibal and St. Paul, Charlemagne, Lord Byron, and Mark Twain." If you have any historical imagination at all, it will blow your mind.

James Dunford Wood

Nearest airports to Rome

Flight Information

Leonardo

da Vinci (Fiumicino)

is one of Rome's two main international airport. The airport

is located 26km (16 miles) southwest of Rome.

With three terminals, it is quite a large and congested airport.

Rome's second main airport is Ciampino

(Giovan Battista Pastine).

It is located 15km (9 miles) to the southeast of the centre of Rome.

It is three passengers and one cargo terminal, so it is still quite

large but considerable less congested.

How to Arrive via
Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo Express

This train runs

every half hour to the Termini station. The travel time is

approximately 35 minutes.

Other Trains

There

are Metropolitan trains that stop

at local stations on the way to Tiburtina.

Services also run to Fara Sabina, Poggio Mirteto and Orte.

Terravision

Shuttle

This

coach service runs daily and will take you from the airport to the

Termini station or visa versa. This shuttle will also connect you

with the

metro A line at Lepanto. A single ticket will cost about €7.00 and

a round trip ticket will cost about €12.00.

Taxi

Taxis are available

at the airport but passengers should be sure to use only taxis that

are licensed and metered. Know how much money you give the driver and

make sure you receive the correct change.

How to Arrive via
Ciampino

Terravision

Shuttle

This coach service

runs daily and will take you from the airport to the Termini station

or visa versa. The shuttle comes in correspondence with nine

different airlines and seats on the shuttle are reserved for those

passengers from those nine airlines. A single ticket costs about

€8.00 and a round trip ticket costs about €14.00. The journey

time between the airport and Termini station is about 12-15 minutes.

Schiaffini

This is a bus that

runs every half hour between the airport and Ciampino train station.

From here, it takes only 12 to 15 minutes to the Termini station and

trains depart every 15 to 20 minutes.

Taxi

As usual, taxis are

available at the airport for passenger use. Keep in mind that you

should only get into a taxi that is licensed and metered.

Resources

www.adr.it

- The official web site for Ciampino and Leonardo da Vinci airports.

Rome Ciampino (14.51km)
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Rome Fiumicino (21.99km)
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