Rome: History unfolded

by Rosanne Koelmeyer Anderson

"My visit to Rome brings back memories of valuable times well spent and a golden opportunity any traveller should avail themselves of". Today, in Sri Lanka, we do have many tours to Rome, so no hassle if you like history and sight seeing. No worries about transport, good automobile and metro service is at your service.

"For me this visit to Rome was very special and a wonderful experience, as I am a Roman Catholic the very thought of going to Rome and visiting the Vatican was a dream come true. I cherished every moment of it, and I'm sure it would be the same for you too."

The religious aspect of it apart, Rome, the capital of Italy is a beautiful city and one of the most historic centres that holds the most comprehensive art collection in the world. A treat for art lovers, the many art galleries around, the museums, the monuments and towers, St. Peter's Square the ruins of the legendary wall that borders the city and art galleries are some of the things you should not miss out on.

The Vatican, almost 2000 years old, the home of the Pope and the Centre of the Catholic Church is no doubt one of the best known spiritual centres in the world.

It is a sovereign state and has survived time, war and countless visitors on pilgrimages and tours and moreover boasts of a non-commercial economy, based primarily around annual contributions from Roman Catholics, income derived from tourist momentoes, admission fees to the various exhibits and museums and the sale of postage stamps which has become quite popular.

Much of what is synonymous with Roman art and Michaelangelo was created during the Renaissance. And Michaelangelo to date, remains a name known by all, the great architect of several priceless works like the la Pieta, a sculpture of the Madonna cradling her son after the crucifixion, and the fabulous Sistine Chapel which is accessible from inside the Vatican Museums.

The works of art are amazingly fabulous, another world as it were, unbelievably exceptional, a treat to the eye of the beholder. Losing consciousness of time, is nothing surprising.

Apart from the world-famous Vatican museums, Rome has several other houses of history which would interest visitors.

The museum of Roman civilisation which features a scale model of rome at the height of its power near the end of the Empire, the National Etruscan Museum where one will find several artefacts from the ancient times of Etruscans, with one of the most valued treasures in the museum being a bride and groom's coffin dating back to 600 BC and the Municipal Gallery of Modern Arts' collection with a collection of the 19th and 20th century works by the Italian artist Boccioni and works of international artists like Degas and Van Gogh.

Apart from these great works of art, Bernini's Piazza Navona, near the Pantheon boasts of three exceptional fountains, one of which has been deemed his best work, the Fontana Fiumi (1651) while Mussolini did his best to leave his handprint on Rome with fascist architecture and was responsible for commissioning the Square Colosseum.

So it is more or less a city of artistic grandeur in short. Visiting all these places is time consuming no doubt, but a wonderful experience of a bygone era in retrospect. The Colosseum aptly named, is one place any visitor would not miss out on. It is probably the most recognisable and impressive structure remaining.

It's awesome, Built between 70 and 80 AD, the artefacts are unknown, but it is believed to have held 50,000 people, had so many entrances and exits that could amazingly be flooded in order to stage elaborate naval battles. This certainly takes you very very far back in time.

Exploring the Roman Empire you move on to the Pantheon, designed by Maraus Agrippa in 27 BC, originally built as a Roman Temple and later a church, the Pantheon which literally means 'All the God's has remained intact for more than 2000 years. This is quite a walk of course, so make sure you wear your most comfortable pair of flat shoes on this tour. But, history taking you back in time is an interesting experience as the old world has not lost its charm.

It is evident that the Romans have spent much of their time improving and building aqueducts for irrigation and hygiene, and much of their work remains in operation today as many of the fountains in the city's centre are still fed through these ancient pipe systems.

Today, Modern Rome, with a population of 2.5 million also boasts of cutting edge fashion houses housed in centuries old buildings, big hotels and restaurants and a fabulous Italian gourmet spread at every nook and corner, square with a good metro service, Alfa Romeos and Maseratis and a city with much life and energy.

[email protected]