Your tour guide in Rome

In a Stone’s Throw from Rome
The Roman countryside is beautiful year-round, but its especially remarkable during the spring and summer months. This is the best time to visit to Roman Castles (Castelli Romani), to admire magnificent panoramas, explore antiquities, eat fresh strawberries and sample exquisite white wines. I invite you to visit quaint little towns surrounding Rome, the true pearls scattered over the picturesque hills of Lazio. Emperors often left the city for the countryside to escape the heat, popes came to Castelgandolfo to rest and breathe fresh air, and even the commoners would rush to this area when the city is in sweltering temperatures. To reach the Roman Castles, we will travel along the ancient Appian Way, the most important Roman road, surrounded by romantic ruins, beautiful churches and mysterious catacombs. We will visit old monasteries, admire crystal-clear lakes and take a walk through narrow winding streets of beautiful medieval towns.

The Ostia Antica Archaeological Park is extremely beautiful in the spring time. You can take a walk and admire a wide range of well preserved structures, such as the theatre, the forum, the baths and numerous ancient temples and palaces decorated with mosaics and frescoes.

The statue of Marcus Aurelius on the Capitol originally stood in the Lateran. It was believed to represent Constantine. This may have been the reason for its preservation. In the XVI century it was the only ancient monumental bronze equestrian statue to survive in Rome. In 1538 it was moved to the empty piazza on the Capitol. Michelangelo designed the plinth. It remained there for centuries, and only in 1981 the statue was removed for repairs. The original is now on display in the Capitoline Museums, while the sculpture standing in the open air is a replica made when the original was taken down for restoration.