Page 39 - Lonely Planet Europe’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

Romano exit for Roma Nord
onto the A1dir for the final 20km TOP TIP:
descent into the capital. ROME INFORMATION
LINE

TRIP HIGHLIGHT The Comune di Roma (city council) runs a free
8 Rome multilingual information line (%06 06 08; h9am-
9pm), providing information on culture, shows, hotels,
In the 18th century Rome, transport etc. You can also book theatre, concert,
even in ruins, was still exhibition and museum tickets on this number. The
thought of as the august call centre, has staff who speak English, French,
capital of the world. Here Arabic, German, Spanish, Italian and Chinese
more than anywhere available from 4pm to 7pm.
the Grand Tourist was
awakened to an interest ITALY 1 GRAND TOuR
in art and architecture, his love poems and died at antique perfumery
although the Colosseum of consumption. Officina Profumo Farma-
(Colosseo; %06 3996 7700; Although the Pantheon ceutica di Santa Maria
www.coopculture.it; Piazza (www.pantheonroma.com; Pi- Novella (www.smnovella.
del Colosseo; adult/reduced azza della Rotonda; h8.30am- it; Corso del Rinascimento 47;
incl Roman Forum & Palatino 7.30pm Mon-Sat, 9am-6pm Sun; h10am-7.30pm Mon-Sat;
€12/7.50; h8.30am-1hr before gLargo di Torre Argentina) gCorso del Rinascimento).
sunset; mColosseo) was still and Vatican Museums
filled with debris and the (Musei Vaticani; %06 6988 54 p41, p86
Palatine Hill was covered 4676; http://mv.vatican.va; The Drive » Past Rome the
in gardens, its excavated Viale Vaticano; adult/reduced landscape is hotter and drier,
treasures slowly accu- €16/8, last Sun of month free; trees give way to Mediterranean
mulating in the world’s h9am-4pm Mon-Sat, 9am- shrubbery and the grass starts
oldest national museum, 12.30pm last Sun of month; to yellow. Beyond the vineyards
the Capitoline Museums mOttaviano-San Pietro) were of Frascati, just 20km south of
Rome, the A1 heads straight to
(Musei Capitolini; %06 06 a must, most travellers Naples (Napoli) for 225km, a
08; www.museicapitolini.org; preferred to socialise two-hour drive that often takes
Piazza del Campidoglio 1; adult/ in the grounds of the much longer due to heavy traffic.
reduced €12/10; h9.30am- Borghese Palace (%06 3
7.30pm, last admission 6.30pm; 28 10; www.galleriaborghese. TRIP HIGHLIGHT
gPiazza Venezia). it; Piazzale del Museo Borghese
Arriving through the 5; adult/reduced €11/6.50; 9 Naples
Porta del Popolo, visitors h8.30am-7.30pm Tue-Sun; Only the more adven-
first spied the dome of St gVia Pinciana). turous Grand Tourists
Peter’s (Basilica di San Pietro; Follow their example continued south to the
www.vatican.va; St Peter’s Sq; and mix the choicest salacious city of Naples.
h7am-7pm summer, to 6.30pm sights with more venal At the time Mt Vesu-
winter; mOttaviano-San pleasures such as fine vius glowed menacingly,
Pietro) before clattering dining at Open Colonna erupting six times during
along the corso to the (%06 4782 2641; www. the 18th century and eight
customs house. Once antonellocolonna.it; Via Milano times in the 19th century.
done, they headed to 9a; meals €20-80; h12.30- But Naples was the home
Piazza di Spagna, the 3.30pm Tue-Sun, 7-11.30pm of opera and commedia
city’s principal meeting Tue-Sat; a; gVia Nazionale) dell’arte (improvised
place where Keats penned and souvenir shopping comedic satire), and

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