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00:28Transcription by CastingWords
00:30Raise your travel dreams to their upright and locked positions.
00:35Join us now as we discover the ins and outs of travels in Europe.
00:53Buongiorno, I'm Rick Steves, back with some advice for travel in Europe.
00:57This time we're in Rome.
00:59I'd like to give you some special tips to help make your trip go smoother,
01:02to share some off-the-beaten-path surprises,
01:04and to make just a bit of Europe's history and art come alive.
01:10We've been working our way down from northern Europe on our grand tour.
01:14We've come from Holland, through Germany and Austria, into northern Italy.
01:19And here we are now, a little more than midway.
01:21We've reached the southernmost point of our best-of-Europe circle.
01:25We're in the eternal city, Rome.
01:30We'll take in some often-missed Michelangelo masterpieces.
01:33We'll savor Roman cuisine without busting the budget.
01:37And we'll venture outside of the city to see how ancient Romans lived at Ostia Antica and Hadrian's Villa at
01:43Tivoli.
01:45I don't need to tell you about Rome's world-class must-sees.
01:48You already know to see them.
01:50The Colosseum, St. Peter's, and the Roman Forum.
01:53But Rome has a flip side.
01:55Let's check out the warm and unpromoted underbelly of Europe's ancient capital.
02:02Rome's medieval pulse is best felt here, in Trascaver, across the Tiber River from the Colosseum, the Forum, and all
02:08the tour groups.
02:09This is village Rome, people's Rome.
02:12This is Rome's left bank, where I get intimate with Rome.
02:19So, drop in just for a wander.
02:22Be a poet.
02:23There's always something interesting to see and someone interesting to talk with.
02:49The street plan is a bowl of spaghetti.
02:51Narrow lanes and alleys with centuries of life ground between the cobbles.
02:55This is where medieval Rome survives.
03:08And all this action marches to the chime of the neighborhood church bells.
03:13That's Santa Maria in Trascaveri, maybe Rome's oldest church.
03:17The building is said to date from the 3rd century.
03:20The building's layout shows the floor plan that the first Christians borrowed from the pre-Christian Roman Basilica.
03:34And you can even see some early Christian graffiti.
03:49The facade was added in the 12th century.
04:00The facade was added in the 12th century.
04:06Rome has lots of churches with priceless works of art that are often overlooked in the tourist trampled shadows of
04:12the Colosseum and the Vatican.
04:14They'd be the artistic pride of a lesser city.
04:17Do a little research on your own.
04:19Find your own special gem.
04:20Find your own special gem.
04:21Let's look at a couple of my favorite, often-missed churches.
04:25St. Peter in Chains Church.
04:27San Pietro in Vincoli.
04:29The church itself isn't worth the detour, but Michelangelo's Moses is.
04:35It's just a 10-minute walk from the Colosseum.
04:38Easy to get to.
04:55Any Michelangelo statue is a goosebump experience.
04:59You can find a number of Michelangelo statues in Rome.
05:02One of his really obscure statues, Christ bearing the cross, is in Santa Maria Sopra Minerva.
05:36This church, just behind the Pantheon, is Rome's only Gothic church.
05:41It's built over the pre-Christian Temple of Minerva, hence the name Santa Maria Sopra Minerva.
05:57Now for more bones than you're likely to ever see again, let's visit the Capuchin crypt, just off Piazza Berberini,
06:04on Via Veneto.
06:05The Capuchin monks have artistically arranged thousands of skeletons as a bony reminder of their, and our, mortality.
06:14As humans race, their quiet message is, we were like you, you will be like us.
06:26But we're not quite like them yet, and a great place to enjoy this life is on Rome's piazzas.
06:31They offer some of the best people watching in Europe.
06:35Rome's shops, flirts, riots, and parties on its great squares.
06:41Romans love to get together on a piazza.
06:46I do my people watching on Piazza Navona.
06:49The action starts in the late afternoon.
07:07This huge oblong is molded around a long-gone chariot racetrack.
07:13You can still see its ancient shadow.
07:23Treat yourself to an aperitif, cappuccino, or gelato, at one of the upscale sidewalk cafes.
07:30Prices are high, but the show is great, and you've got a front-row seat.
07:45For a meal to please the palate and the pocketbook, walk three blocks to the Campo di Fiori, the field
07:52of the flowers, and pick the place that looks best.
07:56This square is lined with small places.
07:59It's popular with locals and savvy travelers.
08:02By tomorrow morning, the tables will be stowed, and the square becomes a colorful flower and produce market.
08:21Piazza Venezia, this square is a focal point of modern Rome.
08:26It's crowded, popular, well-known, and not pedestrian-friendly.
08:31And a lot's happened here.
08:33That balcony is where Mussolini stood, whipping up nationalistic fervor as fascist masses filled the square, screaming,
08:40right on Il Duce.
08:43Fifteen years later, the same masses hung him from a meat hook in Milan, a sobering thought for any would
08:49-be dictators out there.
08:56While fascist strongman Mussolini was steamrolling the basic rights of Italians,
09:00he was building some things that sort of mesmerized people into thinking he was okay.
09:04Let's take the short subway ride out to his planned futuristic suburb, EUR.
09:22This is fascist architecture at its repulsive best.
09:26Bold, powerful, and overbearing.
09:30Mussolini came to power in 1922.
09:33He was Western Europe's first dictator between the two world wars.
09:36This project was the symbol of the fascist dictator's dream of a second Roman Empire.
09:43World dominance again after so long.
09:46Look at the lines on these structures.
09:50Forceful.
09:51No frills.
09:52No decadent decorations.
09:55It screams fascism.
09:58A melodramatic nationalism where individuality is crushed.
10:18Europe's big cities are expensive, so budgets beware.
10:21My practical tips for this program will center around ways to stretch your Roman board money in Rome.
10:27But remember, these budget tips work equally well throughout Europe.
10:30First of all, you'll save lots of lira by sleeping in one of several alternatives to hotels.
10:35My favorite budget beds in Rome are in a convent.
10:40Yes, many of them rent rooms, and some provide meals.
10:44So many pilgrims visit Rome that there's a convent room-finding service in the train station.
10:50The convents operate tax-free, so they're cheaper.
10:53And they're obviously peaceful, safe, and very clean.
10:59The nuns rarely speak English, but with my fractured Italian, a few simple English words, and some sign language, I
11:06always get by.
11:08This one is Soire di Sant'Ana, just three blocks from the Forum, and built for Ukrainian pilgrims.
11:15They overestimated the demand, so they often have room for tourists.
11:20The rooms are simple, mostly singles.
11:22They serve three meals a day.
11:27The sisters speak Italian and Ukrainian.
11:31Good luck.
11:31If you land a spot, your blessings will include great atmosphere, unbeatable location, a rock-bottom price, and heavenly cooking.
11:47If a convent just isn't your style, and you still need to watch your budget, there are other money-saving
11:52alternatives.
11:53You just need to know the local word.
11:55In Italy, locanda, albergo, camera, and pension all provide budget beds.
12:03Rome has hundreds of pensions.
12:05These are family-run establishments about halfway between a hotel and a bed and breakfast.
12:10Rome is intense.
12:12It's one of the places I enjoy a refuge, a place where I can relax and unwind after a long
12:18day of doing battle with 2,500 years of Roman culture.
12:23So I like to splurge here.
12:26Rome has some very classy pensions.
12:29One of my favorites is Pension Nardizzi, a five-minute walk from Piazza Barberini.
12:34Not cheap by my standards, but still about half what a normal hotel would cost.
12:40Remember, in these family operations, you get to know the owners.
12:43You can make some friends, and you can get some terrific insider information about the city.
12:50Pensiones of all kinds and prices are listed in guidebooks, or you can find the kind of pension you want
12:56through the room-finding service at the train station.
12:58I discovered Senior Nardizzi's place with the help of one of these room-finding services.
13:09How do you find an inexpensive restaurant?
13:12Meals in Rome can be an expensive disappointment.
13:15And, of course, if you stick to the main tourist areas, the number at the bottom of your bill will
13:18look like an ad for SpaghettiOs.
13:20As a tourist, you become part of the economy.
13:23You've got money, and they want it.
13:26The crew and I are going to dine well tonight on a budget.
13:32If money is a limited resource, avoid the touristic battlefront.
13:36That's where the souvenir racks are fully loaded, and the cash registers are cocked and ready to take you.
13:41That's why I like traveling in places where I'm enjoyed as a visitor from far away, not targeted by the
13:47local tourist hustlers.
13:48And that's why I'm eating in this, not so slick, but very local, Osteria.
13:54An Osteria is a small, generally family-run alternative to a restaurant, and a good option.
14:01Well, it looks good, Pat.
14:05Hey, it was Soto, yeah. I'll go with that also.
14:08Nice.
14:10The best restaurants seem to hide in the small streets off the main thoroughfares.
14:16Snoop around.
14:17Do some menu shopping.
14:19Ask your hotel to recommend an inexpensive neighborhood-style restaurant.
14:23Don't grab the first place with a big neon sign bragging, we speak English.
14:28Choose a place packed with locals, loyal return customers who know a good value.
14:34Order with a spirit of adventure.
14:36You won't understand the entire menu, but take a few risks.
14:42So what if you don't get exactly what you thought you would?
14:46We're eating at a fairly typical, medium-priced, sit-down-type restaurant that caters to Italians.
14:52The Osteria La Nuovo Campanina, near the Pantheon.
14:56I'm having spaghetti amatriciana, with a glass of frescati wine.
15:03We're paying just about what we'd pay in a moderate restaurant at home.
15:21Rome has many good, handy, self-service places.
15:24This one's at Largo, Argentina, also near the Pantheon.
15:28They have a wide array of food and wine.
15:31They're clean, conveniently located, and offer a decent, low-stress, low-risk, low-price.
15:36What you see is what you get meal.
15:39They don't have the romantic atmosphere.
15:41This is for the 9-to-5 crowd, not La Dolce Vita.
15:45But to fill the tank halfway through a busy day of sightseeing, this is my kind of place.
15:51The cheapest meal in Rome is a picnic.
15:54Gather a meal at the Corner Alimentari.
15:56That's Italian for a small and friendly grocery store.
15:58And remember, there's nothing low-quality about the low cuisine.
16:02Watch.
16:08Now, just across the street from the Pantheon, we pick up fresh rolls, some tasty salami, cheese, a few olives,
16:15yogurt, and a box of juice.
16:18That's a hearty lunch for about a fourth of what we'd pay in a sit-down restaurant.
16:24Then you can play Tired Centurion, next to this Roman column, as you enjoy a delicious picnic lunch.
16:36I've got to run.
16:38Nice talking to you.
16:39Good luck.
16:41This is a fitting square in which to begin our talk on Roman art and culture.
16:45Rome has many layers.
16:47Modern, Baroque, Renaissance, early Christian.
16:50But let's face it.
16:51Rome is Caesars.
16:52Temples, chariots, gladiators.
16:55Thumbs up or thumbs down.
16:57That's the Rome that we'll look at.
16:59The Pantheon is the building that gives you a feeling for the magnificence and splendor of Rome better than any
17:04other.
17:06This temple, first built in 27 B.C., was completely rebuilt around 120 A.D. by the emperor Hadrian.
17:15In a gesture of modesty, admirable in anyone, but astounding in a Roman emperor, Hadrian left his own name off
17:21it, putting the name of the original builder on the front, Agrippa.
17:40Since it's been in continuous use, it's the best preserved ancient building in Rome.
17:55The ability to construct such a huge dome was lost for centuries, until the Renaissance.
18:05By the way, notice after 2,000 years, the rise of Rome.
18:10Each age has built on the rubble of the last.
18:13So today we walk from the 20th century down to the street level of the ancient Pantheon.
18:30While the Pantheon was important, the political center was the Roman Forum.
18:34Overlooking this ancient civic center was the Palatine Hill and the Emperor's Palaces.
18:39Nearby, the masses were entertained at the Circus Maximus and the Colosseum.
18:53While every visitor to Rome will want to do the seize or shuffle through these great ruins, any guidebook or
18:57tour can lead the way.
18:59Follow me out of this noisy and polluted heap of history to two underrated sites, both easily accessible from downtown.
19:08As we head out, let me reiterate my advice about protecting valuables.
19:12These tourist attractions are often hangouts for organized pickpockets and purse snatchers.
19:18Remember, carry your credit card, extra cash, passport, airline tickets, and traveler's checks in a money belt.
19:25Keep only one day's needs in your purse or wallet.
19:28And keep your wallet buttoned up and your purse tied up.
19:31Then, on with the fun.
19:39The first place for visiting is a one-hour bus ride from the train station.
19:46Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli is a prime example of Rome's wealth and power.
19:51The Emperor Hadrian started building here around the same year he built the Pantheon, 120 AD.
19:58It became the Roman world's largest villa.
20:02Remember, this was during the Pax Romana, the Roman Peace.
20:05A period of about 200 years, ushered in by the Emperor Augustus, roughly around the time of Christ.
20:13Rome was at her peak.
20:15It was a time of smart government, relative peace, and great prosperity.
20:20And it's when most of the Roman structures we admire today were built.
20:35Hadrian was a great tourist long before the days of rental chariots and wash-and-wear togas.
20:40He traveled throughout his empire and wanted to recreate his favorite sites here at his villa.
20:47The villa became his personal collection of architectural all-stars from as far away as Egypt.
20:57The villa was also his model city.
21:00An idealized Rome of temples, theaters, baths, aqueducts, and public gardens.
21:07I can feel the grandeur of Rome.
21:13So much for lifestyles of the rich and ancient.
21:16Now let's take a look at how your ordinary Roman lived.
21:18The ideal place for a peek into workaday Rome is Ostia Antica, Rome's ancient seaport.
21:25The more famous ancient city of Pompeii is great, but three and a half hours south of Rome.
21:30Ostia, just a quick commuter train ride from downtown, is just as good and less crowded.
21:35Let's explore this beautifully excavated city.
21:39In its heyday, Ostia had a population of about 60,000.
21:43It was a busy boomtown in the days of Christ.
21:47These are the baths of Neptune, sort of like our modern-day health clubs.
21:51Close by was the economic center of the community.
21:57It was partitioned off to make offices, and you can tell from these mosaics what kind of business was going
22:02on.
22:03This place imported palm oil.
22:06There were river boatmen, and there were merchants from all over the empire.
22:11The main activity was shipping grain to Rome.
22:15The economic center was actually part of the theater, which still produces classical revivals.
22:20Maybe you'll be lucky enough to see one.
22:23During Hadrian's time, domestic comedies, interlaced with lots of vaudevillian interludes,
22:29kept the masses happy and distracted.
22:37Your average Roman lived in an apartment house several stories high.
22:46Each of these little spaces was a bedroom, and not a private one.
22:54And several families probably shared a single living room.
23:01Now, of course, Ostia had its aristocrats.
23:05One of them lived here.
23:07This was the atrium, an open space with a garden or a pool, which provides light and air to the
23:13surrounding rooms.
23:18Now, if I was a Roman back then, I'd probably spend my day like this.
23:21I'd be up early, taking care of business, whatever that was.
23:24You know, meeting with travelers, selling my guide scrolls.
23:28Around midday, I'd knock off for a light lunch and a short siesta.
23:31If I was a shopkeeper or a food seller, I'd return to work.
23:35Otherwise, the rest of the day would be free for social activities.
23:38Visiting, shopping, enjoying the games, theater, plays, dinner.
23:43Apartment dwellers would cook dinner in sort of an ancient version of a hibachi on their balcony or in the
23:48courtyard.
23:49The wealthy would dine on delicacies such as stuffed mice.
23:52There were no Caesar salads.
23:56And people ate out a lot.
23:58This restaurant had a little bar for fast food at the front, a sit-down section, and a few rooms
24:03upstairs for travelers.
24:09Because the common people had rather cramped quarters, they hung out a lot, of windows and balconies.
24:15Or on public squares and at the baths, at theaters, and at public games.
24:20The Romans were a social bunch.
24:26But they were also practical and hardworking.
24:30They didn't forge the empire on frivolity and laziness.
24:33They tied it together with over 53,000 miles of paved roads.
24:37And built countless cities, much like this.
24:44But the empire ultimately collapsed.
24:47Had they grown too accustomed to an unrealistic level of affluence?
24:51Too dependent on expansion, booty, and slave labor?
24:55And when they stopped expanding, did they fail to temper their lifestyle?
25:01Simple questions for a complex subject.
25:04The rise and fall of great empires is fun to ponder.
25:07But we're out of time, and I'm saved by the bell.
25:23Well, that's our best shot at Rome in 30 minutes.
25:25I wish we had more time.
25:27Rome's an exciting challenge.
25:29So once again, read up.
25:31Do some research on your own.
25:32Study more about the places we visited today.
25:34And be sure to check out the obvious places we didn't have time to cover.
25:38Like St. Peter's in the Vatican.
25:41I hope my practical tips on budget eating and sleeping were helpful.
25:44That you're encouraged to seek out some of the off-the-beaten-track neighborhoods,
25:49churches, and piazzas.
25:50And that you learned a little something about life in ancient Rome
25:53during the time of Emperor Hadrian.
25:57Taxi!
25:59Taxi!
26:00Join us next week as we move on to the art capital of Europe.
26:03Florence.
26:10Till then, I'm Rick Steves, wishing you happy travels.
26:14Ciao!
26:14Ciao!
26:18Home videos of destinations in this series are available for $24.95.
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26:34Also available, Rick's 420-page where to go and how to travel guidebook for $17.95.
26:40To order, please have your credit card ready
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