Rome.  Capital city of the Roman Empire.  For a thousand years the richest, most powerful, and most important city in the western world.

The first settlement was here on the path using a ford on the Tiber River, the first ford upstream from the sea. The city grew to encompass seven knobby hills and a marshy lowland.  The first village was on the Palatine hill, the most fashionable address during the ancient times and home to 12 Caesars.

Visitors of all kinds have travelled to Rome over the centuries.  Here are the ruins of some first century apartments.

Our own apartment was just off the foot of the Spanish Steps in an area with good restaurants, and an easy climb up to the Villa Borghese to walk away from the pressing crowds and the traffic.

The ruins of the ancient city are a must see for visitors.  The forum, the remains of the temples, the surrounding ruins.

The giant baths.

The Circus Maximus.

The Colosseum.

Some of the most famous tourist sights outside of the ancient area include the Trevi Fountain.

The Spanish Steps.

The old racetrack, now the Piazza Navona.

The Piazza del Popolo.

The Vatican.

And one of my favorites – the Pantheon.  A two-thousand-year-old concrete building that has been in constant use as a temple and then a church ever since it was constructed.  The dome is still considered an engineering marvel.

Some notable things to mention.

The ancient Romans erected these story columns to commemorate military campaign successes.  You read the column up the spiral to get the story.

After Egypt was incorporated into the Roman Empire there was a fashion to import these ancient Egyptian obelisks and erect them around the city.

There are so many delightful/notable things visitors can track down and here are a few of my favorites:

Nero’s aqueduct.  Michelangelo’s fountain.

Bernini’s little Elephant.

Our favorite museums are the incomparable Vatican Museums and the Etruscan museum, which I have introduced in these blogs.  The Galleria Borghese is excellent and contains some fine Bernini sculptures.

 When you choose your hotel do take into account the Villa Borghese.  Rome is very crowded and a quiet walk in the gardens of the Borghese is a welcome relief.

There are over 900 churches in Rome, mostly from 500 to a thousand years old, some quite plain and many paid for by rich European Royalty or Families to glorify themselves. The lavish marble work in the interiors is truly amazing.

It is impossible I visited the best, but without further comment, here are some church pictures to give you the idea.