Romantic Rome

The romantic Rome of Keats and Shelley is still there – the breathtaking beauty of blue skies, towering pines and ancient monuments….

Visitors can still admire the colossal Coliseum, greedily snap priceless treasures, take never-ending selfies on a stick and bask in a warm winter sun, but if you extend your stay and are not herded through in the safety of a group tour – a different Rome comes to the surface.

Day-to day life in Rome is difficult. The simple act of crossing the street becomes a matter of life and death. Car drivers are mad and reckless. For them, pedestrians are merely obstacles to be scattered from their path and this is done with a furious intensity…. No sooner do the traffic lights turn green, then pedestrians must run for cover as a wall of cars comes bearing down on them.

Nothing in Rome works very well. Footpaths are filthy and public services are sloppy. Public expenditure is driven by the “quickfix” rather than the “sustainable long-term” and of course, there is corruption.

As a result, life in Rome has the appearance of life in the third world - high-walled residential compounds, guards….. to keep out the bandits?

However, for visitors just passing through, this glimpse of the “other side” of Rome is quickly forgotten.

After the holiday - feet up - in the comfort of your own home, shuffling through your photos and re-living the Roman experience, the Rome of Keats and Shelley will always draw you back – the delicious food, the beauty of the art, the smiling blue sky, the friendly people.

Surely “all roads do lead to Rome”?

travel tips*

MUSEUMS - to avoid being ripped off by exhorbitant ticket prices and the annoyance of long queues, museum tickets can be bought in advance on internet.

AIRPORT BUS - the same applies to bus transport from the airport into Rome. With the TAM bus line, for example, a pre-purchased internet ticket allows you to jump the queue and go directly into the bus.

Have a good trip!

Flying Kiwi

February 2016

*trip in January 2016