Rome Excursion OPTIONS

 

 

1. Colosseum and Forum (3 or 4 hours) (ARENA's Underground area  may be included)

2. Palatine Hill and the Origins of Rome

3. Basilica of SANTA MARIA 'Antiqua and other early Christian sites in the Roman Forum -- focus on the importance of early Christian icons

4. Specialized focus on Julius Caesar and his rise in politics before his dictatorship (Julius Caesar Forum area, Campidoglio, Theater of Marcellus, Area Sacra Largo Argentina site of JC's assassination)

5. ARA PACIS : when the Roman Senate aproved the dedication of the "Altar of Peace" of Augustus in 27 B.C., they used the finest marble and workmanship to forever remember him as "Prince of Peace," including scenes in sculptural relief of poet Virgil's Aeneid and other artistic details and moldings. This visit explores from up close the various meanings of the monument and its subsequent archaeological history. The Mausoleum of Augustus is located across the street from the Ara Pacis.

6. Underground Rome (Basilicas of St. Clemente and SS Giovanni and Paolo); Mithraic Temple

7. The great Medieval and Renaissnace churches of Santa Maria in Trastevere and Santa Cecilia

8. Early Christian Basilicas: San Giovanni in Laterano and Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, plus Scala Santa relics

9. RAHAEL of Urbino: an indepth seminar walk on the PAINTING style of this genius, from his early work in the Court of Federico di Montefeltro, and passing through Perugia, Florence, before arriving in the Rome of Michelangelo. (Venues include Villa Farnesina, Santa Maria della Pace and Santa Maria del Popolo Churches, and Palazzo Barberini, plus, depending of the entrance lines, a visit to the Artist's tomb in the Pantheon).

10. Life and work of CARAVAGGIO (in situ look at his works in 3 churches, 2 museums)  (Optional addition: visit to Galleria Borghese to view 5 or 6 of his paintings)

11. Comparative tour of BERNINI and Caravaggio : their realism and sense of elegance

12. The MERIDIAN, solar clock, in Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli and the Gregorian Calendar("astroloy and science in the church")

13. Museo Nazionale Romano alle Terme (great Roman statuary, frescoes, mosaics, and LIVIA's Garden fresco)

14. Baroque period in Rome; visit churches of Sant'Ivo (from outside)  and San Carlino by architect BORROMINI; churches of Santa Maria della Vittoria (to view the sculpture of Saint Teresa of Avila) and by the same architect/sculptor of the Baroque period, BERNINI, the Palazzo Barberini and Church of Sant'Andrea al Quirinale. The Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona , also by Bernini, will be visited and discussed.

15. The opera TOSCA by Giacomo PUCCINI is considered by many to be the "most Roman" of all musical works of this genre. In this walk we visit the three locations where the THREE ACTS of the opera take place: the great church of Sant Andrea della Valle--- the Palazzo Farnese (outside) --- and Castel’Sant’Angelo.

16. The Villa of Banker  Agostino Chigi, with frescoes by RAPHAEL and architect  Balthazar Peruzzi

17. The Palazzo Colonna with its unrivaled 1000-year history and its grand collection of Renaissance, Baroque, and modern paintings and furniture, constitutes an unparalleled  cross-section of Italian culture. Visits allowed only Saturday mornings, and they include the Private Apartments of Michelangelo's Platonic love, Vittoria Colonna; Maria Mancini, passionate if tragic lover of King Louis XIV of France; and Isabella Sursok, wife of Marcantonio Colonna VII, prince of the family during the two great wars. The celebratory ceiling frescoes of the Battle of Lepanto highlight the role played by Admiral Marcoantonio Colonna II in the victory at sea over the Turkish Ottoman Empire.

18. The catacombs of Sant'Agnese and Mausoleum of Santa Costanza, on Via Nomentana. ; and Catacombs of PRISCILLA on Via Salaria

19. Medieval churches of Santa Cecilia and Santa Maria in Trastevere

20. The mosaics and holy relics of Santa Maria Maggiore and Santa Prassede

21. The Medieval Basilicas of Santo Stefano Rotondo and SS Giovanni e Paolo.

22. Priorate of Santa Maria of the Orden of Malta and Gardens, designed by PIRANESI; The story of the Battle of Lepanto

23. Basilica and chloister of Santi Quattro Coronat, plus Chapel of San Silvestro

24. The first Christian basilica of St John Lateran, the first Baptistry, and the nearby relics of the Holy Stairs and the True Cross in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme brought by Saint Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine

25. Visit to Church of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli on Capitol Hill; tomb of St. Helena

26. Villa Borghese by itself (2 1/2 hrs) (Reservations necessary)

27. Ostia Antica or Via Appia Antica

28. Drawing TOUR: for adults and young people from 10 years and up; onsite lessons of basic drawing skills for keeping a travel journal

29. IL TEMPIETTO by Donato Bramante, on Gianicolo Hill: this perfectly preserved year-1500 "ex-voto" gift of Catholic Monarchs of Spain to celebrate the Discovery of the American continents also contains in its proportions and designs the DNA of all the domes built subsequently in Rome, Europe, and the Americas.

30. Miguel de Cervantes and his last great novel, PERSILES (1617): the best-kept literary secret of Rome; following the footprints of Cervantes, with special visit to the Basilica of San Paolo Fuori le Mura, where the novel ends. The tour includes a "tea or coffee" session in a café, in order to present the novel's structure with diagrams and illustrations from my own studies.

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Day Excursion OPTIONS

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  1. TIVOLI : Hadrian's Villa and Villa D'Este. In this all-day tour we travel some 50 mins outside of Rome by car to visit the wonderfully preserved archaeological site, and, after a brief lunch, the excursion resumes in Villa D'Este and its Renaissance fountains and gardens.

 

 

 

2. Naples: (Museum of Capodimonte; Catacombs of San Gaudioso in Santa Maria della Sanita neighborhood; brief tour of Piazza del Plebiscito, Royal Theater, Duomo, Spacca Napoli neighborhood). CAPPELLA SANSEVERO: the Veiled Christ and other sculptures and altarpieces of this fascinating chapel tell the story of FREEMASONRY and the arrival of the French Revolution eventually to the Naples of the royal Spanish BOURBON line.3/

 

3. Naples: (National Archaeological Museum: Farnese Hercules and other statuary from Baths of Caracalla, as well as frescoes, statuary, and mosaics from archaeological sites we can also visit such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, and/or OPLONTIS)

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4. Royal Palace of CASERTA (NAPLES) This splendid royal story, not to envy that of Versailles in Paris, with a grand palace designed and built by architect Luigi Vanvitelli, tells the story by way of frescoes and a stunning 3-kilometer fountain avenue garden full of mythological statues and still-functioning waterways and garden architeture-- of various Bourbon Spanish monarchs who ruled Naples and Sicily until the 2nd half of the 19th century. The arrival on the world stage in this period, of Freemasonic ideas and the ideology of French philosophes such as Voltaire and Diderot, make the visit to CASERTA a lesson into the French Revolution vs. the Ancien Regime. CLICK below this List to view a short video of CASERTA Palace and the Freemasons.

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5.   Painted Etruscan tombs in Tarquinia

 

6.   Frescoes of Piero della Francesca (2-3 day trip) including Perugia, Arezzo, Urbino, and Rimini    

 

7.  Paestum (overnight) and its Greek temples (6th Century B.C.)  

 

8.  Roman Aqueducts (Aqueduct Park, Porta Maggiore)