We continued to explore the grounds of Villa Sciarra. Some day perhaps, we will be able to visit the interior of the villa.   For now, though, we had to be content with walking around outside. A plaque on the façade of the villa pays tribute to George Wurts, and his wife, Henrietta Tower, who were…

We awoke on our third day in Rome and, as usual, we were anxious to get outside.  Today, we were going to revisit one of my favorite places: Villa Sciarra.  Villa Sciarra has a long and rich history.  The site was once home to the gardens of Julius Caesar and, according to legend, the emperor…

The area where we were walking was considered the edge of Trastevere, where it met, and became the neighborhood of Monteverde, at the top of the hill.  It is basically a residential area, with a mixture of stately villas and palazzos, as well as more modern apartment buildings. I find the homes in this section…

As you explore the city of Rome, at some point, you are bound to come upon a small gold stone set into the pavement.  These are memorials to the citizens of Rome who lost their lives in the Holocaust.  The golden stones are usually placed in front of the building where the deceased lived.  We…

For years, whenever I would walk past the entrance porch of the Chiesa di San Cosimato, the doors were shut, so I never ventured inside.  You can only imagine my delight, when I found them open on our first day back in Rome.  There was no way I was going to let the opportunity to…

For this trip to Rome, we chose to stay in an apartment located on Piazza di San Cosimato.  For us, it was an ideal location.  From there, we could easily walk to our usual spots, where we normally met friends and shared.  And, being next to a hospital, the piazza was normally quiet during the…

As you make your way up the hill, the sets of stairs in the portico become more frequent, until you reach the end, where it resembles one long staircase with wide landings placed every so often.   Suddenly, you begin to make out the outline of a crucifix, at the top of the stairs.  You have…

The journey uphill begins at the Arco del Meloncello.  Designed by the architect Carlo Francesco Dotti in 1714, the arch was built so that pilgrims could safely make their way up to the sanctuary, without having to worry about crossing the street, at a point where two busy roads come together. A plaque in the…

On Via Riva di Reno, behind the former Manifattura Tabacchi, you will find the Parco 11 Settembre, which remembers the terrorist attacks in the USA, on that fateful day in 2001. A plaque on a building, now occupied by the University of Bologna, pays tribute to Fabio Roversi Monaco, who held the position of rector…

Walking past the picture painted on the grating shown in the photo above, I could not help but wonder if there was a shop of some kind right behind it, and just what it was they could possibly sell.  I have said this before, and I am going to say it again: Walking the streets…

Throughout its history, Bologna has been circled by three different sets of walls.  We stumbled upon what is considered to be a portion of the third set of defensive walls, built between 1327 and 1390. The Santuario del Corpus Domini is on Via Tagliapietre, #23.  It dates from the 14th century, but the building was…

You will find the Caserma Enrico Cialdini, or the Enrico Cialdini Barracks, on Via Urbana, #8.  The building dates from 1486, when it was the seat of the Cinobio delle Clarisse di Santa Caterina de’ Vigri.  The space was taken over by Napoleon’s army from 1812 through 1816, who used it as barracks.  In 1866,…