Strikes in Rome
Starting on Monday, January 22, the taxis in Rome will be on strike from 8am to 8pm and conducting demonstration at the Circus Maximus. The ironic thing is…it won’t be hard to find the taxis. It will just be hard to find them actually taking fares around the city. This was preceded by demonstrations in Sicily that brought the island to a complete standstill. These same organizers in Sicily have vowed “to take the fight” to Rome…if you plan to head to Rome in the next few weeks, getting around might be difficult.
I wrote a post on how to avoid letting strikes ruin your trip. Sure, they’ll cause some problems, but they don’t have to ruin your trip or confine you to your hotel room. You can read that post by clicking here!
Has a transit strike ever snarled up your trip? Leave a comment!
Prepping for your first trip to Rome
A reader of my blog emailed me a few weeks ago, asking how she might prepare for her first trip to Rome, and I thought that her question would make a great post for the blog. Preparing for your first trip to the Eternal City can be a daunting one, and many travelers feel overwhelmed by all the information that they find online and in guidebooks.
Today’s “digital age” can make travel planning a bit easier, but it still does require a bit of preparation, and you really shouldn’t wait until the last minute. Do your homework before you go: if you live in the United States, you will have a plane trip of several hours…perfect time to break out the guidebook and read up on Rome and all that is has to offer (although I recommend studying up at least a few weeks before you go).
Here are some ideas that I gave her:
Get a guidebook, stat:
You can’t go to Rome without first reading at least some parts of your guidebook. Do read the practical sections: learn where the embassy is, read up on the basic customs (most guidebooks have these kinds of sections), familiarize yourself with the general hours of businesses (some Americans might be surprised that things do close in Rome!) and most other useful information that we take for granted when we are at home.
Try to buy a guidebook that is specific to Rome, as this will give you the most bang for your buck. General guidebooks on Italy certainly have a chapter or two on Rome, but you will also get a lot of information that might not be useful on your trip. If you plan to see other parts of Italy, then this might work better for you. Guidebooks do not have to be those hulking 600 page tomes that you find in your bookstore. Electronic versions exists, such as Lonely Planet guides which can be purchased chapter by chapter online. I recommend: Rick Steve’s Rome 2012 or Frommer’s Rome Day by Day. National Geographic Traveler’s Rome (3rd edition) gives a great overview of the city, its history, things to see and do but doesn’t have a huge list of lodging and eating recommendations.
Guidebooks can also be useful for finding places to stay and eat. I try not to give lodging recommendations because what I like might not be the same thing that others like. Choose a place to stay that is within your price range and comfort. Check out Tripadvisor.com or Hotels.com for reviews of hotels that you might read about in your guidebook. Short stay apartments might require more work up front, but they can often offer a more comfortable experience. A good guidebook will lay out all the recommendations for you.
Also, make sure that you learn a little basic Italian before you go: how to say please, thank you, where’s the bathroom, and that sort of thing. Even if you don’t have the courage or want to speak it, knowing a little of the language can make it easier to understand the locals as you get around. Most guidebooks have basic phrasebooks, but there are tons of online resources. My favorite: Learnitalianpod.com! It’s free to use, and there are dozens of useful podcasts for beginners!
You need a map:
You need a good map, and you should do your best to study it. Familiarizing yourself with your environment will make you more at ease and help you to appreciate more your surroundings. Nothing worse than spending your trip with your face buried in a map and missing all the great sites and wonders around you.
I would recommend an electronic map that you can pull up on your smartphone (if you have one) — such as Google Maps, Mapquest, etc. — or a small, folding map that you can use one those days of inclement weather or when your phone is about to die. Most guidebooks have maps in the pages or a map stashed in the back of the book that you can pull out. Try to avoid those big, hulking maps that require a large dining room table to use. You simply won’t have the space or time to use it while you’re on the streets, and using such a map makes you look like a tourist. Do your best to draw the least amount of attention to yourself.
The reason I recommend an electronic map is that it will be more up to date than a map printed 2 or 3 years ago. Check out the Rome app published by mTrip for iPhone and Android phones.
Useful apps to bring along:
Even if you don’t use your smartphone to make calls, it can be a useful resource for its apps. Simply put your phone in airplane mode if you don’t intend to make calls, turn off anything else that might drain the battery, and you’re good to go. During my last trip to Rome, I took along my iPhone, put it into airplane mode, dimmed the brightness and disabled things I wouldn’t be using, and I got more than a full day’s use out of the phone. This will allow you to make use of apps, like mTrip’s Rome app or any other useful apps you might wish to take with you, such as currency converters, restaurant guides, and the like.
If you’ve never been to Rome, do look at Katie Parla’s Room for Foodies app (works on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad, and there’s an Android version, too), which features a useful selection of restaurants, bars, wine bars, pizzerias and more. Finding restaurants that offer the best experience can be difficult if you don’t speak the language. This app takes the guess work out of it, and the app developer has vetted all of the places, too!
As I mentioned before, mTrip’s Rome app is an indispensable app for getting around Rome and is helpful in creating itineraries and finding things to do. It can also be used offline, too. It is one of my favorite apps.
There are several audio guide apps, too. I like CitySpeaker’s Audio Guide for Rome. Italyguides Rome is useful, too, but a little pricey. Rome 2 Go is a helpful app in getting around the city with information on local sites and general tourist information. Taxi Italia might be a useful app, too, while you’re in Rome – you can read a review of the app (in Italian) from iPhoneItalia.
Remember to disable your data connection if need be while in Rome so that you don’t return back to your home country with a shocking mobile phone bill!
In conclusion…
Don’t rely too much on technology, and remember to bring a paper map with you as a backup in case batteries die or break or perhaps might be stolen (petty theft can be an annoying problem in Rome, but if you keep your wits about you, this shouldn’t be a problem). Learn as much as you can about your surroundings before you get there, and you will have a better trip for it!
Rome for Foodies
When people ask me for advice about going to Rome, I’m always asked where the best places to eat are, where to stay, and things that they can do. If you’re heading to Rome and do not speak the language, finding places to hang out that aren’t “tourist traps” can be difficult to find. Many hotels have “unwritten” arrangements with local restaurants or have their own restaurants and may not be forthcoming with places to dine. Finding a good restaurant that doesn’t gouge you while at the same time offering an authentic experience can be daunting.
That’s where the app, Rome for Foodies, comes into play. This app works on both the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. Using location services, the app can help you find things to do by laying them out geographically so you can see where you are and where the things that you want to do are located. Not being in Rome, it’s hard for me to test out the location services of the app. One thing that I found “annoying” is that the app only seems to work in portrait mode. Find if you’re using an iPhone, but for the iPad, this could be improved.
The dining subsection is divided into several categories: budget dining, pizzerias, fine dining, among others. I clicked on “Cucina Romana” to see what was on offer. The restaurants are listed by those that are closest to your current location, and a half dozen choices popped up for me. I knew a few of the restaurants, a few I tried, some I would go back to, others I wouldn’t. Each restaurant has the phone number, a link to a web site if they have one, and how “pricey” the app is – the more euro signs you see, the more expensive the restaurant. A nice description of the restaurant is listed as well as the hours as well as suggestions of things to try on their respective menus. You can also save restaurants (just tap on the “Save” button) or share them via text message, Facebook or via Twitter.
There’s also a top picks section of the app developer’s favorites. There’s also an itinerary section with a list of places to try each day of the week as well as suggestions for dining during the month of August (which can be a tricky time to find a good place to eat since that’s when many Romans go on vacation for Ferragosto). There are also suggestions for eating in Rome for the holidays, too. The other listings, for places to drink, shop, etc., are similiary structured. One of my favorite sections is the “Classes and Tours” section: if you’re looking for something to do that you can possibly take back with you after your vacation ends, this is the section to explore.
Overall, I like the app ($3.99, works on both iPod Touch/iPhone and iPad; an Android version exists, too, for $2.79) and would highly recommend it, especially if this will be your first time to Rome. I hope future updates include more restaurants — there are several places left off the lists — as this will make the app more of a resource for traveler’s to the city. Those of you who know the city well and have a set of favorites might not find the app as useful, but I found several places that I would like to try on my next trip. Overall, I don’t think that you’ll be disappointed! A great beginning for this app.
Update: I finally was able to download the app to my iPhone…I personally felt it worked better. I found the app was more suited for it, especially being “locked” in potrait mode. As I said, recommend the app, and purchasing for either device will allow it to work on all your iOS devices! Also, the app developer left a comment below, too!
Note to readers: Please note that no one paid me to review
this app nor asked me to review it, and I purchased the app with my own money.
Colosseum in peril?
This week in Rome antitrust investigators put the kibosh on a “donation” made by Tod’s to help fund the restoration of this symbol of Rome (read the article here). This halt to funding could not come at a worse the since this week more cracks and damage have been found on the monument and more fragments have come tumbling down. The reason for the halt, according to Rome’s mayor, is nothing of concern, since many agreements, especially when they involve the country’s heritage, are subject to scrutiny of regulators. Others believe that this will setback plans to restore the monument, further endangering it from pollution, age, and the vibrations from the metro which runs underground nearby.
And should private companies be given “control” the image rights of monuments? Can Italy afford not to strike agreements with private companies to help support the restorations of dozens and dozens of monuments? Or is it simply an easy “out” for Italy, taking money from corporations to fund projects that they should be working to manage and maintain? Can Italy afford these kind of “Faustian” arrangements?
With so much history and culture packed into one place, it is virtually impossible for the government and local authorities to keep up. Not only do they face fiscal pressures, they also face environmental problems, such as pollution, traffic and vandalism. The money and manpower needed to keep these monuments safe and open to all is a daunting and almost impossible task, one that is further complicated by Italy’s economic crisis. The political crisis of Berlusconi’s time in government certainly didn’t help the situation either, and now Italy, faced with one of its worst economic crises since World War II, probably has less money to go around to combat these problems, focusing all its energies on remaining with the EU and lowering its debt costs and burden.
Perhaps these kinds of projects is where the Italian government should be hedging its bets — putting money into lasting projects that will provide jobs, spur the economy while preserving the beauties and splendors of the Eternal City, not just for Italians but for the entire world.
Tags: Colosseo/Colosseum, cultural problems in Italy, news and happenings, problems in Rome
Circuses in Rome (not the clown kind…)
Anyone who is a fan of Rome should be reading Andrea Palladio’s treatises on Rome — he wrote three of them: one about Ancient Rome, another about the churches, and third about the stations of the cross. Personally, the first treatise is the most interesting, but the other two are equally worth reading and make great additions to your standard guidebook. Even though much of Palladio’s information is “old,” he describes the city as he saw it hundreds of years ago. His descriptions of the city go far in taking you “back in time” to the splendors of Rome. Yale University Press recently published an updated translation of the work complete with photographs and diagrams, and this book can be easily found online (at Amazon.com, for example).
In this post, I want to discuss the “circuses” of Rome. When I say the word “circus”, I don’t mean the the clown and elephant kind. The circuses were narrow in width, long in length with raised seating “upon which people could sit to watch the said events” and were used, according to Palladio, “to stage bullfights and races with horses yoked to chariots”. The Circus Maximus is probably the most famous of them all, located between the Palatine and Aventine Hills and “upgraded” by various rulers and important people in Rome over the centuries it was in use. These spaces were important for the citizens of Ancient Rome, and many of them serve as important spaces even today!
Apart from the Circus Maximus, there was also the Circus of Nero, Circus Flaminius, and the Circus Agonius. The Circus Agonius is probably more familiar to tourists today as the Piazza Navona (pictured). The Circus Maximum is now just an open field and often hosts outdoor concerts and political rallies — do take care in and around the Circus Maximus, even during the day! It has been the scene of muggings and violent crime for some tourists. Always travel safe and be smart!
Tags: ancient Rome, circuses, things to see and do