Let's continue with number 4 to 7 of die die must visit places in Rome....
(4) Vatican Museums
Address - Viale Vaticano
Transport - Ottaviano-San Pietro Website - www.vatican.va
Phone - 06 698 84 947
Price - €14
Hours - entry 9am-4pm & closing 6pm Mon-Sat
Visiting the Vatican Museums requires strength, stamina and patience. You’ll need to be on top of your game to endure the inevitable queues – if not for a ticket then for the security checks – and enjoy what is undoubtedly one of the world’s great museum complexes. This massive 5.5-hectare complex consists of two palaces. On the inside are three courtyards: the Cortile della Pigna, the Cortile della Biblioteca, and, to the south, the Cortile del Belvedere.
You’ll never manage to explore the whole complex in one go – you’d need several hours just for the highlights – so it pays to be selective. There are several suggested itineraries, or you can go it alone and make up your own route. On the whole, exhibits are not well labelled so you might find it useful to hire an audioguide (€7) or buy the Guide to the Vatican Museums and City (€10).
this place reminds me of the show "Da Vinci Code".... maybe i will read the book again before i leave so that the experience in and around the museum will be more fun and exciting ....it damn super easy for me to be in my self imagined world of being part of the made up mystery lo.... hahahaha.... and if i din remember wrongly.... think there's some suggested tour itinerary based on the book de....
(5) Trevi Fountain
Address - Piazza di Trevi
Transport - Via del Tritone
The Trevi Fountain is Rome’s largest and most famous fountain. The flamboyant baroque ensemble was designed by Nicola Salvi in 1732 and depicts Neptune’s chariot being led by Tritons with sea horses – one wild, one docile – representing the moods of the sea. The water comes from the aqua virgo, a 1st-century-BC underground aqueduct, and the name Trevi refers to the three roads that converge at the fountain.
The famous custom is to throw a coin into the fountain, thus ensuring your return to the Eternal City. According to the same tradition if you throw in a second coin you’ll fall in love with an Italian, while a third will have you marrying him or her. And in case you were wondering, the €3000 or so that is thrown away on an average day is hoovered up and donated to charity.
(which means i can only throw one coin lo.... cos i will definitely want to travel europe again...cos it will mean i (most likely mr ang) have the extra extra cash to spare again....hahahaha...and i dun wanna fall in love with an italian man and definitely not married one unless mr ang wants to migrate to italy and change his nationality lo.... hahahaha)
(6) Campo de’ Fiori
Address - Parione Centro Storicho
Noisy and colourful, ‘Il Campo’ is a major focus of Roman life: by day it hosts a much-loved market, while at night it turns into a raucous open-air pub. For centuries, it was the site of public executions, and in 1600 the philosophising monk Giordano Bruno, immortalised in Ettore Ferrari’s sinister statue, was burned at the stake here for heresy. Many of the streets surrounding Il Campo are named after the artisans who traditionally occupied them: Via dei Cappellari (hatters), Via dei Baullari (trunk makers) and Via dei Chiavari (key makers). Via dei Giubbonari (jacket makers) is still full of clothing shops.
Tourist review: great experience, spend the afternoon looking through stalls of jewellry, clothing, and antiques.Can bargain with vendors for prices, although they arent generally too high to begin with (although it depends on the vendor). Everything from leather rings, fake purses, to old keys, to old postcards, records, dishes, to flip flops and jeans. Sunday is the best day to go.
(7) Piazza del Popolo
Address - Tridente nr Piazza Del Popolo
For centuries the sight of public executions, this elegant neoclassical piazza is a superb people-watching spot. It was originally laid out in 1538 to provide a grandiose entrance to the city – at the time, and for centuries before, it was the main northern gateway into the city. In the centre, the 36m-high Egyptian obelisk was moved here from the Circo Massimo in the mid-16th century. To the east are the Pincio Hill Gardens.
Tourist Review: Piazza Del Popolo was absolutely breathtaking, definitely one of the most beautiful piazzas we saw in Rome! We were there at dusk and walked around the lively square, enjoying the buzz of the people and the music playing in the streets, it was awesome - and SO "Rome"! We climbed the stairs at the far end of the piazza (in the opposite direction of the restaurants and shops), you'll see them next to a brick building, it's a relatively narrow staircase so don't miss it! Up those stairs, and a few others after that we found an amazing spot overlooking the Roman rooftops, the Piazza and the incredible sunset. There was a cute gelato cart up there so we grabbed an ice cream each and sat on a ledge and watched the sunset over the rooftops of these ornate Roman buildings - it was simply surreal! I'd head up there about 5ish to catch the full experience and then wander back down to the Piazza Del Popolo and stroll through the vibrant streets, fun restaurants and down to the beautiful Spanish Stairs!
we have a total of 3.5 days in rome.... one full day will be in Vatican Museums (i think)...leaving us with 2.5 days for the rest of the places.... somehow i feel that i can cover all of them within one day lo..... hahahaha.... cos i will just be a touch and go tourist.... see the place, pose in front of the most impt status or icon or dome or structure, take a nice photo to indicate "I WAS HERE" then we can move on liao... cos i doubt i will 舍得 to pay for all the audioguides which are freaking expensive la... so i think i will just make up my own stories for each of the places we are gonna visit....
