for momre informations: Comune di Montalcino

Ancient Rome day

Start with the Coliseum, then do the Roman Forum and possibly the Palatine Hill. The entrance ticket is valid for two days, so if you want you can go back and do one part later on. We highly recommend a walking tour for visiting Ancient Rome, as it is an archeological site. A well made guide book about the Ancient Rome might work, but do not visit this empty handed.

Visit the church San Pietro in Vincoli, which holds Michelangelo’s sculpture of Moses, and the church San Clemente, containing a fascinating underground excavation of two older churches below today’s one.

Always open, part from Christmas day and New Years day. Choose day depending on weather and the rest of your plans.

DEDICATED TO THE LOVERS

“Sonnet n° 128″ William Shakespeare

How oft when thou, my music, music play’st,

Upon that blessed wood whose motion sounds

With thy sweet fingers when thou gently sway’st

The wiry concord that mine ear confounds,

Do I envy those jacks that nimble leap,

To kiss the tender inward of thy hand,

Whilst my poor lips which should that harvest reap,

At the wood’s boldness by thee blushing stand!

To be so tickled, they would change their state

And situation with those dancing chips,

O’er whom thy fingers walk with gentle gait,

Making dead wood more bless’d than living lips.

Since saucy jacks so happy are in this,

Give them thy fingers, me thy lips to kiss.

…never has the Venetian carnival been so attractive as this years festival, planned and organised for the lovers of all our senses! Each “sestiere”(quarter) is transformed into a wonderful meeting point. This years theme is the six senses… one sense for each “sestiere”! Among the several programs of the city quarter of Castello, one of them will be dedicated to “Dialogue in the dark” an exhibition taking place completely in the dark, where is will be possible to see only by using your hands. While the “sestiere” of Santa Croce will be dedicated to the sense of smell, open theatres’ will be performing enthralling plays, and with the use of special effects like “odorama”, filling the air with perfumes, you will experience an original sensation using very much your sense of smell. San Polo… “the sight”, entirely dedicated to the children, will host different attractions for the little ones, playing with make-up, offering different kind of sweets and a lot of shows. Cannaregio will be the “Kingdom of Taste” here you’ll find some of the of the world’s biggest chefs putting on a show through their culinary art, doing real demonstrations and giving lessons, furthermore al along Cannaregio sculptures of food and chocolate will be exhibited. The neighbourhood of Dorsoduro, will represent the sense of hearing, and here you will obviously find many intense music sessions. The last sense and “sestiere” is San Marco, dedicated to the thought and the power of our mind, among the many events, historical commemorations and exciting music will be taking place. And of course all the historical events of the Carnival of Venice, such as: Il Volo dell’ Angelo, Marie’s parade , il Bagno degli Ibernisti, il Volo dell’Asino, the traditional masks parades, lots and lots of music and of course the big challange.., best mask of the year . To sum it up, basicly 11 days to ejoy fully, with all your senses open wide… Have fun!

Of the different areas of Rome, called “Rioni”, the Monti area is the biggest one. Stretching from Via Nazionale, to the Coliseum and all the way to the basilica San Giovanni in Laterano. Here you will find the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, the Opera House of Rome, and the Roman Forum, just to mention a few. The area with it’s old buildings is beautiful and typical roman, and contains a few of the most important sites of the city. The small streets surrounding Piazza Madonna dei Monti are mixed with bigger streets, such as via Cavour and via Fori Imperiali. The convenience of staying in here is that you will easily walk to the Colloseum or the roman forum and at the same time be close to the main station where all the public transport moves from. After having experienced the Colosseum, pay a visit to the medival church Santa Prassede, then leave via cavour behind you and enter the more characteristic part of the area. Apart from just admiring the beautiful buildings surrounding you, you will also find yourself in one of the oldest parts of the city which is becoming more and more interesting, small boutiques are popping up everywhere, often with young emerging designers, within clothes, furniture and handcraft. Here you will easily find restaurants of quality both economical and more expensive or if you prefer a small intimate wineries. Although the Monti area truly has many things to offer, it always seems to have a feeling of calm to it.

Photo by Maria Dahlberg

]]> http://www.alfabookings.com/blog/2008/05/rione-monti-rome/feed/ 3 http://www.alfabookings.com/blog/2008/05/radda-nel-bichchiere-radda-in-the-glass/ http://www.alfabookings.com/blog/2008/05/radda-nel-bichchiere-radda-in-the-glass/#comments Wed, 14 May 2008 10:58:56 +0000 Alessandro Scaglioni http://www.alfabookings.com/blog/?p=18 May 31st – June 1st, 2008
On the border between Florence and Siena rises Radda in Chianti, this small town that has just over 1,600 inhabitants is an important centre for wine, thanks to its location in the heart of Chianti. You will be fascinated to walk for lanes of the medieval “borghetto” still intact despite the nearly seven centuries of age. At this wonderful appointment there will be set up tables tasting along the middle path of the Chianti village where you can taste wines and culinary specialties; an excellent opportunity to know the beauty and goodness of this fabled land.