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Seen all the "must sees" now I want to see the churches

Seen all the "must sees" now I want to see the churches

Old Aug 26th, 2005, 11:59 AM
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Seen all the "must sees" now I want to see the churches

This trip in Oct. will be my 5th to Rome. I've basically seen all the tourist sites, but I haven't been to some of the more famous churches and lesser known sites. So, this is what I want to see:
San Pietro in Vincolo
San Clemente
Palazzo Massimo Alle Terme
Colle Oppio
San Giovanni in Laterno
Domus Aurea
Santa Maria Maggiore
Malta Keyhole

My question is, how to group these things so I am not going across town and wasting precious time to get there. I'm pretty sure I can see San Giovanni and Santa Maria Maggiore together, but would really appreciate your help on grouping the other things. I will really only have 3 full days in Rome this trip (the rest will be in Sorrento). I realize this might be way too much for three days and as I plan on returning many times, hopefully, I don't have to do it all. Rome experts - any advice?
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 12:42 PM
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Surely you must have a map of Rome, or at least a Rome guidebook with a map?

I'd add a few to your list: near the Malta keyhole on the Aventino are the early Christian churches of Santa Sabia and Santa Prisca, both well worth seeing.

Borromini's San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane and Bernini's Sant'Andrea al Quirinal are within a few steps of each other; it's fascinating to compare the two very different expressions of the Baroque.

Have you been to Santa Maria alla Vittoria for Bernini's famous St. Teresa sculpture, with members of the Roman nobility looking on, as if they were sitting in loges?

Domus Aurea is quite close to San Clemente and, if I recall correctly, within the same general area as San Giovanni in Laterano and Santa Maria Maggiore. I think San Pietro in Vincoli is also in the same general neighborhood, but in the opposite direction from Santa Maria Maggiore. But if you go to San Clemente, try to go to the nearby Santa Prassede with the wonderful mosaics in the San Zeno chapel.

Palazzo Massimo alle Terme is very close to Termini. There is another part -- actually, two or three other parts -- of the Museo Nazionale Romano. The most important is probably the one at Palazzo Altemps, just off the Corso Vittorio Emanuele.

What, please, is there on the Colle Oppio worth looking at?
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 01:29 PM
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The Domus Aurea, covered by Trajan's Baths, is on the Colle Oppio. Otherwise, I can't think of anything there, so you can really count Domus Aurea/Colle Oppio as the same site.

I agree that Santa Prassede is wonderful, but it's closest to Sta. Maria Maggiore (almost across the street) rather than near San Clemente.

I agree, don't you have a good map or guidebook with a map? You might want the Blue Guide or the Companion Guide to Rome, either of which are pretty exhaustive in coverage beyond the greatest hits. The Eyewitness Guide also gives broad, though not necessarily deep, coverage and has big maps.


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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 01:48 PM
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Yes, I do have several maps and guide books, but sometimes it's hard to really tell on a map how far apart things really are. I really just wanted to get some opinions on how to combine things to maximize my time and that's what you very kindly did.. thank you. Eloise, your suggestion to see Santa Sabia and Santa Prisca is well noted. KT thanks for the info on Domus Aurea and Colle Oppio. This was not made clear in the information I have read. As I said, this is my 5th trip to Rome so I am somewhat familiar and I certainly have maps. But unless you have actually been to these places, it's hard to tell from a map if you can combine one, two or more things say in a morning and even the guide books are not always clear on this. As I like to walk and rarely take public transportation, that's something to factor in too. For example in March I walked from Trastevere to Piazza del Popolo, but from the map it looked like quite a distance, my guide books did not really say how long it would take to walk there, and as I found out, it was not far and did not take long to walk there. Now if anyone asks, I will be able to gladly tell them, without asking them to get a good map. Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I thought this forum was the place to ask these sorts of questions.
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 02:09 PM
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Barb,

Have you ever tried to use the pedestrian route feature of www.mappy.com? It's kind of fun and can be quite helpful, though it's persnickety about precise names of destinations.
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 02:41 PM
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Oops: That's Santa Sabina (not Santa Sabia) if you want to look it up in guidebooks.

Since it's very unlikely that anyone would choose to follow the same route that you do, I don't think that you can really hope to get a very firm and clear answer here.

I also try to walk as much as possible in Rome, but I have found it a help to take a bus to the first point on my day's itinerary. For example, I generally stay in the Piazza Navona/Pantheon/Campo de Fiori area. If I am going anywhere that is beyond the Foro Romano, I will take a bus to the first point on my day's itinerary. If I tried to walk the whole way, I'd be half-dead before I got through my day's plan.
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 02:43 PM
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Try to add the unusual San Stefano Rotundo to your list! It's not well known but absolutely fascinating, being built in the round and with an interior containing about 36 huge frescoes of the martyrdoms of the saints.
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 03:38 PM
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Underhill: I'm not sure where San Stefano Rotunda is, but I'm adding it to my list. MaryFran I haven't tried the mappy.com pedestrian route, but I'll try that when I have some time. Eloise, I just might try to figure the bus system out this time because I will want to maximize my time as I said.
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 03:55 PM
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Here's a link to information on San Stefano Rotondo:

http://roma.katolsk.no/stefanorotondo.htm

It's am amazing place. Our taxi driver had never heard of it and decided to look around with us, and he keep shaking his head and mumbling to himself--we still speculate about what he was saying.
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Old Aug 26th, 2005, 03:56 PM
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MaryFran: wow, I tried mappy.com and it's awesome! It shows exactly how to get there. This will be a great tool for me. Grazie!!
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Old Aug 27th, 2005, 07:55 AM
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Unfortunately, San Stefano Rotondo is undergoing major renovation and is not open to the public as we discovered after taking a cab there with our two daughters last month. I'd start one morning at Santa Maria Maggiore, walk to Santa Prassade, then continue on to San Giovanni Laterano. If time permits, Santa Croce in Gerusaleme is close by and has an amazing relics chapel. After that, you can walk up Via San Giovanni Laterano, possibly stopping for lunch at one of the many good trattorie in the area, and afterwards see San Clemente (they close until 3 pm I believe) and don't miss the lovely Santi Quattro Coronati just two blocks away. Do the Domus Aurea and San Pietro in Vincoli together in the morning of the next day and head over to the Aventine, treating yourself to a wonderful Roman lunch in Testaccio, at Perilli or Da Felice.
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