Rome, Tourism, Accomodations Blog – Roma Turismo

Roma Pass

Price: € 30,00
Roma Pass, which was created thanks to the collaboration between Rome City Council, the Ministry for the Arts and Cultural activities, and ATAC, the Roman public transport company, is Rome’s tourist-cultural card that gives tourists the opportunity to benefit from various discounts while admiring the City.

• Free entry to the first 2 visited museums and / or archaeological sites of your choice. Includes the exhibitions held in the museum.
• Discounts for the tickets to all other museums and / or archaeological sites visited thereafter.
• Free use of the city’s public transport network (bus, metro and railway lines Roma -Lido, Roma Flaminio Piazza del Popolo-Viterbo, Roma-Giardinetti), within the territory of the Municipality of Rome.
  All special connections tpl Atac, the railway lines Trenitalia FR and all connections to and from Fiumicino and Ciampino Aeroporto are not included.
• Reduced charges for use of the On-call Multi-lingual Medical Service for Tourists (MET Travel Health)
• Tourist cultural service Roma Informa.

At the Coliseum a reserved turnstile is available for Roma Pass holders to get direct access to the monument

How to use it:

• Fill it with name, surname and validation date
• Valid for three days starting on the first visited site/museum and/or the first journey on the city’s public transport network
• It must be produced along with your identity papers when required by the staff in charge

Roma Pass Travel Health MET

A multilingual call center is available for tourist who need medical help: the telephone number is: (00 39) 06-43236291

Please note that most museums generally are closed on Mondays but we advise you check in advance.

Where to buy it: http://www.romapass.it/acquista.aspx?t=acquisto&l=en

Pope Joan

The Roman popular imagination has produced several legendary figures, including that of Pope Joan, who, according to the legend seems to have served as supreme pontiff for two years before being discovered.

During the centuries many people tried to identify Pope Joan with a real character, but in no official document of the Vatican archives we can find  a  Pope with this name. Its origins might come from the imaginary medieval legend in which women were the expression of the devil, thus the High Priestess may be the symbol of satanic temptation in the Church.

Several historical and literary work mention  this character. The version that gives Boccaccio in his “De mulieribus claris” identifies the High Priestess with a young woman, Joanna Angelica, who  disguised herself  as a male and followed a monk to realise her big wish to study. When the monk died she refused to go home and resign  to the life that was dedicated to women, so she decided to take the role of the monk. She soon distinguished herself among the other monks for theological wisdom and culture, so  that during the conclave to elect a new Pope, the choice fell on her.
Like every Pope she was assigned a young priest as an assistant, who had to follow her everywhere. It didn’t took long before the priest discovered her secret, but he kept it.

Until the day when, during a procession, the High Priestess gave birth in the street, under the eyes of the indignant believers who lynched the woman and the newborn.
From that day on the Vatican ran for cover, providing that the newly elected pope had to sit  on three chairs called “stercorarie” in succession, who had the seat cut crescent-shaped. The official reason was connected to the theological idea of the “Trinity”, but in reality the purpose was different: during the ceremony  a cardinal had to touch the pope to confirm “without doubt” the gender of the successor of Peter.

Of the three chairs – which in reality were probably delivery chairs, symbolising the mother church of all believers – two are still visible: one is at the Vatican Museums, the other in the Louvre in Paris.

Aperitivo in Rome

The Aperitivo, a tradition coming from the North of  Italy has now become very popular in Rome too. No longer just  a quick cocktail  with some snacks, but the premise to drink, sit calmly and quietly, accompanied by an appetizer buffet, is now spreading around.

The City offers various kind of Aperitivo, depending on your tastes: with food, alcoholic or cheap.

One of the most known and visited places in Rome is Double Zeroo (Doppio Zeroo, Via Ostia 68), near the University of Roma3. Former bakery, this restaurant offers aperitivoo (with two “o”) from  18.30 till  21. The buffet is abundant ( unlimited pizza is  prepared ),  It ’s perfect for youngs who prefer lively places.
If you look for a cheaper drink we would definitely recommend the bar “Celestina” (Via Ausoni 62) in San Lorenzo district, the University area in Rome.
Frequented every night by many students who will take over the sidewalk on the streetoutside, after the pub is full. The cocktails are good value for money(3.50 euros), but if you wish to eat the buffet you’ll have to hurry, otherwise you won’t find anything left … Ideal for an aperitif before a walk in San Lorenzo.
For those who prefer an economical solution could rely on any bar, where cocktails are not very expensive, but you  may have to do it with pretzels and peanuts.
What would you rather have: an abundant, economic or an alcoholic Aperitivo?

Bioparque, the zoo in Rome not to miss!

Rome offers so much culture and entertainment for the grown-ups, nevertheless the little ones would love something that would capture their attention and stimulate their eyes, if they like animals. A good option is the roman zoo called “BioParco”. Why is worth it?
There are more than 1,100 animals and 200 species, from which: elephants, apes, giraffes, reptiles, lemurs, armadillos, fishes, deers, hippopotamus and many others.
In addition the zoo counts with the word smallest apes that weigh only 100 grams.

Prices
• € 13.00 adults
• € 11.00 children up to 12 years old and/or up to 1 meter high. Over 60’s (but Wednesdays when they pay only €4) Groups of 15 persons or more.
Children up to 1 meter high go free entrance.

Skip the lines and buy your tickets in advance: http://www.listicket.it/ricerca.php
If you travel to Italy with Alitalia or Trenitalia get a €2 discount. Show your ticket of the trip that had to be done no more than 10 days before that day.

The Bioparco opens everyday from 09:30 until 17:00 hrs (after march 23rd it closes at 18:00)
From april 1st until September 30th it closes at 19:00 every Saturday, Sunday and holidays.
Last entrance is always one hour before the closing time.

How to arrive
Piazzale del Giardino Zoologico n. 1
Tram: n° 19 – stop ‘Bioparco’
Bus: 3, 52, 53, 926, 217, 360, 910
Metropolitana: Red line “A”, stops ‘Flaminio’ or ‘Spagna’

Web site: http://www.bioparco.it/index.html

Paulina Ceballos