On 16 May museums in Rome will remain open until 1am.
We must thank the French for this, though. Merci.
This event was originally conceived by the French Minister of Culture and Communications back in 2005, the idea being to extend opening hours and organise special events to promote history, culture and what not.
For this fourth edition cities in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Belgium, Serbia, Denmark, Spain and Romania will do the same. But this is no Eurovision song contest. This is good!
Best of all, entrance to many museums is free.
Clever people plan ahead
Are you? For some museums, the good stuff, you will need to book ahead — so it’s best to plan. Have a look at http://en.museiincomuneroma.it, a website set up by Rome’s authorities about museums in Rome linking to… many other websites for each museum. Once you know what you want to book, go back to the Tickets and booking page.
Not to be confused with…
Shawn Levy’s rather poor 2006 feature film: Night at the Museum (2006). No crazy animals here. Just Italians.
Contact details
- Email: eventi@beniculturali.it
- Tel: +39 06 6723 2390 / 2851
'Culture belongs to everyone: you too can participate'.
This is how the event is being promoted this year by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.
To make culture more accessible Opening times have been extended too and whenever possible things are open on Mondays too.
Bear in mind that UNESCO has estimated that 40% of the world’s cultural heritage that’s been preserved lies in Italy. That’s a lot to see and it’s impossible for the state to keep everything open to the public throughout the year. Initiatives like this give people the opportunity to see things that are normally not accessible and for the organisations involved in restorations to show new developments to the public.
Private institutions are also involved in this initiative to promote access to associations, institutes, libraries, concerts and places that are not normally visited by tourists and locals.
A powerful earthquake has hit the central part of Italy near L'Aquila, about 95 km from Rome.
The earthquake struck at 3:00am and up to 10,000 buildings have been damaged.
Sadly, reports say that 40 people have been reported to have lost their lives so far.
The earthquake shook Rome violently too but caused no damage. Many people walked out of their homes into the streets, fearing bigger shocks.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those who have suffered this terrible event.
You can read more about this on the BBC website.
Two of our apartments are in Via Margutta which will turn itself into an exhibition space at the end of April.
The 100 Painters of Via Margutta will be exhibiting their art between 29 Apr ’09 and 3 May ’09, as has been the case since 1953. More about this in our Events section.
The idea is this. Why not rent and apartment on the same street during those days? You’ll be slap-bang in the middle of it all.
Two of our apartments are located in Via Margutta:
- Casa degli Artisti is named approprietely and is a 50 m2 studio for 2
- Apartment Margutta 120 is larger and can host 4 people — ideal for a family
If you’re interested you should book ASAP as the apartments are bound to go fast.
PS. This is no April Fools.
The Times Online is campaigning for the Champions League final to be removed from Rome.
The Champions League final is scheduled to be played at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday May 27 and the British newspaper is concerned that there will be a repeat of violence that has dogged a number of games between English teams and Roma in the capital.
It is true that football-related violence is a problem in Italy and yes, there is a risk that there will be more violence. However, with an event of such importance you can assume that the authorities will do what it takes to prevent any kinda of problem from erupting. The whole world will be watching.
“Say no to Stab City”
What is particularly irritating about The Times’ article are the words used in the last paragraph: “Say no to Rome. Say no to Stab City”.
They have every right to campaign against anything they want but it’s unfair that a whole city is characterised that way, even in the context of a football match.
If we’re talking safety lets look at some stats
There may be added risk because of a football game but rest assured that Rome remains a safe place to visit. Unlike Britain that, as The Telegraph puts it, ‘tops European crime league’:
Britain has one of the worst crime rates in Europe, a report said yesterday.
It is the most burgled country in Europe, has the highest level of assaults and above average rates of car theft, robbery and pickpocketing. Only Ireland has a worse record.
Risks of being assaulted were highest in the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden and Denmark and lowest in Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Spain and France.
That’s right, the risk of being assaulted is highest in the UK. As far as Europe is concerned, the risk of being assaulted in Italy is one of the lowest. That’s because we like pizza, pasta and Pavarotti and don’t binge-drink ourselves stupid.
Stay away from Rome when the final is on
We suggest the following: don’t come to Rome during when the final is on because the the game will be the focus of… everything. Football is fun but not worth the hassle. Prices for things will be inflated and the streets will be noisy.
Come to Rome any other time and have a great time.
As far as the UK is concerned, whatever the stats say it remains a great place to visit.
They called it operation 'Movida Sicura' and was aimed at establishing an 'emotional climate of trust and respect between residents, visitors and the police'.
The idea is for law enforcement officers to patrol hot-spot areas but not in an aggressive way, their presence acting as a deterrent and to send out a message of pro-active policing.
Last Saturday Dino Gasperini, representing Rome council and Cesarino Caioni, head of the Vigili Urbani (traffic police) met up at 11pm in Campo de’ Fiori to see for themselves what the area looks like when all the kids are out and about drinking beer. Perhaps they were inspired by the words of the La Terrina fountain there: Do well and let them talk, as far as the policing strategy is concerned.
This is good news for the city. Not that street violence was ever a big problem. In this day and age that ‘security’ is a big issue at every level – from terrorist attacks to padlocking your bicycle – more policing is certainly welcome.
The areas of Rome that are covered by operation ‘Movida Sicura’ are Campo de’ Fiori, Piazza Navona, Testaccio, Trastevere and the ZTL area (area of the historic centre you can only access by car if you have a permit).
- Source: Sicurezza, operation Movida Sicura (in Italian).
Why buy water when you can get it free from fountains?
If you’re visiting Rome in the summer you can expect very hot and dry weather. Drinking water throughout the day is essential to avoid de-hydration. In fact, drinking water regularly is one of the best thing you can do to keep healthy.
When visiting sights such as the Colosseum, Forum or Piazza Navona you will notice mobile stalls selling sandwiches, beer, soft drinks and water. The reason why you will not see a price list is because that would scare people off. A litre of water can set you back 3 to 5 Euros.
Instead, invest in a water bottle and carry along with you. Look out for fountains where you can re-fill… for free and invest the saved money in a nice ice-cream.
Alternatively, buy some mineral water from a grocery store at a fraction of the price you would pay at one of the mobile stalls. You will get good tasing water (try Uliveto) and a bottle too.
Roman's mayor, Mr. Gianni Alemanno, has announced that the initiative will not be terminated. Bless him.
Cemusa, the company that manages the bike sharing service called Roma’n‘Bike, was all set to close shop next Saturday due to a failure to resolve certain contractual issues with the council. A typical scenario if you’re trying to do something different (and perhaps not convenient for certain third parties).
The good news is that Mayor is keen to for the service to not only remain active but to be extended. With of luck this good-will will translate into a resolution, as far as Cemusa’s contractual needs are concerned.
Bike sharing means hopping on a bicycle at one ‘station’, say in Piazza Navona, and hopping off at another one, say Piazza Venezia. If you manage to reach your destination alive and within 30 minutes it will not cost you a thing.
The bad news for readers of this blog (mostly travellers) is that it’s not a service they can use. Only residents can register.
Or is it?
Perhaps with a vacation rentals contract our clients are eligable? We’re going to email Cemusa and ask. Watch this space.
We've opened our 'shop' to let people have a look and provide feedback.
The site is not quite complete – we have listed only 4 apartments in 4 areas of Rome. We’ll be adding more soon.
We are also writing up articles for the Rome Experience section, which we hope will inspire people to visit Rome.
Does the site work for you?
Please have a look around and let us know what you think by posting a comment here or emailing webmaster@rome-rentals-co.com. We’re particularly interested to know if navigation works for you and whether you find content interesting and relevant.
We are travgo
For the record, this site is owned and operated by travgo a new brand for an established business in the vacation rentals sector. Our main site – www.cityapartments.it – has been going up and running since 2002. Read up about who we are on our About us page.
The Times published an article about '6 brilliant budget hotels in Rome'. 2 of them were of the same company... a coincidence?
Seems we have recurring issues with The Times. But this time it’s not about football.
In their 27 March article Six brilliant budget hotels in…. Rome they give some good advice about hotels, hostels and apartments in Rome that are cheap but of good quality. Readers like such articles because true value for money is a rare breed.
However, out of the six two where effectively of the same company. The owners of The Beehive, number 1 in the list, are also managers of the apartment that was featured as number 2 in the list.
There is nothing wrong in that, of course. We know The Beehive and it’s a great place to stay. No doubt they offer a professional service.
However, one has to question why the author, Sean Newsom, decide to feature the same company twice? This isn’t good journalism. Mr. Newsom should have mentioned that in the article or done a little bit more research and found another company to write about. Or at least published the comment we left there about it there.
By blogging this we run the risk of never been featured on the Times and to come across as a bunch of whingers. We just want to alert people that every source of news is questionable. And like they say when you’re considering buying shares… always do you own research.