Recently in Rome Category

Rome is a sprawling ancient city with so much to do it can almost seem overwhelming. That's why avid travelers know that if you really want to savor your time in Rome, it's best to slow down, relax, and really notice the beauty of the place. Villa Borghese Park is a perfect spot to do just that, with winding paths, colorful flowers, and shade trees, and it also happens to have one of the best museums in the city. The Borghese Gallery has sculptures, paintings, and various antiquities that represent the finest work of different eras, and a stroll through the museum is a welcome break from the crush that can be found at the city's better-known attractions. The museum's collection is positively brimming with masterpieces, with works like Bernini's sculptures, Il Ratto di Proserpina and Apollo and Daphne, but its true strength is in oil paintings. The gallery is particularly known for its collection of Caravaggio paintings, including the 1606 St. John the Baptist in the Desert, which illustrates faith and humanity like few other artists can. Guests at the Hotel Eden or any of Starwood's properties in the Rome area will enjoy the endless works of fine art in this fascinating museum and garden park.

Lines, or queues as they say in England, can be intimidating. Smart travelers are always seeking out the best way to bypass them. Rome just made it a lot better for those of us in the know. Notoriously popular sites like the Colosseum, Villa Borghese, and National Museum of Rome can now be reserved in advanced with Rome's new "contact center" 060608. It's actually a telephone number, and for the cost of a local call (in Rome), reservations can be made, and tickets purchased for dozens of museums and events in the city.

Information on virtually all of Rome's historical, cultural, and artistic attractions is available on the website, 060608.com. The site's simple layout offers three options: "Culture and Leisure", "Events and Shows", and "Hospitality", which includes the fabulous Hotel Eden, and the luxurious Westin Excelsior in addition to four more wonderful Starwood properties in Rome. So next time you drop in on the Eternal City, drop a line to 060608 before heading out on the town. Details on the website are in both Italian and English (well, mostly), and if you see "online purchase" or "telephone purchase" under the "contatti" (contacts) section, you're good to book in advance.

Cartographers, put away your pencils. The future of map making has arrived. No, we're not talking about our beloved Google Maps, this is a quite different sort of map altogether. It's a map based on the real lifeblood of a city, not its streets and its buildings, but its people. MIT's SENSEable City Lab has developed Wiki City Rome. With information fed by mobile phones and GPS devices on public buses, the map reveals where the people are in real time. But don't worry, it's all anonymous.

Unveiled at the 2006 Venice Biennale the Wiki City Rome map premiered to the public September 8 at Rome's Notte Bianca, an all-night "open city" type festival that features events throughout the city's streets, squares, museums and monuments. Anyone with access to the internet could make use of the map by pulling up the SENSEable City Lab website. Here's how it might have come in handy. Say you wanted to take your kids to Technotown, an area dedicate to presenting new technologies to the 11 to 17-year-old set. The Wiki City Rome map would indicate how crowded the event was at any given moment based on cell phone usage in the area. Now look at your possible routes. You'd know which was the road less taken, and you'd take it.

You can't fold it up and carry it in your pocket. You can't mark an "x" on the spot to designate where you are. But what you can do may change the way humans inhabit and visit cities in the future. MIT's SENSEable City Lab is still developing the application, but here are some ways we hope to be able to use it in the years to come.

Take scenario 1. You've arrived in your favorite city, looking for some fun on the dance floor. Pull up the map, pinpoint a few of the hottest dance clubs, and gauge the crowd. You'll head to the one with the most bodies so you can better bump and grind.

Take scenario 2. You've got tickets to see your favorite football team tonight. Traffic could be a nightmare. But with Wiki City, you'll be able to track traffic patterns. Your route should be a no-brainer.

Take scenario 3. You're on honeymoon in some tragically romantic but gruesomely crowded city. Stroll with your honey over those breathtaking bridges at the right time. When you're the only ones there.

Let's hope those MIT SENSEable City Lab scientists get some new Wiki Cities out the door fast. We can't wait to get our hands on the next installment. Beijing 2008 anyone? Until then, we suggest you continue to ask your Starwood concierge for a paper map, except of course, if you're staying at the Westin Excelsior Rome.

Rome has no shortage of great nightlife options, but I'm particularly intrigued by Salotto 42. This elegant restaurant by day becomes one of the city's most stylish nightspots after dark, when fine food and wine and a professional clientele give way to sleek cocktails, the latest in lounge music, and the city's hippest denizens. Located on one of the most charming squares in the city - the Piazza di Pietra - this relaxing yet stimulating destination features comfortable high-backed chairs, elegant lighting, and, best of all, an impressive collection of fashion and art books, perfect for thumbing through as you enjoy your drink and check out the fashionistas in one of the world's most well-dressed cities. Stake out a nice table and watch the fashion models and celebrities and those who love they sashay in and out on their way to the city's various dance floors. Enjoy delicious Swedish-inspired appetizers (the owner is a Swedish model, after all). Close your eyes and savor a uniquely Italian experience. Nightlife in Rome doesn't get much better than this.

"All museums are the same! I don't want to go!" Such are familiar words when faced with traveling with children abroad. An answer: interactive children's museums. Explora, the Children's Museum of Rome and the first of its kind in Italy, features all kinds of hands-on exhibits that are sure to delight the little bambini in your life. It's divided into four main areas where youngsters can learn about the human body, public life, business, and the natural environment. While the exhibits are in Italian, they're supposedly visual enough to understand. The best part of all children's museums are their play element and Explora's got its own pint-sized studio (pictured) where the little ones can produce their own television programs. The museum is located on via Flaminia in the center of Rome, near the Piazza del Popolo and adjacent to the exquisite Villa Borghese park for some outdoor fun. Starwood has six great properties in Rome, including the family-friendly Four Points by Sheraton Roma West Hotel.

[image via Explora il Museo dei Bambini di Roma]