“You haven’t been to Rome yet!?” I had heard this question for a long time, and I finally got a perfect excuse to visit it last month, counting with great “native” indications, which enhanced the experience in great manner.

I must admit that I was kind of skeptical regarding the “beauty” of Rome. For some reason, and in spite of the frequent recommendations, I was not expecting a big thing… but it did exceed my expectations. I confirmed that the often-heard sentence “Every corner you look at hosts either a ruin or a church” is not an exaggeration, but completely true.

It is so true, that one of the other frequent complaints, the traffic, is heavily affected by the ruins. They cannot build roads and buildings as they plan, because every meter they dig, they find something out, and must change the original project. The clearest case is how the Aqueducts force the street routes in the city.

Rome, as capital of Roman Empire, was in the “old good times” the biggest and most advanced city in the World, apart from the richest one, and you still feel it. This political power also led the Catholic Church to “set” their headquarters here. As Romans like to say (and I could agree with them) any regular Roman church could be a big cathedral in the rest of Europe.

If the historic perspective is not enough for you, add the excellent Italian food to the picture, and you get a great destination for a couple of free days. Have you been to Rome yet?

More pictures in this slideshow.