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 12516 Rome Tips.21056 Rome Photos. Rome Pages by breughel
Tips 1 - 5 of 5 Rome General Tips
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Antique Rome: Earthquakes in Rome.
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Favorite Thing: When visiting and writing reviews about Roman monuments I read so much about earthquakes shaking the Colosseum half a dozen times, destroying Basilica's, that I felt it my duty to add this type of event to "Rome warnings and dangers".
Don't think this danger is just far away in the past; on 22/08/2005 the centre of Rome felt an earthquake of 4.5 on the Righter scale. There was a lot of talking between neighbours on the streets but no serious damages.
And closer to us on 12/04/2008 a small earthquake has shaken the Alban Hills southeast of Rome during the night and woke many people. Fortunately I had left Rome because I hate being shaken in my bed.
Don't think that nothing serious can happen and that pickpockets are much more a danger than earthquakes! On 26 September 1997 strong earthquakes struck central Italy and shook Assisi so strongly that frescoed vaults of the upper Basilica collapsed.
Since then when I visit Umbria I always wear a safety helmet.
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Music: LISZT IN ROME
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Favorite Thing: Franz Liszt lived in Rome from 1867 to 1877 and composed here some wonderful pieces for the piano bundled in the third volume of the "Années de Pélérinage".
The first piece "Angelus!" subtitled "Prayer to the Guardian Angels" evokes the Angelus bells which Liszt heard ringing in the evening at Rome.
The next three pieces also written in 1877 are famous in the world of classical music: "Aux Cyprès de la Villa d'Este, N°1" and "Aux Cyprès de la Villa d'Este, N°2". It is said that this one was originally inspired by the cypresses of the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli in Rome at the Terme di Diocletiano (re. my tips on this church). It is thought that these cypresses were planted by Michelangelo.
The third piece for piano "Les jeux d'eaux à la Villa d'Este" "the Fountains of the Villa d'Esta" where he staid, is even more famous. These works foreshadow the impressionism of pieces on similar subjects by Debussy and Ravel.
Liszt wrote about this work: "j'ai essayé de rendre en musique quelques unes de mes sensation les plus fortes, de mes plus vives perceptions…" (I tried to translate into music some of my strongest feelings, of my sharpest perceptions…).
Liszt met the pope Pie IX and played for him at the cloister of Santa Maria del Rosario, on the Monte Mario. Franz Liszt studied theology, was lodged at the Vatican and received the religious "minor orders" in 1865.
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Music: RESPIGHI - "Pini di Roma".
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Favorite Thing: I can't visit the green parts of Rome without hearing inside me the music of Ottorino Respighi about the Pines of Rome. "Pini di Roma" is a symphonic poem composed in 1924.
Actually Respighi in the four movements of his composition describes the Pines of the Villa Borghese, Pines near a Catacomb, the Pines of the Janiculum and in the finale the Pines of the Via Appia.
There are nowhere so beautiful pines as those of Rome. In French we call them "pins parasol" because they spread like an umbrella.
The "Pini di Roma" from Respighi made a triumph although the Italian audiences of that time were more fond of the operas by Puccini, Rossini and Verdi (re. the excellent pages of a VT connoisseur "Nemorino").
Some years before, in 1917, Respighi had already composed another famous orchestral work "Fontane di Roma". The fountains chosen were the fountain of Valle Giulia at dawn, the Tritone fountain in the morning, the Trevi fountain in the afternoon and at sunset the fountain opposite Villa Medici.
In 1929 Respighi composed "Feste Romana" (Roman Festivals) completing his trilogy of symphonic poems about Rome.
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Architecture.: No skyscrapers in Rome!
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Favorite Thing: The first time I climbed to the Pincio terrace I found it wonderful that there was not a single skyscraper, not a single tower, not a single high building at the horizon.
No architectural injury was made to this city.
Even if the Romans disliked their Vittoriano monument, finally it is not far from being now a major tourist attraction.
OK, I have no problem with the skyscrapers of NYC or Dubai but I prefer a horizon made of cupolas, or palaces of the baroque period of architecture.
Look here at some photos made from the Capitoline or the Castel Sant' Angelo. Isn't that sublime? Now this horizon virgin of high buildings is not limited to the historical centre of Rome, outside the Mura Aureliane apartment buildings were also kept low as I could observe on my recent stay at the Monte Mario area.
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Architecture.: Churches without bell-towers.
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Favorite Thing: EGLISES SANS CLOCHERS.
Quand on est né comme moi dans un pays où les clochers des cathédrales touchent les nuages chargés de pluie on ne peut manquer d'être surpris que Rome aux "mille et une" églises soit sans clochers!
Faites le tour avec moi et vous verrez seulement deux clochers. Celui de Santa Maria in Cosmedin en forme de campanile est le plus visible entre le Colisée et le Forum. Celui de Santa Maria Maggiore est avec ses 75 m le plus haut de Rome.
Il ne m'a guère impressionné; dans mon petit pays il y a 25 clochers de plus de 75 m de haut. Nous avons même une cathédrale à Tournai avec 5 tours de 83 m.
Les Allemands seront encore moins impressionnés. Ils ont le plus haut clocher avec le Münster de Ulm et ses 162 m. Le Dom de Cologne n'est est pas loin avec ses deux clochers de 157 m.
L'absence de clochers est largement compensée par les coupoles souvent immenses comme ceux de San Pietro d'une hauteur de 136,5 m, ou de Sant'Andrea della Valle.
La quasi absence de clochers à Rome m'étonne depuis ma première visite alors qu'il y tant de clochers-campanile dans le Nord de l'Italie. Le plus haut campanile est celui de Cremona en Lombardie avec ses 111 m.
Rome est la ville au mille et une églises mais seulement deux clochers!CHURCHES WITHOUT BELL-TOWERS.
When born like me in a country where the bell-towers of the cathedrals touch the rain clouds one can not avoid being surprised that Rome with "thousand and one" churches has only two bell-towers! The campanile bell-tower of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, near the Coliseum is the most visible one. The bell-tower of Santa Maria Maggiore with 75 m is said to be the highest of Rome.
It hardly impresses me; in my small country there are 25 bell-towers of more than 75 m in height. We have even a cathedral in Tournai with 5 towers of 83 m.
German tourists will be even less impressed. They have the highest bell-tower with the Münster of Ulm reaching 162 m and the two bell-towers of the Dom of Cologne at 157 m.
The absence of bell-towers in Rome is largely compensated by the often immense cupolas like those of St Peters (136,5 m high) or Sant' Andrea della Valle.
The nearly absence of bell-towers in Rome always surprised me when there are so many bell-towers-Campanile in the North of Italy. The highest Campanile being the one of Cremona (111 m) in Lombardy.
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Join a Discussion Pompeii day-trips from Rome?
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 Comments for breughel about Rome | | | | |
LoriPori Mon May 5, 2008 11:45 UTC
WOW! You have been busy. Your pictures and comprehensive explanations are simply amazing. The Capitolene Museum is wonderful. I esp. enjoyed Baby Hercules - baby face with a man's body. I will be back for more. | Nemorino Fri May 2, 2008 22:10 UTC
You've added lots of fine new tips to this page just in the last 2 months -- and all of them are well worth reading! Just to give one example: I was fascinated by "The Coliseum in the Middle Ages" since I had no idea what had happened to it then. | marco2005 Mon Apr 21, 2008 08:05 UTC
Very accurate historical infoes!! nice tips and pics! Ciao. | scottishvisitor Thu Mar 20, 2008 17:20 UTC
Ah Rome the eternal city!! Now I really need to visit the Basilica :) stunning!! Great to read your updates & new tips! |
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