Time out to reflect
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5 reasons why I love Rome (despite living here!)
Rome: everything that can be said, has been said yet. Therefore, I can just list here few reasons why I love Rome (despite living here!): History is physically embracing you, all ages are represented from the hut where Romulus used to live in the VIII century BC to the rich Renaissance palaces of the […]
A bit of Rome’s etiquette
When we travel, we have the privilege of encountering new cultures. However, while we often envision our travel experiences in idyllic ways, not always are we prepared for the practical sides of living these experiences within respectful bounds of the local culture. If we are not aware of social norms in a foreign country, we […]
How hot is Rome in the summer?
[This article has been written in September 2023] Summer 2023 is almost at its end and I decided to recollect some thoughts about the “heat waves”: last July I received some calls and mails from the other side of the ocean (friends, former or future guests, journalists) asking how I was coping with the heat […]
Vatican tours? We quit.
When I began as a tour guide – 15 years ago – I wouldn’t say the Vatican Museums were ever empty, they were definitely busy, yet bearable and occasionally even pleasant. There are unique masterpieces in the collections, and I’m not just talking about the Sistine chapel: we also have Raphael, Botticelli, Perugino, Caravaggio, all […]
How can you trust A Friend in Rome?
[revised January 2024] Let’s admit it: the problem with tourist services is that you rarely need them more than once, or surely not very often. Booking a tour is not like buying milk everyday and making your choice based on your own daily experience. You have to make an investment without really seeing nor testing […]
Lesser known Rome waits for you outside its walls!
[revised January 2024] With the worst timing ever, in 2019 – just before a pandemic that would have blocked world tourism for almost two years – I launched a new website connected to this one and dedicated to day trips around Rome. Before starting this new proposal, I asked myself : “do we really need […]
Shopping for tours in ateliers instead of malls
[revised January 2024] Do you know when supermarkets started to exist in the commercial world? In 1830 the so-called “Magazines de Nouveautés” opened in France. Soon later, Macy’s opened in New York. Food stores opened in the US during WW1 and the traditional habit of single shops for different items waned after millennia. It’s easy […]
Why we do not sell underground Colosseum tours
[written in April 2022] We already tried to explain in another blogpost why it is so difficult to visit the underground sector of the Colosseum. Annually I make an attempt, to verify if the situation is still the same, sadly it’s getting always worse. Today (April 29, 2022) I decided to help some Italian friends to […]
FAQ: how do you remember all this “stuff” about Rome?
[revised January 2024] We are often asked how can we remember all the infos we provide during a tour. The game of jigsaw explains well our system of memorising information and concepts connected to the history of Rome. At the beginning you are… puzzled! You do not know where to start from, too many pieces, […]
Food weirdos
[revised February 2024] Food can be a divisive subject, something so personal and “ancestral” that we immediately notice when somebody has different eating habits from us. So, it was fun to collect some of the aspects that make us, Italians, seem weird to the eyes of people coming from another continent: we usually eat lunch […]