Cascata delle Marmore

The Cascata is found in Terni, southern Umbria, 104km north of Rome. It finds its beginnings in 271BC, when the Consul Manlio Curio Dentato had the lands around the river Velino reclaimed by excavating a canal which began at the deepest point of the flooded lands and carried the water to the outskirts of Marmore where they still fall today.

During the papacy of Pope Pius VI, further works were carried out by the architect Andrea Vici; these involved a diagonal cut at the level of the second ascent of the falls which caused some of the falling water to be diverted and therefore allowed the Nera to ebb.

This intervention gave to the Cascata the appearance that can be admired to this day.

The sight of the different levels of the Cascata, made even more impressive through this latest intervention, became a popular site for tourists to visit. The Cascata is now one of the highest artificial waterfalls in Europe.

In order to trek around the Cascata and its environs, one may choose one – or more – of four sentieri, which are different walks graded according to their level of difficulty and ranging from easy to medium.

Today the Cascata is also the site for practising various activities ranging from canoeing to kayaking, rafting and others.

Quirinale

Legend has it that this hill, one of the original seven hills of Rome, was home to a small village of Sabines whose god was named Quirinus. Today it is the official residence of the Italian head of state.

Previously, Emperor Constantine’s baths were located atop the Quirinal hill and equestrian statues of Castor and Pollux were once located in such baths; they are now the centrepieces in the Piazza del Quirinale. The Roman obelisk between the two statues is a companion to the one on top of the Esquiline and was created for the Mausoleum of Augustus.

Castor and Pollux are also known as the Dioscuri meaning ‘sons of Zeus’ and are, in mythology, said to be the twin sons of Leda. Also according to mythology, it is said that Zeus once disguised himself as a swan to seduce Leda, a beautiful mortal. Leda ‘laid’ an egg from which sprung a pair of twins – whether both from the same egg or from a separate egg each is unclear. Castor is said to have been a great horseman, whereas Pollux was a boxer and a god. The twins accompanied Jason on his quest for the golden fleece.

Abandoned during the Middle Ages, the Quirinale regained some of its former popularity in the late 16th Century. Pope Gregory XIII commissioned the architect Ottaviano Mascarino to build the Palazzo del Quirinale in this area. Important families such as the Colonna and the Aldobrandini had their palazzo lower down the hill. With the end of papal rule in 1870, the Quirinal became the residence of the kings of Italy, and the surrounding area, especially along Via Nazionale, was redeveloped.

I was lucky enough to visit the Quirinale at around 3pm when there was the changing of the guard. The solemnity and pomp of it all was really worth watching so visiting the Quirinale at this hour is a real must.

Terme di Caracalla

These baths were completed during the rule of the infamous Emperor Caracalla by around 217AD. The complex was square with sides of over 305 metres.

From 211AD, Caracalla and his brother Geta ruled jointly for one year. Caracalla murdered Geta at an official meeting and followed through by also slaying all Geta’s sympathisers and supporters; soldiers then wreaked havoc. Looting and bloodshed thus ensued and it was estimated that around 20,000 citizens were killed. Caracalla then promised the unhappy citizens with the promise of the best baths ever to be built in Rome.

Over 1,500 bathers at a time could enjoy the facilities. A Roman bath was a long and complicated business. Having paid an inexpensive entrance fee, one would begin a visit to the baths with exercise.

The baths also comprised the calidarium, a large hot room with pools of water to moisten the atmosphere, the lukewarm tepidarium, a large central meeting place, known as the frigidarium, and the natatio, an open-air swimming pool.

There were also libraries, art galleries, restaurants and gardens – a true leisure centre. A group of slaves was on hand to ensure that everything worked.

Most of the rich marble decorations of the baths were removed by the Farnese family in the 16th century to adorn the interior of Palazzo Farnese.

The Baths are often used for as an enchanting backdrop for opera in the summer season as well as in a number of high-profile events such as the concert of the Three Tenors at the conclusion of the 1990 FIFA World Cup.

Pop Art

This delightful exhibition, curated by Walter Guadagnini and covering the period from 1956-1968 has been open to the public from 26 October and will remain so until 27 January at the Scuderie del Quirinale.

Works of art like Andy Warhol’s Marilyn series have become icons of a time gone by and it is indeed overwhelming to be able to see such works which one is so used to seeing on anything retro, in the flesh, in the same room as one.

Pop Art takes its inspiration from the objects on the new domestic scene, the icons of the world of show business, especially film, such forms of pop culture as the strip cartoon, entertainment literature, and the major social and current events broadcast by the mass media such as the conquest of space.

The exhibition hosts around 100 works by some 50 different artists, in a display spread over two floors and broken down by subject matter.

Works from the renowned Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein and others are placed alongside those of lesser-known artists like Peter Blake, Richard Hamilton and Mimmo Rotella. The exhibition does a very good job in recreating the vibrant climate that existed circa half a century ago when certain issues previously considered taboo were being put out in the open in a manner which challenged social norms to a great extent. Although a considerable number of years have gone by, many of the challenges such works of art bring about have stood the test of time and remain topical to this day.

Gregory Crewdson

A combined ticket may be bought for this exhibition, held at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni, with the one for Pop Art at the Scuderie del Quirinale.

The Palazzo delle Esposizioni is the largest exhibition space in the centre of Rome: it spreads over more than 10,000 square metres on three floors and hosts exhibitions and cultural events.

The exhibition, curated by Stephan Berg, presents the works of the American photographer Gregory Crewdson, born in New York in 1962, split into themes starting from Early Work (1987-1988) to his most recent works collected in the series Beneath the Roses (2003-2005).

The exhibition is accompanied by a Cinema Visionario, a film festival which opened on 8 January in the cinema of the Palazzo delle Esposizioni and included films by David Lynch, David Cronenberg, Lars von Trier and the Coen brothers.

This exhibition is currently on tour and Rome is the only stop it will make in Italy. It has been open since 19 December and will remain open until 21 March.

From eternal Rome to sunny Malta

Now after four months filled with enjoying all that is Roman as well as an occasional escape from the city, it has come to an end. I leave with a bittersweet taste – living in Rome was a wonderful experience and it became my second home very fast yet at the same time, it can never replace my actual home.