If you don't need me to pick you up at your hotel/location, we will meet in Piazza del Popolo. Here we will retrace the various eras characterized by the domination of the 7 kings of Rome. From the first "Romulus" to the last one "Tarquinius the Superb" (VII-V century before Christ). We will also briefly see the various monuments in the square like the obelisk and the 2 twin churches, one renown as "the artists' church". And now, we'll take my scooter to reach the second stop of our tour.

We'll park close to the Vatican and will walk to the St. Peter's Basilica. This is located in the Vatican State is the official Papal Major Basilica. It’s a masterpiece of Italian art with its giant colonnade and its 140 statues. Walking down the street Borgo Santo Spirito, we reach Castel Sant’Angelo that was built under emperor Hadrian because he wanted a funerary mausoleum for himself and his family. Passed then, in the hands of Pope Urban V in 1367, this castle has also been used as prison until 1901. Ready? Let's jump on the scooter again.

I'll briefly explain you about the tomb of emperor Adrian that then, became a fortress and prison. (Just outside visit, the entry is not included)

This sqaure reveals a lot about Rome, let's discover it together

We'll visit this beautiful basilica while I'll explain you its story

We'll park on a side of the road and will walk on the bridge that leads to Isola Tiberina, a real Island in the midst of the Tiber river. It’s famous for a beautiful Basilica of San bartolomeo and the Fatebenefratelli, an ancient hospital (dating 1583) still open nowadays and point of reference of the Pop for all his medical visits. At the other side of the road, the Jewish Ghetto, among the oldest ghettos in the world where Jewish people were obliged to live in 1555 by Pope Pail IV. Nowadays here many Jewish families still live and the restaurants here still carry on the Jewish culinary tradition with ancient recipes. Let's get back and let's jump on the scooter again now.

A brief explanation of the history of the ghetto

Without getting off the scooter, I'll show you the Circo Maximo, an ancient circus that likewise the Colosseum, hosted many shows at the era of the Romans. Here the famous scene with the chariot-race in the movie Ben Hur (1959) with Charlton Heston was shot. Nowadays it’s still used to do concerts since it can accommodate 250.000 people (anciently 300.000).

We will briefly stop outside the Colosseum that was originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre and was the largest Roman amphitheatre in the world (capable of holding an estimated 50,000 to 87,000 spectators), located in the city centre of Rome. It took 10 years to be constructed and it was inaugurated in the year 80 b.C. Nowadays it’s included in the New Seven Wonders of the World. Let's jump on my scooter again and let's proceed to the next destination.

We will park and reach now the Campidoglio square which was found over one of the smallest hills on which Rome was founded. Once up into the square, you can reach the back part form where a beautiful view of the Roman ruins (called “foro romano”) can be seen. Let's go back and take the scooter again.

Here we'll stop for a few minutes and will wlak first to Campo de' fiori, namely “Field of flowers”. This square was in fact, originally a flowered lawn but in the 13th century, it started to grow in importance since it was along the important route that led to the Vatican. It was paved and many buildings were made and bought by the Orsini family. Very close the Piazza Farnese, considered the most elegant in Rome with its 2 big fountains. Let's get back to the scooter now.

We'll briefly stop in this famous square to view its architecture and talk about its history

Piazza Navona, in ancient Rome, was the Stadium of Domitian (not a circus) which was built by the emperor Domitian in the year 85 d.C and could accommodate 30,000 spectators. It was all open (with no prisons underneath, like the Colosseum) and it was used for athletes' competitions. Let's go now to the last destination of our tour. Let's jump on the scooter again.