travelswithalice

August 17, 2014

Superguide Massimo and the secrets of Rome

Feeling orphaned and abandoned in Rome by dear friends and usual hosts Margarita and Maurizio who were away when we came, we turned to our hotel concierge for help. 

Massimo to the rescue. This marvel of a driver, teacher, guide, and occasional evangelist led Stuart and me through an exciting and thorough exploration of the city. Its streets, squares, buildings, and gardens, ancient and modern. Letting us in on what he called the secrets of Rome, he happily chatted about her history, art, politics, myths, legends, and gossip.

We went up and down- frequently back and forth too- on streets off limits to most other vehicles. This made it possible for us to drive up with ease to hard to get at places or where parking is difficult.  St Peter's square, Castel Santangelo, Villa Borghese, and Garibaldi square.  The basilica of St Paul Outside the Wall, the church of S Bernardo with the beautiful honeycomb ceiling, and the church of Sta Maria della Vittoria for Bernini's Ecstacy of Sta Teresa.

We drove all around the posh Trastevere quarter, to Eataly way out in the burbs, and then to Mussolini's greatest folly, the failed EUR.

In between running commentaries on the importance of Sts Peter and Paul, Massimo pointed out Rome's best gelato shop, best granite cart, a mysterious building housing old opera costumes, and the best hospitals- the one for children (Bambino Gesu,) the one that fixed football superstar Totti's broken bones (Villa Stuart Clinic,) and the one that cared for Pope John Paul after he was shot (Gemelli.)

He encouraged us to walk through a romantic gate to crowded Piazza Navone. He got us to queue for a keyhole view of St. Peter’s in dark and quiet Piazza Cavalieri. And he insisted we walk up St Helena's steps. But even he could not get us to scale the steps on our knees, despite his protestations about the value of total dispensation for our sins.

We covered so much ground in two short days. Stuart and I could never have managed it on our own, even assuming we knew where to go or what to look for. We wanted the more unexplored parts of Rome, away from most of the obligatory spots we've already explored before.

Massimo and his secrets of Rome were the city's gifts to us. The perfect way to end a perfect holiday.

Labels: hotel car, secrets of Rome

posted by Alice Dimalanta Jones  # August 17, 2014

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