Quirinal Palace

Built in the 9th century, this ancient basilica crowns the top of the Esquiline Hill. Tons of gold decorate the interior together with impressive mosaics (particularly when the floodlights are turned on), and there is a museum on the premises. If you are in Rome on Corpus Christi (Corpus Domini), which is the Thursday after the 8th Sunday after Easter, an early-evening service is held in San Giovanni by the Pope followed by a procession along Via Merulana to Santa Maria. Good opportunity for a close up view of the Pope. This is a very large church with lots to see, as for example, the main part of the church has two layers of mosaics and paintings high on the walls, the altar and apse are spectacular, and then there are several more or less large chapels you won't want to miss, including the one with the amazing golden baptismal font. Allow at least an hour if not an hour and a half or more to visit the interior, even if you do not take any special tours, and also allow time to view the exterior from all sides. Overall, at least 2 hours would not be too much time to allot.

At the southern end of the Piazza, designed by Bernini but the main statue of the Moor was done by Giacomo della Porta and the other statues are 19th-century copies of the originals.

This is a large tomb built by the Roman Emperor Augustus in 28 BC in the form of a stone ring covered by an earth mound. A brick wall, 87 m in diameter, carried an earth mound covered with cypresses. On top of the hill stood a bronze monument of the emperor. The building was 44 meters high. At the beginning of the alley, which led to the tomb were two Egyptian obelisks. On both sides of the doorway bronze plates describe the "Res gestae", the deeds of the emperor. The urns of Augustus, Marcellus, Octavia, Agrippa, Drusus and other members of the Julian Claudian dynasty were revered here. In the Middles Ages the building served as citadel of the Colonna family. It was destroyed by Pope Gregor IX in 1241. The body of Cola di Rienzo. a popular leader of the people in the mid-14th century, was burnt in this monument. The Mausoleo di Augusto is not open to the public, and is fenced off.

This little church is hard to find but well worth the extra effort although it is often closed when you get there. One of Borromini's masterpieces. It is located only a block from Piazza Navona, but not usually visible from the street, as you must enter the courtyard of an old palazzo to reach the church. Sant'Ivo is a small church the dome of which is shaped like the Star of David, but with every other point rounded. The steeple seen from the outside looks like it has a staircase wrapped around it that ascends to heaven. As the church was commissioned by the Barberini family that produced a number of popes and whose family symbol was the bee—some say the steeple resembles the stinger of the insect.

A 1st-century tomb surrounded by two farmhouses from the Middle Ages, one of which used to be a cheese store. Rather hidden behind a high wall, the tomb is rarely open to the public. You might be lucky on a Sunday: on the third Sunday of every month there is a guided tour at 11:00.

Next door to the Pyramid, this fine gate in the Aurelian Wall is named after St. Paul as the Via Ostiense leads to the basilica of St. Paul's Outside the Walls (see Rome/South).

The palace was built by the architect Baldassare Peruzzi on behalf of the Massimo family. The former palace was destroyed during the pillage of Rome in 1527. The Massimo family can be traced back to Quintus Fabius Maximus who defeated Hannibal in the 3rd century BC. The building is open to the public on March 16, only in order to commemorate the miraculous reanimation of Paolo Massimo by St. Philip Neri in 1538.

If it is sunny, you'll catch a few young people and older gentlemen sitting at the base of a statue in the middle of the open space. The statue is a brooding, hooded Giordano Bruno—an excommunicated Dominican monk and one of the earliest cosmologists who held the idea of an infinite universe. He was burnt at the stake for heresy on this spot on 17 February 1600. The piazza is used as a marketplace during the day, and party central for college students and tourists at night. When the sky gets dark and the street lamps go on, the Campo de' Fiori fills with people and lovers wander arm in arm in the crowd. Over the buzzing of conversation and the occasional burst of laughter you may hear a young vocalist belt out O Sole Mio at the top of his lungs as change plunks into his accordion case.

Like Pasquino, the Facchino is one the so-called "speaking figures" which are peculiar to Rome. He is looking out of the Banco di Roma building. The man depicted is holding a barrel in his hands and is carrying water. It is sometimes said that he is looking similar to Martin Luther, but more probably a porter who died while carrying a barrel is depicted here.

Borghese Gallery and Museum is a lovely display in a beautiful villa setting, which concentrates on the quality rather than the size of its collection. There are some very notable works by Antonio Canova and Gian Lorenzo Bernini here, Bernini's Apollo and Daphneis quite amazing. It also houses some of Caravaggio paintings, well worth the admission charge. Originally, the gallery was one of the most magnificent private art collections in the world. It was founded by Cardinal Scipione Borghese. At the beginning of the 19th century, Prince Camillo Borghese sold great parts of the collections to Paris where today they belong to the most valuable exhibits of the Louvre. Since 1902 the villa and the gallery are owned by the Italian state. The number of people admitted is limited to 360 every 2 hours, so it is best to make a well in advance for the time slot you want. Cameras and photography are allowed. Plan to arrive at the museum at least 15 minutes prior to your entry time, to obtain your ticket from Will Call and to deposit purses, strollers, backpacks, bottles, and other bulky items in the cloak room. If you are late for your reservation the museum may not allow you to use your ticket.