Rome, the Eternal City, is the capital and largest city of Italy and of the Lazio region. It stands as one of the finest and oldest cities in the world with a great history that spans over 2500 years. It has been a center of power, politics, culture, and development since its inception and it gave birth to the mighty Roman Empire. The birth of the city lies between legend and mythology and there are various different accounts of how this majestic place came to life. Rome is famed as the home of the ancient Roman Empire, the Seven Hills, La Dolce Vita, the Vatican City with its masterpieces, Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain and countless more. It is no doubt the cradle of one of the globe's greatest civilizations ever. Also, it is the birthplace of Catholicism, one of the most powerful religions which have exerted a huge influence over the world in its roughly 2800 years of existence.
No wonder Rome’s historic center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With wonderful palaces, thousand-year-old churches, grand Romantic ruins, imposing monuments, ornate statues and elaborate fountains, Rome has an immensely rich historical heritage and cosmopolitan atmosphere, making it one of Europe's and the world's most visited, famous, influential and beautiful capitals. Italy is believed to own seventy percent of the global art and approximately forty percent of this is found in Rome! Today, Rome is a contemporary metropolis with a growing nightlife scene and is a glorious shopping hub, regarded as one of the fashion capitals of the world. Rome can be considered a "global city" since it combines a glorious past which goes on to the present.
Lazio is in central Italy, on the western coast. The region was formerly known to English travellers by its Roman name, Latium, although this version of the name is now rarely used. A major port of call on the Grand Tour, when eighteenth-century travellers explored its scenic villages, Lazio is now largely overlooked in favour of its capital, Rome.
With so much investment, jobs and tourism concentrated in Rome, the surrounding region is often quiet, depopulated and rather run-down. For tourists, the good side of this is the tracts of unspoiled countryside, the dilapidated but surviving historic town centres, and the welcome you may receive. Tourists are rare creatures in many of Lazio's smaller towns, and once locals realise you are interested in their hometown they are generally delighted.
Italy's most underrated regions? Lazio is certainly in the running. Is there vacation life after Rome? Oh, how can we possibly count the many compelling towns, villages and archaeologlical sites? Certainly you know Tivoli and Hadrians Villa, the painted Etruscan tombs of Tarquinia and Cerveteri, the olives of coastal village Gaeta, Ostia Antica, the ancient port of Rome, the Castelli Romani and Frascati wine. The list goes on and on. You could spend a year wandering the 6,655 square miles of Lazio without a hint of boredom.
The birthplace of the Roman Empire and Renaissance, Italy, showcases many of the world’s greatest artworks, architectural buildings and over the top gastronomical proposals. This is the country where the word “style” expresses the whole nation. Italy has more Unesco World Heritage cultural sites than any other country; among them are Botticelli’s Birth of Venus and Primavera, Michelangelo’s David and Sistine Chapel and da Vinci’s The Last Supper.
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