Rome – a city of culture and beauty!

I’ve just come back to Rome after studying Italian last year for 2 months in this beautiful city. It was a great experience, not only because I met a lot of nice people from all around the world on the course, but because I was in Rome!

Last year I participated in a photo competition organised by the school and I won the first prize which gave me the chance to come back for another two weeks. So here I am once again in Rome.

After arriving in Rome, I immediately felt at home. Even though Rome is the capital of Italy, it doesn’t feel like a big city. There are so many things to see here, the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Vatican and so many other things, but there is more to Rome. If you just walk around the city you will find places that are beautiful and without many tourists. For example I did a “passeggiata” (a walk) with some people of the language school to the quartiere Coppedè. This is a lovely part of the city with some nice architecture.

And what about Italian food!! There are so many good restaurants here, especially in Trastevere. I ate a wonderful pizza at POPI POPI and afterwards went to have the best ice cream in the world at “San Crispino”, the variety makes your head spin!

During the summer months, there are so many things happening, most of them in the open air and free concerts that it’s very difficult to choose. The first weekend I was here there was a free concert, yes free, GENESIS at the Circo Massimo, imagine a Roman race track and a modern rock band!!! And right now there’s an exhibition about Valentino and Fashion in the Ara Pacis, a majestic Roman monument.

And it’s not just the city that is really nice, also the people from Rome are very friendly. They will help you and they appreciate it when you try to speak Italian, even if it’s not perfect.

Soon I’ll have to leave the school and go back home, but I’m already looking forward to my next visit to this beautiful city!!

Helma