RomaPolacchi

From now until December 28th, Museums in Italy will be open late (7-11 pm) and free on Tuesday (Martedi) evenings. Included are archaeological sites like Paestum in Campania, Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli, the Uffizi and the Accademia in Florence and the Borghese Gallery and Villa Giulia in Rome. For more details on museums that are participating around Italy, see the website.

Starting August 21st, the Colosseum will be open for night tours (9:00 pm to midnight) until October 2nd. Tickets cost 15 Euros and reservations are a must. Be sure to request an English-speaking tour. For more information (only in Italian, unfortunately) go to pierreci.it or ask your hotel concierge to call the ticket office for you. The Baths of Caracalla will have a similar program through October 23rd.

I have 3 days in Rome coming up and have put together a short but sweet itinerary. I will be traveling with someone who has only been to Rome once, so I have included some must-see sights on this plan. We will also be visiting a few sites that I haven't seen in years. Day 1 : -Leonardo Express train to Termini -Lunch: Colline Emiliane near Trevi Fountain -Afternoon walk in Forum Romanum -Late afternoon visit to Capitoline Museum and a Jewish Quarter Walk -Dinner: Sora Lella on Tiber Island -Walk home through Campo dei Fiori and Piazza della Rotonda (Pantheon) Day 2 : -Morning visit to Borghese Gallery -Walk through Borghese Gardens, Pincio (perhaps a visit to Villa Giulia) -Lunch: Babette in Piazza del Popolo -Afternoon Via Condotti, Piazza Farnese, Via Margutta, etc. -Dinner: Trastevere (maybe-still TBD) Day 3: -8:00 am Vatican/St. Peter's -Villa Farnesina -Lunch in Trastevere at Checco or at Cul de Sac in Piazza Navona -Afternoon Castel S. Angelo, Piazza Navona, Via Condott...

The House of the Chaste Lovers in Pompeii is currently being excavated-the first new excavation in Pompeii in years. Not only is this new excavation exciting because of all the fascinating artifacts and features it is revealing (a huge brick oven, mosaic floors and skeletons of mules) but also because visitors will be able to enter the excavations and watch the dig going on in real time. If you are in Pompeii in March, be sure to stop by!

It was a great summer for discovery in Italy, even on the island of Capri. The bases of 3 Roman statues discovered in the cave in 1964 have been found on the floor of the Blue Grotto , along with evidence that there were at least 4 more statues in the cave. Now an underwater hunt for the remaining 4 statues is on. When they are discovered, archaeologists plan to make copies of the statues to display in their original positions in the cave, bringing the emperor Tiberius' private swimming grotto back to its ancient glory. I can't wait to see what they find. PS-don't try searching for them yourself-the sea bed is almost 500 feet below!

Thanks to eternallycool.net , news of recent archaeological discoveries in Rome have reached my long-deprived ears. Scholars think that they may have found the famous rotating dining room in the emperor Nero's Domus Aurea and a new amphitheater has been unearthed in Portus , just outside of ancient Rome's port, Ostia. The amphitheater could seat 2,000 people and may have been part of an imperial palace. I am anxiously awaiting more news from the summer's excavations. Stay tuned!

Travel and Leisure recently featured a walking tour website that will customize a day of sightseeing and eating in Rome for you. WalksInsideRome.com will take you to the open-air markets, bakeries, pizzerias and wine bars to sample the culinary delights of Rome-and see how the Romans make them. WalksInsideRome has dozens of customizable private and semi-private tours for art and antiquities connoisseurs, fans of opera, Angels and Demons and La Dolce Vita , and special itineraries designed for kids. The tours are not cheap, but take it from me-having a guided tour of Rome is always worth it. You will never regret a penny spent on your own private Rome. If you like the tours of Rome, they also offer guided walks in Venice , Florence , Trieste and Friuli .

Agrigento , a famous Greek colony, is an incredible archaeological site located in the heart of Southern Sicily. If you have been disappointed by the state of the ruins of Greek temples in Greece, Agrigento (ancient Akragas) will give you what you've been seeking. The Valley of the Temples boasts several well-preserved Doric temples (and some in ruins) overlooking the rugged Sicilian landscape and the sea. The town's archaeology museum , located in the Convent of San Nicola, contains regional artifacts from prehistory to the Hellenistic era. Don't miss this site, one of UNESCO' s treasures.

Not that you need to look for any reasons to visit the Amalfi Coast, but just in case you need some guidance, here are the Modern Traveler's top historical sites to visit on and around the Costiera Amalfitana. 1. Villa Jovis on Capri : Capri is fabled for two reasons. It is breathtakingly gorgeous and it was the playground for the less than moral Emperor Tiberius. Don't miss the ruins of his grand palace, the Villa Jovis, at the southern tip of the island. The flower-lined walk to the Villa from town is a lovely way to spend your morning and the views of the Amalfi Coast will knock your socks off. 2. Paestum (pictured): Somehow this sanctuary of ancient Greek temples was overlooked for the past 2,000 years. The 2,500 year old temples are in almost pristine condition and the rest of the archaeological site is pretty interesting too. Paestum is just a short drive from Salerno which is at the southern base of the Amalfi peninsula. Don't miss the museum ! 3. Herculaneum : In ...

The ruins at Selinunte are spectacular. You will forget the rest of the world as you gaze at the golden fields and blue sea surrounding the temples. But there's more to Selinunte than archaeology. Selinunte boasts beautiful beaches on the Mediterranean and a simple yet extraordinary seafood restaurant. Try the beach west of Via Pigafetta (near the ruins) or take Via della Pineta east until it ends. You'll find a sandy beach there with a concession stand for snacks. Be sure to stay for the whole day when you visit and finish with a seaside dinner at Ristorante Pierrot of pasta con sarde or couscous (after all Africa is only about 100 km away!).

Rome declared a state of emergency last week as the Tiber River's water level rose to an unprecedented high . Tiber Island was about to be submerged and a lake formed around the Colosseum. More rain and hail were expected to fall this weekend but the Tiber's floodwaters have subsided. Stay tuned to find out how this has affected the monuments in the city.

Perched on a hillside overlooking Mt. Etna and the Mediterranean, the Grand Hotel Timeo in Taormina is one of the most spectacular hotels in the world. Built into the foundations of the Greco-Roman theater, this hotel is luxurious, intimate, and the service is impeccable. The hotel was once the home of Sicilian nobility and to this day exudes the taste and refinement of its former residents. The rooms are elegant and almost all have views of the sea and the dining terrace where live piano plays every evening. The Grand Hotel Timeo is an excellent base for exploring Eastern Sicily and especially Taormina, one of Sicily's most charming cities. With rooms starting at 330 Euros, The Grand Hotel Timeo is not cheap, but it is an unforgettable experience worth every penny.

Sharon Waxman's new book Loot: The Battle Over Stolen Treasures of the Ancient World takes readers through centuries of archaeological treasures stolen from their native lands. Many countries are now fighting back and demanding that their national heritage be returned. There is controversy over where these treasures belong and some of the most famous museums in the world are battling to keep them. The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the J. Paul Getty Museum are at the center of these issues, along with the Louvre and the British Museum . Waxman devotes an entire chapter to the fate of Marion True, the former curator of the Getty Villa in Malibu. See where Sharon Waxman is speaking next or listen to a discussion with her on KQED's FORUM show.

If you have some experience in archaeological fieldwork, the University of Michigan may be looking for you. In June of 2009, UM will launch a six-week excavation at the urban site of Gabii , an ancient settlement of Rome's Italian allies. Gabii is located just east of Rome and excavators will be housed in nearby Frascati at the Hotel Villa Mercede . Read more about the excavation in UM's Literature, Science and Arts magazine . The Modern Traveler can't think of a better way to spend the summer-living and breathing Roman history!

Opening today at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. is an extraordinary exhibit of artifacts from the excavations of Pompeii and its neighboring towns. Luxurious furniture, personal effects, and exquisite works of art were all buried in the eruption of August 23rd, 79 C.E. Among these artifacts are sculptures from the Villa of the Papyri which inspired the Getty Villa in Malibu. These objects are now on display (many for the first time ever in the U.S.) at the National Gallery until March 22nd when the exhibit will travel to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Today's Washington Post has a detailed article on the history of Pompeii and its excavations and an excellent slide show of some of the major works.

Pompeii and the Roman Villa opens tomorrow, October 19, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. The exhibit makes public several artifacts from recent excavations never on view in the U.S. before, as well as many well-known works from earlier excavations. The exhibit will also focus on the mosaics, frescoes and sculptures from the villas of wealthy Romans in the Bay of Naples that influenced much of the art of the 18th century. With the economy the way it is, it may be that a trip to the nation's capital is the closest we can get to Rome these days!

Archaeologists have discovered what they to believe to be the tomb of the man who inspired the movie Gladiator (which was really just a remake of the movie The Fall of the Roman Empire starring Sophia Loren, James Mason, Christopher Plummer , Alec Guiness and Omar Sharif !). An inscription on the tomb reveals that the monument belonged to Marcus Nonius Macrinus , one of the emperor Marcus Aurelius' generals. The tomb's location along the banks of the Tiber has made major restoration possible, as mud from centuries of the river's floods has preserved almost every piece of the marble structure. Read more about the excavation on Discovery News .com.

On the edge of the Borghese Gardens is the former residence of Pope Julius III. Built in the 16 th century, the palace was decorated by the most famous artists of the day, most notably Georgio Vasari and Michaelangelo Buonarroti . Today the palace, now known as the Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia , houses the most extensive collection of Etruscan artifacts in Rome and includes famous works such as the Apollo from Veii and the Bride and Groom from Cerveteri . Be sure to visit the extraordinary collection of Etruscan gold and jewelry on the second floor. In addition, the first floor Portico painted by Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola must not be missed. The museum is closed Mondays.

Ancient Alexandria, the home of the Ptolemaic pharaohs in Egypt, has long been covered by murky brine. For decades archaeologists have been "unearthing" treasures from Cleopatra's sunken palace. Now archaeologists and the Egyptian government are planning to build a spectacular underwater museum to showcase this palace and other ruins in the port of Alexandria. According to National Geographic, the project is still two years from being fully developed, so construction is definitely several years off. But look forward to yet another impressive sight to visit in Egypt in the near future!

A few months ago, the Modern Traveler reported on the proposed expansion of Rome's subway lines which was sure to unearth all sorts of new archaeological finds. Recently, a repair to the tram line that runs on the Via Marmorata to Piazza Aventino has exposed an ancient road, remains of a Roman wall, several tombs and sections of the floors of the grain warehouses of Rome's port on the Tiber River . If you are in Rome you should head over to the Via Marmorata to see real-life archaeology in action! (See the article in La Reppubblica -translated courtesy of Google)