Rome is proud with Gaga!

 
17 years after its debut in Italy, the Pride Parade returns in Rome. Formerly known as Gay Pride, now Euro Pride, this colorful event is a fest to celebrate every kind of sexuality. Every year people from all over Italy and Europe gather in the capital to defend that there’s no difference in being straight, gay or lesbian. No wonder then if many heterosexual people join the parade.

This year, more than 2 million people are expected. The reason for such a big crowd is the special guest that’s been revealed just last week: Lady Gaga! The popstar will honor her Italian heritage together with her extravagant dress code leading the parade with a free concert at Circo Massimo. Gaga wrote her name on a list of artists whom took part in the event during the past years, from Gloria Gaynor to legendary Village People.
 
A gay parade right by Saint Peter’s church may sound a bit awkward but so far it has always perfectly worked. This is great example of coexistence, don’t you think? See you on Saturday to sing all together Lady Gaga’s hits!

Under a colorful sky...

If you were in Rome yesterday, you would’ve seen the city invaded by a joyful army. Thousands of tourists gathered in the center, together with the Italian President and many governmental men, to see the parade celebrating the Republic Fest.

You may be a bit confused with all these celebrations, so let’s do a recap: April 21st the city of Rome turned 2,764. On March 17th, Italy celebrated its 150th birthday as a Nation. On June 2nd we commemorated the Italian republic, born 65 years ago, right after the World War II as a new government replacing fascism dictatorship and the previous monarchy.

There’s no better place for such a celebration like the Fori Imperiali, the road uniting the Colosseum and the Altare della Patria (the Altar of Nation). Eveyone was staring at the parade, the army itself was a symbol of Italy as dozens of traditional local police corps are now part of the national army. And as for icing on the cake, the final show of  every Republic Fest: the Frecce Tricolori (Tricolor Arrows)

The aerobatic jets pierced the sky, painting it as the Italian flag. So everyone wowing with their heads held up witnessed the most colorful sky Rome has ever had.


Please note that for the first time, the Colosseo opened its underground and parts of the third tier to the public. The underground is popular amongst kids for its stories of the gladiators and animals that were kept at the underground before the shows. Walks Inside Rome Team can include a visit to these parts of the Colosseo for an additional 50€ per group for the required reservation access. 

Got sport?

Rome is famous all over the world thanks to its monument and historical treasures. Actually, most of the physical activities the tourists are usually involved in are walking in the sunny streets, wowing in the museums' corridors and flexing their neck muscles up and down to stare at the taller buildings. But in Rome there is more going on when it comes to sport.

Soccer: being the national sport, you can't miss a soccer game at the Stadio Olimpico. There are 2 teams in Rome: Roma and Lazio, and of course their rivalry is neverending. If you want to try it yourself, just go at the park: it will be easy to find a bunch of people playing soccer on the grass anytime.

Run: running is healthy and relaxing. But it's even better when you can run by majestic monuments. In Rome you can. And if you don't want to wait for the Marathon, just set the alarm a bit early and go for a run by the Fori Imperiali.

Athletics: Rome has great athletics facitilites. And last week on the 26th during the athletic Golden Gala was a day of sport with international stars with a very special guest: the olympic champion Usain Bolt!

Ancient romans used to say "mens sana in corpore sano,",meaning "a healthy mind in a healthy body" and the city still sticks to this saying.

Rome runs for the cure..

Every year Rome turns pink. It's not because of the romantic twilights you can behold in late Spring. It's not because of the old fashioned buildings that takes you centuries back. This time Rome is pink because of the 12th edition of Race For The Cure, a great event that every year helps the research for breast cancer.

Houndreds of people gathered in the city center this weekend and applied for a fun run around the most important areas of Rome. Last Friday to Sunday you could see men, women, children and even a few dogs running at Piazza Venezia, rushing all the way thru the Forums heading to the Colosseum, and then Circo Massimo to the Caracalla Therms. All the fund raised are going to support our scientists in their own race. A very important run to find a cure for the most common cancer for the women.

Some people contributed with money, others took part in the race. Everyone ran with a smile and with the fullfilling feeling that the winner would anyway be the women's health.

Mamma Roma

Let's see, we had Mother's Day last Sunday and May which is the Mother Mary month. This is an opportunity to tell our moms how much we love them and also to remember that Rome is a mother itself! According to the myth, the twin Romulus and Remus were demigods born from the god of war Mars and a priestess.

Their mother's uncle ordered to kill the babies by throwing them in the Tiber river. There, a wolf found and raised them in its den by the Palatine hill...kinda like Mowgli from the Jungle Book! The children were breast-fed by the wolf and eventually Romulus founded the city of Rome, and became its first king.

No wonder the wolf is now the symbol of Rome. You can see many statues of the Capitoline Wolf, some of them as old as the city, the oldest being almost 2000 years old. The logo of Rome's soccer team is also a wolf head. Romans have a special link with this animal. They all feel like they're sons of Rome as well as the sons of a wolf. Quite an unusual mom to have, but as lovely as all the moms!

Visit the Capitoline hill with Walks Inside Rome to learn more about its fascinating history in the following tours:

• Ancient & Christian Rome
• Rome for Kids
• Underground Rome
• Classic Ancient Rome
• Small Group Ancient Rome

Sunday busy Sunday

Last Sunday has been a pretty busy one, due to the beatification of John Paul II and the Labor Day concert. Just as we expected in our previous post! Starting from Friday afternoon, pilgrims from all over the world gathered in Rome.

Saturday was a nice evening to walk the streets by Saint Peter to witness thousands of people arranging for the night. Yes, most of them slept outdoor, assisted by a huge organization of professionals and young volunteers helping the visitors with water and fresh fruits.

If Saturday night was one of a kind sight, Sunday was just crazy. Over 1.5 million people came to celebrate the former Pope John Paul II. One of the biggest event for the Catholic Church thus far!
Meanwhile, in Piazza San Giovanni, the traditional Labor Day concert took place. As every year, the first day of May is the opportunity for workers and students to get together and participate at this amazing festival.

Many famous Italian singers showed up on the stage, including Ennio Morricone and Gino Paoli. Good thing the audience was way lower than last year: "only" 500,000 people! This made a total of over 2 million people gathered in the center of Rome in less than 24 hours. Can you think about something more amazing?

Easter goes faster...

I hope you had a wonderful Easter spending great time with your relatives and friends! In Italy Easter is a double-sided celebration and you get to enjoy both sides of the fest.

On one hand, you have the religious event. On Friday the Pope walks with thousands of believers to commemorate the Via Crucis: the path Jesus Christ walked carrying the cross. Between blazing torches and psalms, the crowd arrives at the Colosseum and the Pope celebrates a special mass. On Sunday every church distributes small olive branches, which are a symbol for peace, and the Easter mass is celebrated.

On the other hand, you have the food & fun fest which are also grand. On Sunday you have a huge lunch that usually lasts until 8 or 9 PM. The traditional course is baked lamb and chocolate eggs for dessert! The Monday after Easter is called Pasquetta (Little Easter); it is also the bank holiday. We usually spend the day outdoors with friends: country, mountain or sea, every place is a nice place when you have good company, good food and a few bottles of delicious red wine!

How did you spend your Easter?