Rome was the capital of the known world two millennia ago and when you walk within its walls today it can still feel as if nothing has changed since then. That is if you are able to ignore the noise of the traffic and hoards of tourists that are in almost constant attendance.
I stayed in Rome for four days whilst inter-railing with a friend last summer and wish we could have stayed longer. We travelled on the overnight train from Nice to meet our girlfriends and as our rooms strangely weren't ready for us on our 6.30am arrival we found ourselves with a couple of hours to kill, just as the eternal city was waking up.
Although not much of a morning person I'd have to say it was the best time to catch the city. We managed to escape the heat of the day and once we got away from the Metro we had the streets to ourselves. We headed straight for the Coliseum and were awe struck. It was the only landmark we saw during our stay that wasn't surrounded by tourists and it added immensely to it's grandeur. As the Coliseum doesn't open before nine in the morning we could only appreciate it from the outside but I would still recommend an early hours visit to anyone seeking what feels like a private viewing.
From there we took a stroll down to the reasonably nearby market on the Via Sannio on the hunt for some bargain Italian designer wear. The market traders were very friendly and helpful and some also spoke fairly good English. Rome has some very good markets for the shopping fan but again during the summer I would recommend beating the crowds and the heat of the day by arriving early.
To describe every site worth seeing in Rome could take an age but suffice to say there is no excuse to be bored and every attempt should be made to cram the most into your visit.
Throwing a coin over your shoulder into the Trevi Fountain (or a passing tourists ice-cream) guarantees you a return visit to Rome. Sitting on the Spanish Steps is the perfect spot to watch the world go by beneath you. However if you try and eat something on the steps a quite scarily armed guard will tell you not to. Playing 'Guess How Old' at The Pantheon is always fun as its nearly two thousand years old and looks like it was built last month. Although recuperating with an espresso in the Piazza Navona is a good way to spend some valuable no-thinking time, be careful not to over do the caffeine. (I think I now know why the Italian language is spoken with so many manic hand gestures!)
Roman nightlife is relaxed and stretches out long into the night. Although there are night-clubs within the historic walls the preferred evening's entertainment is sitting outside a restaurant in one of the numerous beautiful piazzas with some good food and a nice bottle of wine. The fantastic food however often comes with prices to match and if you're not a fan of pasta and pizza well, its unlikely you'd be planning a trip to Rome anyway is it? Admittedly obvious advice but trying to avoid touristy areas can pay dividends when eating out and you also pay extra to sit down, so eating your Hawaiian at the bar is a cheaper although less relaxing alternative.
Rome for me is the definitive city break and well worth a long visit. Ideal for the inquisitive tourist or hardened sightseer where the only real drawback is the large numbers of other tourists. However with many flights available regularly under £100 return I strongly recommend you go and join them.
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