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Starting on Via Del Corso in the center of Rome, Italy. Be careful and use the traffic light signals. As you continue towards Trevi Fountain, two blocks further ahead to the most famous fountain in the world, built around 1750. Kind of based on earlier ideas from the Baroque period. And it's depicting the God of the ocean in the center and a triumphal arch around him. It represents the terminus fountain for an aqueduct aqueduct of the Virgin.
Continuing walking along in this central part of Rome, on over towards the Spanish steps and Piazza of the Spanish. Bursting with people all the time, attracted here by this special combination of wonderful urban elements. The setting is like another painting or postcard come to life with the curvaceous broad staircase, elevating your eyes to the Twin Tower Church of Trinity de Monte, and equally interesting sights in all other directions.
So you're looking at about 25 square blocks of shopping district -- you could say this is the shopping center of Rome. And not so much the historic center, but 18th century and 19th century buildings, and very much filled with beautiful shops, upscale as well as ordinary and nice restaurants as well, too. And then turning into some of these wonderful nearby shopping lanes, there's in particular the Via Della Croce.
The Altar of Peace is a major archeological site right near the Spanish steps. It has a striking exterior, a museum building that was designed by the American architect Richard Meier. It commemorates some important victories by the Emperor Augustus. This beautiful white marble structure consists of a series of lifesize reliefs sculptures all around the outside of it, celebrating peace and fertility, agriculture and the gods.
The Vatican Museum has become so popular that if you get there in mid-morning, it's too late. There'll be a long line and midday, mid-afternoon, it's pretty crowded. So the best bet is get there just before they open. This wonderful spiral staircase. Used to be the main entrance, but now nobody ever knows about it because it's tucked away on the side behind the post office. The Vatican Museum, most famous for the
contains thousands of other great treasures from ancient Rome and from the Middle Ages, right on up through the Renaissance.