Destinaton Rome, bella Italia, bella.
The St. Regis Grand.
Contributed by Jens Hoffmann.
Ti amo Roma. Truly old Europe, golden mosaics, magnificent frescoes and sculptures.
The different neighborhoods with a unique feel, fine architecture and the art, but mostly by the golden mosaics in the apse. Sta. Prassede and San Clemente are also not to be missed for mosaics, frescoes and of course the 3 levels at San Clemente.
We visited the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s and enjoyed art history, especially the late medieval at the heart of Rome.
Here we found the St. Regis Grand a fine, street style and luxury combined in a hotel.
In the center of the gorgeous city every detail is legendary. The lobby glows, perfect design and style.
In Italy it is not unusual in Italy to find an elegant hotel, but The St. Regis Grand (bulid in 1894) is equally rich in the design of its rooms and suites and style.
From outside typical italian, from inside highly extravagant. Bold, creative combinations of colours and materials.
The location is our start for a stroll to the “The Colosseum”, a monument of epic proportions. Here you will find the stories of glory battles between gladiators, slaves, prisoners and wild animals.
The amphitheatre was once a arena with a seating capacity of over 50,000 people.
For foodies, my tip:
Easy to find marvelous Roman food, whether we ate pizza at a small trattoria or indescribably delicious paparradelle with wild ragu. Pigneto in Rome’s new buzz-district. With its narrow streets and characterful low-rise houses, it is laid-back but rough-edged. In the past few years a cluster of new bars and restaurants has sprung up here. Some are more style than substance, but Primo – a large, comfortable restaurant with warehouse-chic decor – takes the wine-and-food part of its mandate seriously.
A team of waiters serve up dishes with a slow-food bias: a soup of black cabbage, baked anchovies with saucepan-tossed artichokes; seared tuna with friggitelli (a small, local variety of green pepper) and basil. Desserts are nice, the semifreddo alla vaniglia with caramelised prickly pears and balsamic vinegar is a knockout.
The decent wine list is arranged, unusually, in alphabetical order rather than region – so it helps if you already know your producers.
Where: Via del Pigneto 46, Rome
Fun to catch up with historical facts on popes who built the churches.
Rome, sempre bella.
