As North Americans - we have accidentally stumbled upon an important day in Italy. Luckily - we picked the perfect day to escape the city's street closures and military parades for our journey outside the city to the town of Tivoli.
Tivoli is home to Hadrian's Villa (similar to Versailles outside of Paris) and the more modern Villa d'Este. Our docent Diane Archibald from Context Travel and driver met us in the IQhotel lobby. We decided the extra expense was necessary to streamline the day in Tivoli which is located about 1 hour outside of Rome.
Hadrian - a self proclaimed architect - created an incredible city villa outside of Rome (118 -134 AD). I can only imagine the problems created by over 1 million people living in Rome during those times - I'd escape also!
Hadrian's design would please almost every contemporary 'green' urban planner today. His city villa did not have streets (well, at least above ground as passages were all below ground). His palaces (summer and winter) were designed using the natural landscape and features.
Villa D'Este (1509 to 1572) provides a modern (well, kind of) example of Hadrian's city villa. This place is simply outrageous. It provides us a glimpse into how the other Roman ruins would be - when brought to life. These rulers lived in grand style - no doubt about it.
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