Rome: Where All Roads Lead - Italy - page 84

(Via di Monte Testaccio, 64; % 06-45447627; cover € 10 includes 1st drink) plays
hip-hop, R&B, and electronica. Jungle (Via di Monte Testaccio, 95; % 333-720-
8694; www.jungleclubroma.com; cover € 5 Fri, Sat until 11pm, then € 10 plus
annual membership of € 2) is Goth heaven, and one of the most popular clubs in
the city for vinyl (not the kind you listen to). Metaverso (Via di Monte Testaccio,
38A; % 06-5744712; www.metaverso.com; € 5 or more if live band) is the least
pretentious of all the clubs on this street. It brings in international DJs and offers
theme nights like reggae, '60s, and electronica.
The Big Mama (Vicolo San Francesco a Ripa, 18; % 06-5812551; www.big
mama.it) is the primary spot for live blues in Rome. Check the website for con-
certs and schedules. Booking is recommended if you want a table. Light dinner is
also available.

SIDE TRIPS FROM ROME
After a few days of trolling museums and breathing exhaust fumes, it's under-
standable that you'd want to change your perspective. Rome's comprehensive train
and bus networks make it easy to take a day or half-day trip to the hinterland.

VITERBO This is a classic fortified town where you can amble around with the
locals who live there and feel as if you're witnessing the village culture firsthand.
It was an important Etruscan enclave and was used in the 8th century by King
Desiderius as a base for carrying out the sacking of Rome. The center of the tiny
town is a walled medieval quarter on the southern edge. Highlights include the
16th-century Palazzo Communale, which still serves as the city's town hall. Walk
in and tour the building on your own; there is no ticket booth or information
desk. On the upper floors are frescoes and canvas paintings by Sebastiano del
Piombo and Bartolomeo Cavarozzi. Outside the city walls, visit the Gothic chapel
in the church of Santa Maria della Verità, made famous by a young boy named
Lorenzo di Viterbo, whose wall scribbles are some of the most detailed frescoes in
this part of Italy. You'll need a car to get to the natural sulphur springs, used by
Julius Caesar, that dot the countryside. Local Cotral buses (p. 20) from Rome to
Viterbo cost just €1. Trains (p. 16) cost €6.70 return trip.

TIVOLI One of the most enjoyable day trips from Rome is also one of the easiest.
Tivoli is just 36km (22 miles) from the city center, and easily accessible by Cotral
buses (p. 20). Once there, visit the Villa Adriana (Hadrian's Villa)

555 9

(Via
di Villa Adriana; % 0774 - 382733; adults € 6.50, seniors and students € 3.50;
Nov-Jan 9am-5pm, Feb until 6pm, Mar and Oct until 6:30pm, Apr and Sept until
7pm, May-Aug until 7:30pm). You get hard-to-find views of Rome, and you can
meander the expanse of ruins of what is believed to be the largest villa ever built
in ancient-Roman times. This is a relaxing site, one that you should explore slowly
and carefully. Inside the museum is a miniature replica of the villa, which is worth
locating first (after picking up a map at the ticket booth) so that you have a bet-
ter idea of what you are looking at. Also, be sure to check out the underground
tunnels, which were built to move supplies throughout the villa without obstruct-
ing the views and the columns and statues that surround the fountains. Hadrian
designed the rooms personally and incorporated influences of his vast travels.
Before you leave Tivoli, stop by the Villa d'Este (Piazza Trento, 1; % 0774-
312070; € 6.50 adults, € 3.50 seniors and students; Nov-Feb 9am-5:30pm, Mar