A different tour of Rome. Civis Romanus sum

The isola Tiberina (island of the Tevere, the river of Rome) is situated in the old town centre. A legend tells that this island derives from a rebellion of Rome. Infact when the ancient romans sent away their king Tarquinio the presumptuous, his assests were chucked in the stream. After a pair of years the mud accumulate itself on those, creating the island. Another story of its creation narrates that this once was a warship sinked here. If you take a look to the picture you can see that it is similar to a vessel; moreover in the island there is an obelisk located to be something like a sailboat. But this island is also been known as a place to cure ills. That is because once in Rome, in the 293 b. C., there was the plague; so to remove it, came a boat from Epidauro (in Greece) bringing the snake of Esculapius (the god of the health and medicine: the snake was his hloy animal). When this arrived in Rome the snake escaped from the vessel and put itself in the island waiting here for a while and then suddely disappearing. Romans took this event as a volunty of the god to stay here, so they constructed a temple for this divinity: a part of this is probably in the church of S. Bartolomeo. This building "de insula" infact(on the island), developed in the X century, has the well and some column of the ancient temple of Esculapio. About the church on the pediment there is written: "IN HAC BASILICA REQUIESCIT CORPUS S.BARTHOLOMAEI APOSTOLI" (In this basilica there is the body of the apostle S. Bartolomeo). A last thing: in this area there are today two hospitals, one of them was constructed form friars. A lot of people tells that here they saw a procession of hooded men walking and suddenly disappearing: someone thinks they are friars, but most probably they were members of a secret society that were buried here. For more, post me. Dblk

On the wall face of the palace on Via del Corso, there is placed the Fontana of the Facchino (fountain of the porter): fed from the Vergine Water, originally fixed on a house in public square of the Crociferi and finally transfered on via Lata in 1874, on the flank of the afore-mentioned palace. It is a work of Jacopino of the Conte, constructed around to 1580 for assignment of the Corporation of the Water carriers. Who is the carved man? There are a lot of stories about it, but I can say that 3 of those are most probably. Number 1: the statue is Abbondio Rizio, porter, lover of the wine, as once written on an epigraph by the priest Godard. In this epigraph Godard said that he was crowned on the pubblic square and he died after a lot of years of work (the latin quote "in publicis stillicidiis coronato", means that he was crowned in the street: that's because it was a tradition, infact olders persons were usual to drag their heirs to show anyone that those were their wishes). Number 2: he is M. Antonio De Dominicis, a nosey Jesuit imprisoned from Pope Paul VI in Castel Sant'Angelo, who poisoned himself. Number 3 (a famous legend): he was a host who gained a lot of money mixing the wine with water. But when he died and appeared in front of Saint Peter to be judged, he had a surprise: infact the Saint told him that to join the Heaven, he must give back what he stolen: so, to do it, he had to pour all the water he poured in wine when he was alive. He is still sloshing. For more, post me. Dblk

The Lapis Niger is one of the most baneful place in Rome. What is the Lapis Niger? The discovery of it was in the XIX century: archaeologists immediately thought to a poem written by Festo. A quote of this poem told about a black stone near the Comizio (lapis niger in Comizio) considered as a baneful place because it was probably the tomb of Romolo (the first King of Rome) or because it was the place in which he were murdered. Other excavations found out that under this place there was an altar and a part of a colomn or a pedestal. On this pedestal (or colomn) there are written words in a language that is similar to an ancient greek, used before the VI century b.C. (so before the republican age). This epigraph it's hard to be translated, but it tells that this was a holy place and it threatened thieves with terribles punishmets and curses. The presence of an altar an a statue may indicate that it was temple (but it could be a tomb too). Today in Rome we say that this stone "porta jella" (it takes bad luck), so don't touch it. If you want more information, post me. Dblk

One the more interesting churches of Rome is surely Sant' Alessio on the Aventino. The memory of this roman saint has been officially cancelled from the calendar of the Church, but the memory of his saints actions keeped the cult alive through centuries: his history was drawed on the wall of the basilica of Saint Clemente, sung from cantors, put in poems from poets and in the 1634 became an opera of Stefano Lando. The legend begins from a lacked wedding: Alessio, lived in V the century, son of the senator Eufemiano and Aglae, in the day of his wedding with a rich roman girl he decided that it wasn't what he really wanted. After an explanatory talk with the future spouse, he left the beautiful parental home; dressed with only a poor robe, he started to travel. He arrived in Palestine where he lived of hand out. Then, after a lot of years, he decided to return in Rome. He knocked to the parental home, but - for the long beard and moreover he was older - he does not been recognized. Believing him a pilgrim, they offered him to lodge in a under the stairs of the palace. Here he lived seventeen years, nourishing himselves with the paternal charity and drinking the water of the close well (still today in full efficiency in the courtyard of the church). His true identity was revealed from a letter to the father, only when Alessio died. The Pope and the emperor saw in him "a man of God" and venereted him. The story tells that the bells of Rome, without any human touch, started to play itself and that in the palace there were wonderful fragances. The stairs, that were the roof of the saint for long years, it is keeped in a big glass reliquary in the church. In the roman tradition, Alessio is the Saint that tells the numbers to play to the lottery. In order to obtain the numbers, who addresses to Alessio must pray nine days and be awake on the house stairs, in memory of the mortification chosen from the saint. For more, post me. Dblk

Near Colle degli Ortuli, in Rome, there was the real tomb of Nero (but it isn't sure). The insane emperor, who killed himself, was buried here from his nurses, and upon the ground of the tomb was planted a walnut tree. Acients chronicles tells that the place was elected from demons as special place for their assembly. Later also the famous witches of Rome decide to have their congress here under this walnut (meanwhile this tree became unbelievably big). 1000 years later the Pope Pasquale II decided to do something to stop them: in the 1099, after having dreamed the Mother of Jesus he ordered to dispel ashes of the emperor in the Tevere and to build a church on the ground that once was the tomb of Nero. The tree was slashed and here there was built the church of Santa Maria del Popolo. For more information, post me. Dblk