Rome & Sicily Highlights

Baroque-en hearted? Revive your spirits with a walk past Rome's most beautiful and unusual Baroque fountains. At the foot of the Spanish Steps, elegant cafes once favored by visiting Brits and Americans surround the central fountain. The water pressure here was so low that the artist had to sink the fountain into the ground to get any water going through it, so he went ahead and designed the fountain to look like a sinking ship. There's no shortage of water pressure at the nearby Trevi Fountain, a Baroque extravagance designed by master sculptor Bernini. At the Pantheon you'll see the largest concrete dome ever constructed. An oculus, or hole, in the dome lets sunlight into the beautiful temple, dedicated to all the gods.

Don a state-of-the-art headset for a space-age tour of St. Peter’s Basilica with a licensed local guide. Outside the church, four rows of columns radiate out like welcoming arms (if you stand on the circles marked on the ground, the rows will line up and look like a single row); inside, the church seems enormous enough to embrace the entire world. The dome, partially designed by Michelangelo, rises 452 feet above the ground. Michelangelo’s mark is everywhere here, from the costumes worn by the Swiss Guards to his exquisite “Pietà” sculpture (the only sculpture he ever signed -- look for his name carved into the Madonna’s sash) to the amazing frescoes of the Sistine Chapel. Because he considered himself a sculptor and not a painter, Michelangelo hated working on these paintings, now considered masterpieces.

The ultimate symbol of ancient Rome, the Colosseum still dominates the modern city. Tour the amphitheater with your local licensed guide. Built by the emperor Vespasian in A.D. 72, the structure held almost 50,000 spectators but was so well organized that the entire place could be emptied within 15 minutes. Inside, the spectacles varied from gladiator battles to immense naval contests that required the flooding of the amphitheater to wild beast shows, in which thousands of exotic animals like giraffes and ostriches were popped into the stadium through trap doors and left to fight Roman hunters. See the system beneath the floor that operated the trap doors and housed the animals, then continue on to the relative calm of the Forum. Rome’s commercial, religious, and political center, the Forum held markets, temples, and the Senate House. Near the Rostra, or speaker’s platform, you can still see game boards scratched into the marble by bored politicians -- anyone up for a game of tic tac toe?

Explore the chaotic and vibrant capital of Sicily, where a mix of Italian, Arab, French, and Phoenician influences -- to name only a few -- has created a culture unique in all of Italy. Islamic filigreed windows throw intricate shadows on 17th-century Baroque cupolas; gold and marble mosaics sparkle in churches while leafy palm trees ruffle in ocean breezes outside. With a licensed local guide, start your tour of this energetic city at the Baroque Quattro Canti ("four corners"), Palermo's central intersection. Head to the Norman Palace, once home to the finest and most learned court in Europe. (Notice the halos on the statues -- they were added to the original Moorish statues when the Christian Normans arrived in 1072 and took over the building.) Step inside La Martorana, one of the few buildings remaining from the Middle Ages, for a peek at its glittering gold Byzantine mosaics. And don't miss the rows of pastry shops selling marzipan, a Sicilian specialty; the sweet almond-paste candy is sculpted and dyed to resemble realistic fruits, vegetables -- even shellfish!

Visit this 12th century cathedral, an impressive example of Norman architecture. Here you will find several royal tombs along with the ashes of Santa Rosalia, the patron saint of Palermo.

Twinkle, sparkle, shine. Watch light glitter and gleam off the golden mosaics covering the ceiling and walls of the Monreale cathedral, commissioned in 1172 by the Norman King William II. Images from the Old and New Testaments stretch along the church’s interior, depicting the stories of Noah’s ark, Adam and Eve, the Creation, Abraham and Isaac, and others. In the apse reigns Christ Pantocrator, an impressive Byzantine image of Christ as the stern ruler of the universe.

Sicily’s ancient military capital has grown into one of Italy’s most charming destinations. Its main square, on the connected island of Ortygia, combines the typical Sicilian mix of Greek, Arab, and Baroque -- the 17th-century cathedral facade is woven into the columns of an ancient temple and once served as a mosque. Syracuse’s ancient Greek theater and archaeological museum display the city’s past treasures, while “The Garden of Paradise,” a grove of citrus trees thriving on the site of an ancient quarry, reminds visitors to enjoy the city’s current splendors. But don't get too caught up in your rapture -- the nearby "Ear of Dionysius" cave, once a jail, was probably named for its S-curve shape, but its echoing acoustics led to rumors that the tyrant Dionysius could eavesdrop on anyone imprisoned there.

At 3,326 meters high, Mt. Etna is Southern Italy’s highest peak—and Europe’s largest active Volcano. Spend the afternoon climbing its slopes by bus to the Rifugio Sapienza, a site whose partially destroyed landscape (by a 2002 eruption) was filmed for George Lucas’ Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.

An earthly paradise. From the ancient Greek theater on a Taormina hilltop, your eye wanders over the violet outline of Mount Etna dominating the skyline, through the almond and lemon groves releasing the fragrance of blossoms and marzipan and lemonade, across bright fishing boats bobbing on the ocean's blue waves to the distant misty view of the Italian mainland hovering above the water. With a licensed local guide, explore the views and history that have enchanted so many, from the ancient Greeks to the Romans to the Moors to the Normans to the Spanish to Francis Ford Coppola, who filmed scenes for "The Godfather" nearby.

Stop to see the city where time stood still, literally. Once an important Roman city with 20,000 residents, Pompeii was frozen in time nearly 2000 years ago, when Mount Vesuvius erupted and buried the city under 30 feet of mud and volcanic ash. Forgotten for centuries after the eruption, Pompeii was discovered in the 1600s and is now completely excavated. On your tour you will learn how Romans of all classes lived their lives--not only from large public structures, but from details like political graffiti, bars, and street signs.