Santa Sabina is one of my favorites, and not only because the name is so similar to mine!

The church itself is beautiful and just to touch a little bit on the history of the church; it was built in the fifth century to honor Saint Sabina and was ordered by the Priest Peter D’Illiria (which is also the name of the street), and her relics are found here and it is said that they protect the church. The church inside is quite big and the art inside is simple yet beautiful.

While up here, since it lies on a hill, you get a chance to overlook the city of Rome from the Church park. The view is amazing you get to see the dome of St. Peter and the surrounding areas near the Vatican-this view has a relaxing effect…at least on me it does, especially in the evenings and you see Rome all lit up!

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Santa Sabina | Art & culture | Free
Piazza Pietro d’Illiria | Appio Tuscolano | +390669886235
Daily

Monello Accessories is a tiny shop in the Appia area and it is easily reached by the subway at the Furio Camillo stop. I stumbled upon this store with a friend and as soon as I saw the items they had in the exposition window, I immediately fell in love with it.

The prices of the store are competitive especially since they are not in a too touristy side of the city. The store is very unique and has a lot of different accessories; in particular with the colors that are in fashion now the purple and the pinks but of course you will find classic colors such as black and beige.

My friend bought herself a cool black and white ring, and I went a few days later again and I got a small speedy purse and purple dangling earrings with less than 20 Euros! And I got a lot of compliments on the earrings too.

This is definitely a cute little store to go visit.

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Monello Accessories | Shopping | Dangling earrings € 5.50
via Appia Nuova 444 | Appio Tuscolano
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00

I had never been to this park until recently. I had seen some of the aqueducts from the train when going South, but I never knew it was a park. Technically, the Parco degli Acquedotti is part of the Parco Regionale dell’Appia Antica but it isn’t all that immediate to think of it in that way since it is a bit removed and sandwiched in between Via Appia Nuova and Via Tuscolana. Anyway, its peculiarity -as its name suggests- are the numerous ruins of the various Roman aqueducts and these are simply breathtaking.

A stroll in this park, in addition to being extremely pleasant, can be the best way to rapidly review the last 2000 years of this city, almost a trip through time which will take you from the glory of the first years of the Roman Empire to the recent years of a neighborhood in the peripheries.

So, as one admires the ruins of the Aqueduct Claudio (52 AD), restored by Pope Hadrian I (776 AD), pillaged to obtain building material in the 15th century, one may happen to run into a pile of rocks with some flowers which may have been placed there by some dog-owner to commemorate some dog his pet (2006), or a flock of small parrots which have claimed this unusual habitat for them (2008).

Amongst old hamlets, ruins, meadows, flowers, common and less common people, relax and meditate on the interpretation of time, history and human nature that this park can inspire.

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The Acqueducts | Art & culture, Relaxing
Via Lemonia | Appio Tuscolano | +39065135314
Sunrise – sunset daily

The city of Rome isn’t bike-friendly yet but luckily some of its parks are. One of these parks is the Parco Regionale dell’Appia Antica and, every once in a while, on Sundays, when it shuts down to traffic, I like to ride my bike there.

It has some excellent bike-routes which will allow you to get some good exercise while admiring beautiful sites of historical and artistic interest. You can choose to ride along the ‘queen of all roads’ the Appian Way, or along one of the different trails in the greener and wilder sections of the park, such as the Caffarella Valley or the Tormarancia estate.

On the Appia Antica, I think the most striking part is really the actual road –the cobblestones. They are simply amazing and beautiful. I also like the milestones. Here you really appreciate –physically understand- the true meaning of a milestone. If you choose one of the other trails, you will find yourself immersed in nature just at a stone’s throw from the city. In fact, you can watch the line where the buildings of the city stop and the green protected area begins.

Unlike Villa Borghese or Villa Pamphilj which are comely due to their aristocratic origin, the Caffarella and Tormarancia sections make this one of the more ‘natural’ parks of Rome. Here, you will find meadows, bushes, hills, ditches, hamlets, caves, a fully functional farmhouse, sheep, a river and springs –all interspersed with Roman ruins. Now, this is truly a bike ride!

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Parco Regionale | Art & culture, Relaxing | Bike for a day € 10.00
Via Appia Antica 42 | Appio Tuscolano | +39065135314
Park:sunrise – sunset daily | Bike rental: Sun & holidays 09:30 – 17:30

I stumbled across this piazza unexpectedly a few years ago. I was on my motorino, on the way to somewhere else and, all of sudden, among the tight-knit housing buildings, space opens up to a large square and an enormous church.

I stop and take a look at this entirely new environment no one has ever told me about, after over three decades of being a Roman. The piazza is something of a déjà-vu. Its whole ‘feng shui’ is influenced by the colossal presence of the church, with Fascist-era looking buildings all around, cold and a bit gloomy.

All this, however, contrasts with the vitality of the gardens at the center: there are elderly people chatting on lawn chairs, mothers pushing strollers and kids playing football completely oblivious to their surroundings. I like this piazza and I recommend it.

Obviously, there are tons of churches and piazzas in Rome and most are of greater historical and artistic significance than Piazza Don Bosco and its church.

However, this is a good place to visit if you’d like a taste of life in the peripheries of Rome. Take a stroll here and sit on the park benches. A note on the area: this neighborhood sprung up with the creation of the Cinecittà Film Studios and the Don Bosco Church right after WWII.

The church was inaugurated in 1957. Fellini used this piazza as the setting for some scenes of La Dolce Vita since it was close to the studios and resembled the Rome’s EUR neighborhood.

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Piazza Don Bosco | Art & culture, Relaxing | Free
Piazza Don Bosco | Appio Tuscolano
Optimal time to visit: afternoon