Tivoli Tourist Attractions: 10 Top Places to Visit
Planning to visit Tivoli? Check out our Tivoli Travel Guide video and see top most Tourist Attractions in Tivoli.
Top Places to visit in Tivoli:
Villa d'Este, Parco Villa Gregoriana, Villa Adriana, Tempio della Sibilla, Chiesa di San Francesco, Cattedrale di San Lorenzo, Rocca Pia, Chiesa di San Silvestro, San Pietro alla Carita, Arco dei Padri Costituenti
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Places to see in ( Alcamo - Italy )
Places to see in ( Alcamo - Italy )
Alcamo is the fourth-largest town in the province of Trapani in Sicily, with a population of 45,307 inhabitants. It is on the borderline with the Metropolitan City of Palermo at a distance of about 50 kilometres from Palermo and Trapani. Nowadays the town territory includes an area of 130.79 square kilometres and is the second municipality as for population density in the province of Trapani, after Erice.
Alcamo is bounded by the Tyrrhenian Sea on the north, Balestrate and Partinico on the east, Camporeale on the south and Calatafimi-Segesta and Castellammare del Golfo on the west. Its most important hamlet is Alcamo Marina at about 6 kilometres from the town centre. Together with other municipalities it takes part in the Associazione Città del Vino, the movement Patto dei Sindaci, Progetto Città dei Bambini, Rete dei Comuni Solidali and Patto Territoriale Golfo di Castellammare.
Alcamo is situated in the middle of the Gulf of Castellammare, at 258 metres above the sea level and at the foot of Mount Bonifato, a calcareous complex 825 metres high. At the altitude of 500 metres (near the Funtanazza) there is the Nature Reserve of Monte Bonifato. The territory of Alcamo includes also Alcamo Marina, mainly used as a summer resort.
There are several historical civil and religious buildings in Alcamo:
House of Ciullo d'Alcamo
Palazzo De Ballis
Ex Loggia Comunale (1500)
Palazzo Aversa
Palazzo D'Angelo
Palazzo De Stefani
Palazzo Diana (or Termine)
Palazzo Di Gregorio
Palazzo Ferrando-Mistretta
Palazzo Ferrara
Palazzo Fraccia
Palazzo Guarrasi
Palazzo Mistretta Galati
Palazzo Morfino
Palazzo Palmerini
Palazzo Pastore (Alcamo)
Palazzo Patti
Palazzo Peria
Palazzo Pia Opera Pastore
Battista Palazzotto
Palazzo Polizzi
Palazzo Quattrocchi
Palazzo Rocca
Palazzo Rossotti-Chiarelli (in via Rossotti)
Palazzo Speciale
Palazzo Triolo
Palazzo Velez
Palazzo Virgilio
Town Hall (in Piazza Ciullo)
The Church of our Lady of the Star (Chiesa di Santa Maria della Stella)
Ex Church of Saint James of the Sword (Ex Chiesa di San Giacomo de Spada)
Church of Saint Thomas (Chiesa di San Tommaso)
Church of saint Maria del Soccorso
Among the areas of naturalistic interest near Alcamo there are the beaches of Alcamo Marina, the Nature Reserve Bosco di Alcamo on Mount Bonifato and the Segestan thermal baths. The hot springs are produced by the reclimbing of water of meteoric origin which meets the water of Fiume Caldo. They are seven kilometres far from Alcamo and next to the boundary with the territory of Castellammare del Golfo, a small town which shares this naturalistic attraction with Alcamo. According to the narration given by Diodorus Siculus, they were created by the nymphs to favour Eracle's rest during his trip from Piloro to Erice.
The surrounding areas include interesting touristic and historical locations like Segesta and Gibellina. The old fishing village of Scopello, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Alcamo, has been referred to as having a remarkable seaside. Another small town considered worth visiting is Castellammare del Golfo which is between these two places.
( Alcamo - Italy ) is well know as a tourist destination because of the variety of places you can enjoy while you are visiting Alcamo . Through a series of videos we will try to show you recommended places to visit in Alcamo - Italy
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Fountain at Villa d'Este in Tivoli - Saverio Pepe
Villa d'Este: A Triumph of the Baroque
The magnificent Villa d'Este in Tivoli is one of Italy's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Just a brief train ride from Rome, Villa d'Este was originally commissioned by Cardinal Ippolito II d’Este (Governor of Tivoli in 1550). The Cardinal, disappointed that he was not elected pontiff, wished to bring to Villa d’Este the luxury of the Ferrarese, Roman and French Courts and, above all, to match the luxury found in Hadrian's Villa. Tivoli, Villa d'Este, Fontana dell'Ovato
Villa d'Este's concentration of fountains and grottoes represented a model emulated in gardens throughout Europe, specifically those done in the Mannerist and Baroque styles. The most noteworthy garden in this regard is that of the Royal Palace of Caserta, near Naples.
Of particular interest are the rooms on the piano nobile – nobles' floor – decorated and painted by a large group of Roman artists of the late Mannerist school, among the most famous of whom were Livio Agresti and Federico Zuccari.
What stands out most at the Villa is, of course, the marvelous garden, conceived by the painter and architect Pirro Ligorio, and constructed and landscaped by the Court architect Alberto Galvani with the help of countless artists and artisans.
After its most splendid period, the Villa fell into a state of abandon sometime between the 18th and 19th Centuries; it was only around the 1850s that, thanks to a masterly restoration, the Villa returned to its original glory. From that point, several important artists were guests at the Villa, including the musician Franz Liszt, who composed Water Games at Villa d'Este, and held one of his last concerts there (1877 and 1879, respectively).
Restoration works and maintenance have continued up until the present day, and Villa d’Este and its garden are some of the most visited sites today.
Defined by terraces, staircases, and grand slopes and promenades, the garden evokes the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, while the water transport system, with an aqueduct and a tunnel under the city, resembles the highly-advanced engineering of the Romans.
The 100 Fountains lining the longest promenade also make a strong impact on the scenography, and no doubt contributed to the gardens’ turns as the background for several films – such as the banquet scene in William Wyler’s Ben Hur.
To the left of the promenade is the Fontana dell’Ovato, the most Baroque fountain here, endowed with the extraordinary visual effect produced its rocks, massive ornamentation and the streams of water representing the three Rivers flowing from the Tiburtine Hills: the Aniene, Erculaneo and Albuneo. In Antiquity, water from the Aniene flowed to the fountain, transported via canal.
Looking from the villa, one can see the Grotta di Diana (Diana’s Cave) on the left, elaborately decorated on the exterior. Originally, statues were kept on the interior, including one of Diana the Huntress, but they were later acquired by Pope Benedict XIV, who had them transferred to the Capitoline Museums in Rome.
Below the three-level promenade of the 100 Fountains is the Fountain of the Dragons, that, due to its central position, is in the heart of the garden.
Legend holds that the fountain was completed in only one night, in September, 1572, as an homage to Pope Gregory (Boncompagni) XIII, who was a guest at the Villa and whose family crest contained winged dragons.
In the lower part of the garden resides the Rotonda dei Cipressi, a rounded piazza with giant, centuries-old cypress trees.
Finally, the most impressive and imposing fountain is Fountain of Neptune, realized by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (later restored in the 20th Century).
The fountain's beauty made it a prime example that was copied by numerous artists and architects during the 1700s.
Below it, three small, reflective fishing ponds complete the scenery already blessed by the Neptune, while above stands the Fontana dell'Organo, named for a mechanism inside the fountain that, by means of water, creates notes similar to that of an organ – this effect can still be heard by visitors today.