-Hey, I'm Rick Steves in a city I've been visiting all my life, and this city was, for centuries, the capital of the greatest empire the world has ever seen.

Thanks for joining us for the historic, artistic, and tasty "Best of Rome."

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ Rome is huge, complex and in so many ways, the foundation of Western civilization.

We've been filming here for decades, and unlike us, the allure of this city never gets old.

Conquering the Eternal City in one hour, we'll see the biggies from the Colosseum and the Pantheon to St.

Peter's Basilica and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.

We'll enjoy a bike ride on ancient cobbles and dramatic ruins without crowds.

We'll meet the greats, from Michelangelo and Raphael to Bernini and Caravaggio, we'll see ancient life and today's life.

Then we'll join pilgrims in a timeless ritual... -Buongiorno.

-...and nibble tasty treats at a classic market.

-And now the best part, let's make bruschetta.

-Look at that.

We'll feast like a Roman, of course, and twinkle with the city after dark.

Today's city, straddling the Tiber River, sits on the foundation of a 2,000-year-old capital of a million people.

So let's start from the very beginning.

In a nutshell, classical Rome lasted about a thousand years.

Roughly 500 B.C.

to 500 A.D.

Rome grew for 500 years, peaked for 200 years, and fell for 300 years.

The first half was the Republic, ruled by elected senators.

The last half was the empire, ruled by unelected emperors.

Back in its glory days, the word "Rome" meant not just the city, but what Romans considered the entire civilized world.

Everyone was either Roman or barbarian.

People who spoke Latin or Greek were considered civilized, part of the empire.

Everyone else...barbarian.

According to legend, Rome was founded by two brothers, Romulus and Remus.

Abandoned in the wild and then suckled by a she-wolf, they grew up to establish the city.

In actuality, the first Romans mixed and mingled here in the valley between the famous Seven Hills of Rome.

And five centuries before Christ, this became the Roman Forum.

In 509, they tossed out their king and established the relatively democratic Roman Republic.

That began perhaps history's greatest success story -- the rise of Rome.

From the start, Romans were expert builders with a knack for effective government.

This simple brick building, once richly veneered with marble, was the Senate House, or Curia.

Esteemed senators gathered here and helped establish the basic principles of what would shape Western government.

The reign of Julius Caesar, who ruled around the time of Christ, marked the turning point between the Republic and the empire.

The Republic, designed to rule a small city-state, found itself trying to rule most of Europe.

Something new and stronger was needed.

Caesar established a no-nonsense, more disciplined government, became dictator for life, and for good measure, had a month named in his honor -- July.

Eventually, the Forum became the economic and political capital of a vast empire -- the Wall Street, Fifth Avenue, and capital city combined.

And being here today is a thrill as we walk in the footsteps of the proud people who made it happen.

The Via Sacra, or Sacred Way, was the main street of ancient Rome.

It stretched from the Arch of Titus, past the Arch of Septimius Severus to Rome's leading temple dedicated to the god Saturn.

Rome's various triumphal arches, named after the emperors who built them, were great PR -- propaganda.

Their reliefs celebrate how war and expansion were the business of state, and how Rome's thriving economy was fueled by plunder and slaves won in distant lands.

Recent excavations reveal new dimensions of this amazing urban center.

The house of Tiberius was part of the emperor's massive palace.

Walking under its towering vaults, you appreciate both the genius of Roman engineering and the enormity of its emperors' egos.

As the Roman Empire fell, this secular space was given new life as a Christian church with surviving frescoes from the seventh century.

It's a vivid example of how rapidly the new order succeeded the old.

These frescoes coming to life after being buried and forgotten for over a thousand years, humanize that society and are a reminder of how the excavation of Rome is ongoing.

More ancient secrets are being unearthed right in the middle of everyday Rome.

Here, at Largo Argentina, visitors wander through ancient rubble and history, marveling at the remains of some of Rome's oldest temples and how not far from here, on the Ides of March, 44 B.C., Julius Caesar was assassinated.

All the while, just above, today's Romans dodge traffic and go about their daily lives.

The Capitoline Hill, which rises majestically from the busy streets, has, since the Middle Ages, been the home of Rome's city government.

During the Renaissance, Michelangelo designed this regal staircase.

He gave the square its famously harmonious proportions with this dramatic centerpiece -- a statue of Emperor Marcus Aurelius.

This is a copy.

The second-century original, considered the greatest equestrian statue of antiquity, is now showcased in the adjacent Capitoline Museum.

Art like this, safely out of the elements and beautifully displayed indoors, helps you imagine life in Rome at its peak.

These reliefs show Marcus Aurelius performing the various duties of an emperor.

Here, as the chief priest, or pontifex maximus, he prepares an offering to Jupiter.

Here, on the battlefield, he graciously pardons barbarian leaders.

And here, you're curbside at a kind of ticker-tape victory parade with the emperor on a chariot, Winged Victory on his shoulder, and trumpets proclaiming his glory.

The art of imperial Rome almost always carried a message, like this poignant reminder of victory over a worthy foe, a tragically wounded barbarian called the "Dying Gaul."

Like so much propaganda art, battle scenes stoked imperial pride.

Wandering among heroic statues and grand halls, you can look into the eyes of long-forgotten emperors.

And the museum also shows a more peaceful and intimate side of Roman life.

Here a boy quietly pulls a thorn from his foot.

At first glance, this looks like a painting, but it's actually a micro-mosaic, made of thousands of tiny chips.

Mosaics like this decorated Emperor Hadrian's luxurious villa.

And this tipsy faun is a playful reminder that a trait of ancient Rome that survives to this day is a love of good food and fine wine.

And speaking of that, part of your Roman experience should be dining well.

No matter your budget, a memorable meal is always on the menu for the discerning traveler.

I've found it in eateries ranging from the humble neighborhood trattoria to a family-style feast al fresco.

And tonight, we've settled in to a favorite restaurant with some longtime friends for a celebration of our favorite Roman restaurant moments.

My goal -- to favor regional specialties, to eat with the season, and to dine surrounded by Romans.

First up, my favorite course, the antipasti.

Its diversity of choices makes it great for sharing family style.

We're starting with a selection of local salami.

-That's a mix of salami.

-And the regional specialty -- pecorino cheese.

-All pecorino cheese.

But it's different aged and different region.

-I love a cheese board.

-And then some seasonal favorites of fried zucchini flowers and grilled artichoke hearts.

I'm starting to learn you just -- when in Rome, have an artichoke.

The next course is the primi piatti, which typically means pasta.

And Rome has four classics -- cacio e pepe, amatriciana, gricia... -Nice.

-...and carbonara.

-With black truffle.

-And lucky for us, truffles are in season, too.

Thank you.

Grazie.

-Prego.

-With just three or four ingredients each, it's all very simple and very Roman.

-Oh, I like that.

-I often fill up on the first two courses, skip the main course, or secondi, and go straight to the dolce, or dessert.

The Italian word for four spoons -- quattro cucchiai.

-Yeah.

Oh, that's good.

-Sorry.

It tastes even better than it looks.

The iconic example of ancient Roman engineering is the Colosseum.

It was, and still is, colossal.

It was begun in 72 A.D.

during the reign of Emperor Vespasian, when the empire was nearing its peak.

Stepping inside, you can almost hear the roar of ancient Rome.

[ Crowd roaring ] Take a moment to imagine the place in action.

Romans filled and emptied the Colosseum's 50,000 seats as quickly and efficiently as we do our super-stadiums today.

Canvas awnings were hoisted over the stadium for shade.

These passageways underneath the arena were covered by a wooden floor.

Between acts, animals and gladiators were shuffled around out of sight.

Ancient Romans, whose taste for violence exceeded even modern America's, came to the Colosseum for thrills.

Gladiators, criminals and wild animals fought, providing the public with a festival of gore.

For the Colosseum's grand opening, Romans were treated to the slaughter of 5,000 animals.

By the way, increasingly, must-see sights in a city like Rome can be absolutely mobbed by tourists, but there are often less famous and nearly as rewarding options nearby.

For example, you could marvel at just the exterior of the Colosseum and then be wowed by an easier and less crowded alternative nearby, like the Baths of Caracalla.

The ruins of this massive public-bath complex are never crowded and offer a great opportunity to appreciate Roman grandeur and engineering in delightful tranquility.

Public baths were a big deal in ancient Rome.

For 300 years, this was a sprawling fitness club and social center, complete with a variety of pools, saunas and cold plunges, like this Olympic-size pool where Romans of different classes mingled and relaxed in its inviting waters.

Inaugurated by Emperor Caracalla around the year 200, the place was massive.

Supplied by its own branch of an aqueduct, the baths could accommodate 1,600 visitors at a time.

It was also a chance to enjoy gardens, libraries, and cultural events.

Imagine how the brick walls, once veneered with fine marble, supported huge vaulted ceilings overhead.

With delightful mosaic floors and hundreds of statues in niches surrounding the common person with imperial luxury, this was a place for healthy living and socializing.

There was a parallel world under all this splendor.

Imagine a zone of darkness, heat, and suffering where an army of slaves stoked furnaces.

They burned 10 tons of wood a day to heat the water, all for the bathing pleasure of the people of Rome.

Okay, now that you've enjoyed your bath and had a nice massage, you might stroll through the various forums, each named for a different emperor and encouraged by his propaganda -- be thankful for the man who ruled you.

Overlooking Trajan's Forum, this column trumpets the glories of Emperor Trajan, who ruled Rome in its heyday.

This is a textbook example of continuous narration, like a 200-yard-long scroll.

It winds all the way to the top.

The purpose -- more PR, telling the story of yet another military victory.

Trajan extended the boundaries of the Empire to its greatest size -- from the Nile to the north of Britain.

Controlling its entire coastline, Romans called the Mediterranean simply Mare Nostrum, "Our Sea."

As visitors, it's our challenge to appreciate the grandeur of this incredible city built on the scale of giants.

For instance, when Rome went to the races, it came here -- the immense Circus Maximus.

Imagine a quarter of a million Romans cheering on careening chariots.

And overlooking it all, the Palatine Hill, filled with towering palaces.

And a visit to the National Museum at the Palazzo Massimo helps humanize the empire.

While ancient Rome's architecture was monumental, its citizens were just people like you and me without electricity.

These frescoes -- a rare surviving example of Roman painting -- bring color to our image of daily life back then.

Romans like to think of themselves as somehow living parallel with the gods.

These domestic scenes come with a twist of mythology.

And this painted garden, wallpapering a Roman villa, showed an appreciation for nature while creating an atmosphere of serenity.

Admiring the artifacts of Rome's elite, from exquisite jewelry to this delicate golden hair net, we can only marvel at "lifestyles of the rich and Roman.

Many aspects of ancient life are represented with vivid realism.

This boxer is a picture of exhaustion with a roughed-up face and tired hands, complete with brass knuckles.

The museum's collection tells the empire's story through art.

Caesar Augustus was the nephew of Julius Caesar and the first great emperor of the Pax Romana -- that two-century-long period of relative peace and stability that marked the peak of the empire.

Looking into the eyes of the man who called himself "the first among equals," you get the feeling that the ship of state was in good hands.

The magnificent Pantheon is the best-preserved building from ancient Rome.

The portico, with its stately pediment, has symbolized Roman greatness ever since antiquity.

Its massive one-piece granite columns were shipped all the way from Egypt.

They're huge.

It takes four tourists to hug one.

Step inside to enjoy the finest look anywhere at the splendor of ancient Rome at its zenith.

Its dimensions are classic, based on a perfect circle.

It's as wide as it is tall, 140 feet, and beautifully lit from above by its oculus.

The beauty of the Pantheon and the brilliance of its construction has inspired architects through the ages.

Pantheon means "all gods."

It was thought to be a kind of spiritual menagerie where the many gods of the empire were worshiped.

The building is as awe-inspiring today as it was back then.

The Pantheon survived so well because it's been in continuous use for over 2,000 years.

It went almost directly from pagan times to being a Christian church.

A reminder that for its last century, ancient Rome was Christian.

For a fascinating glimpse of that early Christian history, we're heading outside the city for a look at the catacombs.

Rome's ancient walls stretched 12 miles.

It fortified the city for centuries.

From gates like this, grand roads fanned out to connect the city with its empire.

The Appian Way, Rome's gateway to the East, is fun to explore on a rented bike.

It was the grandest and fastest road yet -- the wonder of its day.

Very straight, as Roman engineers were fond of designing, it stretched 300 miles past Naples and on to Brindisi, from where Roman ships sailed to Greece and Egypt.

These are the original stones.

Tombs of ancient big shots lined the Appian Way like billboards.

While pagans didn't enjoy the promise of salvation, those who could afford it purchased a kind of immortality by building themselves big and glitzy memorials.

These lined the main roads out of town.

But, of course, early Christians didn't have that kind of money, so they buried their dead in mass underground necropoli, or catacombs, dug beneath the property of the few fellow Christians who did own land.

These catacombs are scattered all around the city, just outside the walls, and several are open to the public.

Descending, you enter an ancient and sacred world.

The tomb-lined tunnels of the catacombs stretch for miles and they're many layers deep.

The countless niches were considered only resting places where the dead awaited their day of resurrection.

Tombs were sealed by clay or marble slabs carved with humble Christian symbolism.

Many of the first Christians buried here were recognized as martyrs and saints.

Others then carved out niches nearby to be buried close to these early Christian heroes.

By the Middle Ages, the catacombs were abandoned and forgotten.

Centuries later, they were rediscovered.

Romantic Age tourists on the Grand Tour visited by candlelight.

And legends grew about Christians hiding out to escape persecution.

But the catacombs were not hideouts.

They were simply budget, underground cemeteries.

Christianity would ultimately replace the Roman Empire as the driving force of European culture.

In the year 313, the religion actually became legal.

That's when the general Constantine, following a vision that he would triumph under the sign of the cross, beat his rival for the throne of Rome.

Taking power as emperor, Constantine then legalized Christianity.

This obscure, outlawed Jewish sect eventually became the religion of the empire.

In the year 300, you could be killed for being a Christian.

In the year 400, you could be killed for not being a Christian.

Church attendance boomed and Emperor Constantine built the first great Christian church right here -- San Giovanni in Laterano, St.

John's.

It opened as a kind of "first Vatican."

St.

John's, which has been rebuilt over the ages, was the original home of the bishop of Rome, or Pope.

High atop the canopy, over the altar, a box contains the supposed skulls of the first bishop, Saint Peter, and the Apostle Paul.

The church is filled with symbols of Christianity's triumph over pagan Rome, like these gilded bronze columns said to be from pagan Rome's holiest temple.

And what better entrance for this first grand church than these massive bronze doors which once hung in ancient Rome's Senate House.

The adjacent Holy Stairs are a major stop on Rome's pilgrimage trail.

Many credit Emperor Constantine's devout mother, Saint Helena, for her son's conversion.

She brought home wagonloads of relics, including these stairs believed to be from the palace of Pontius Pilate.

For 1,700 years, pilgrims believing Jesus climbed these stairs the day he was condemned, have scaled the Scala Santa on their knees.

By the year 500, the overexpanded, corrupt, and exhausted Roman Empire had fallen.

But the grandeur of the Roman Empire lived on in the Roman Church.

Over time, Trajan's column was capped with a Christian saint, the Pantheon became a church, Emperor Hadrian's mausoleum became the Pope's fortress, and the tomb of the Apostle Peter, a man the Romans executed, was crowned by the grandest building in the city, St.

Peter's Basilica.

Rome is best seen and understood in historic layers -- the ancient empire, the Roman Catholic Church, and the modern city.

Before dropping in on all that sacred Vatican splendor, let's take a break from the past and enjoy some of today's secular delights.

Rome is full of characteristic, proud, and distinct neighborhoods.

One of the oldest is Testaccio, once the warehouse district of ancient Rome.

It's built around a literal mountain of ancient pottery shards.

Like any neighborhood, it has a main piazza, a humble park, and street art -- like this tip of the hat to Rome's legendary founder, the she-wolf.

We're joining a food tour at the historic slaughterhouse to get to know this neighborhood and its market.

-Hello, everybody.

Good morning, and welcome to Testaccio Rome.

My name is Luca, and I'm going to be showing you around this beautiful neighborhood that is strongly connected to food.

And it goes back all the way to ancient Rome.

This area is known in Rome as Il Cuore di Roma, which means "the heart of Rome."

So welcome to one of my favorite street markets in Rome, the Mercato di Testaccio.

This place hosts more than 100 stalls.

It's all about family businesses.

When you come here, you get to know everybody.

Everybody gets to know your taste, what you like, what you don't like.

Look at all these colors.

We have a vegetable and fruit stall that has been here since 1939.

Ciao, Francesca.

Buongiorno.

-Ciao.

-And that's Paola.

Family business.

Now we like to eat what's in season.

So let me show you a bit of things that are in season right now.

Look how beautiful this is.

It's called romanesco, the Roman cauliflower.

This is like a work of art.

Uh, what else?

We got the zucchini flowers.

You know, the Roman zucchini.

It's basically you take the flower and you stuff it with mozzarella, anchovies, and it's battered and deep fried.

I'm gonna show you the king of Roman vegetables over there.

The carciofo, the artichoke.

And this is as Roman as it gets.

Over here, we have lots and lots of tomatoes.

Pomodori, as we say in Italian.

And you have different shapes, different colors.

We're gonna get some tomatoes.

Paola is chopping them up, and we're gonna make some nice bruschetta.

So this is a stall run by Sara.

Ciao, Sara.

Buongiorno.

She's gonna dress it with some olive oil.

She already toasted the bread for us.

We're gonna rub some garlic on it.

This is very healthy.

Uh, it also keeps the vampires away.

Yes.

Yeah.

All right.

And now the best part.

Let's make bruschetta.

Brus...chetta.

Not "brushetta."

Oh, get the juice.

-Oh, baby, look at that.

-One of the simplest things and one of the most tasty things you can possibly try.

Now, with these same tomatoes, we're gonna make something else.

We're gonna make a salad.

So, everybody, this is Enzo.

-Enzo.

-Enzo.

Enzo is gonna prepare the caprese salad.

He's already sliced up some buffalo mozzarella.

Because the best type of caprese is made with buffalo mozzarella.

When I say buffalo, before you cringe, it's the water buffalo, which is a type of cow.

Nothing wrong with regular mozzarella.

It's tasty, but this is better.

Grazie, Enzo.

Grazie mille.

Mmm.

-So essentially three or four ingredients.

-Again, it's all about simplicity.

So you have to use very few ingredients, fresh and local.

-Oh, I like it.

-How do you feel about having some Roman street food?

We're gonna have the best, the most popular.

It's a fried risotto ball.

It's called suppli, which kind of means "surprise" because you don't know what's in it.

No.

You know, I tell you, it's good stuff.

Ciao, Roberto.

Ciao.

This is Roberto.

He just made them.

He make everything here.

So what they do is they -- First they make risotto.

They cook the toasted rice directly into the sauce.

They wrap it around fresh mozzarella, which you got right there in the heart.

And then it's rolled in breadcrumbs and it's deep fried.

Now right there you have the telephone cord and it's a good sign.

It means that it hasn't been sitting out.

It's fresh.

They just made it.

It's a long-distance call.

-Wow.

Delicioso.

-When you're really incredibly satisfied, go, "Wow.

Mamma mia!"

All right.

The next Roman delicacy we're gonna try is called porchetta.

It's something that's spread across central Italy.

But you want to eat it here.

All right.

I can see you're salivating already.

Ciao, Ludovica.

Buongiorno.

This is Ludovica.

This is porchetta.

This is the king.

It's a deboned pork loin stuffed with herbs and spices, slowly roasted for eight hours.

And it's usually eaten as a sandwich.

This is the most typical Roman sandwich.

We're gonna have it with pizza bianca.

Pizza bianca is basically flatbreads.

The outside gets crispy in the last 20 minutes when they crank up the heat.

-So it's quite simple.

-Very simple, but it still takes time.

Pizza bianca and porchetta.

-Okay.

-Oh.

-When you bite the crackling, you totally feel it.

-Yeah.

-You got the best part.

-The pork skin crackling and the pizza bianco.

-Pizza bianca.

-Mmm.

Delicioso.

-Okay.

-While much of Rome is splendid and grandiose, it's a great walking city and it can be intimate as well.

Regardless of your sightseeing agenda, getting out early lets you enjoy some of the world's great public spaces while they're just waking up.

A morning spent wandering is filled with surprises.

Playful fountains decorate squares.

Ancient ruins hide in plain sight.

And side streets open onto botanic delights.

Poke around.

Explore.

[ Conversing in Italian ] Another colorful Roman gathering place is Rome's most famous produce market, the Campo de' Fiori.

Literally the "field of flowers," this has long been a fragrant and vibrant market.

The market thrives in the morning.

What's seasonal during your visit will be favored by local chefs and featured on their daily menus.

We're here in May with asparagus, zucchini, artichokes, and the quintessentially Roman puntarelle.

Whether you come for the produce or simply a stroll, Campo de' Fiori is a delight.

But it's just one of Rome's treasured public spaces.

As the rhythm of daily life hits its stride, the famous Spanish Steps, today adorned with azaleas, is filled with people.

For over 200 years, romantics have gathered here to enjoy a little dolce vita with their sightseeing, and it remains a popular place to savor the joy of simply being in Rome.

And in good Roman style, the top of the steps is marked by an ancient obelisk.

Locals brag that there are as many Egyptian obelisks standing in Rome as in all of Egypt.

To stoke imperial egos, they were shipped in ancient times across the Mediterranean to decorate great squares right here in Rome.

Perhaps the city's most ostentatious monument celebrates modern Italy's first king.

In 1871, Rome became the capital of a newly united modern state of Italy.

To mark the occasion, the thunderous Victor Emmanuel Monument was built.

That's the king up on the huge horse.

It was designed to stoke the spirit of the fledgling nation by harkening back to the glories of ancient Rome.

In fact, if you want to envision ancient Rome in its pomposity today, imagine a vast city made of buildings like this.

The square in front is where, in the 1930s, the fascist dictator Mussolini held rallies to whip up nationalistic fervor, ultimately sending a generation of Italian men off to a catastrophic war.

And to this day, here on the national altar burns the eternal flame, remembering Italy's Unknown Soldier.

Riding the elevator to the top of the monument, we enjoy a sweeping view of the Eternal City.

Locals love this perch because from here, they can see nearly all of their beloved Rome.

The view is dotted with the domes of great churches and hiding out in many of those are centuries of great art.

Until modern times, it was the church that had the power, the money, and the need for great art.

And going to church offered the masses, whose lives were so dreary otherwise, a promising glimpse of the glory that awaited them in the next life.

-♪ Gloria, Gloria ♪ -And visiting today, you can appreciate how the Roman Catholic Church long dominated Roman society.

My goal -- to experience the art from the perspective of a historic worshiper or pilgrim.

Popping into churches, many of them nondescript on the outside, you'll find sumptuous art treasures inside.

The wonderful thing about seeing art in churches is that it's in situ: not hanging on museum walls, but exactly where the art was designed to be seen.

Thoughtfully stringing together several churches can be an art lover's delight.

Two of my favorites are St.

Peter-in-Chains, with its dramatic Moses by Michelangelo, and Santa Maria sopra Minerva, with its soaring Gothic interior, another Michelangelo, and engaging frescoes by Filippino Lippi.

After the intellectual nature of the Renaissance, Baroque, which followed, was emotional.

By the year 1500, Renaissance artists had mastered realism.

Now, in 1600, Baroque went beyond realism to wow its viewers with exuberance.

Baroque art was propaganda.

It served the needs of the divine monarchs and of the Church.

By pulling emotional strings, it convinced people to obey.

Pop into many churches and you'll hardly know where to look.

It's a riot of Baroque, an exuberant style born right here in Rome.

Every inch is slathered with ornamentation -- Oh-wow spiral columns framing scenes that almost come to life, cupids doing flip-flops, and ceilings opening up into the heavens.

For a breezy escape from the big-city noise and intensity, head for the Borghese Gardens, Rome's Central Park.

-Ciao!

-Romans are proud of their generous green spaces.

This sprawling park has long offered people here a place to relax, to unwind, and let the kids run wild.

The park's centerpiece is the Borghese Gallery.

Once a cardinal's lavish country villa, today it welcomes the public.

The wealthy Borghese family filled their 17th-century villa with art.

This was the age when the rich and powerful not only collected beautiful art, but actually employed leading artists to spiff up their homes.

Cardinal Borghese was the pope's nephew and one of the wealthiest people in Rome.

With unlimited money, his palace dazzled with both fine art of the past, such as Raphael's exquisite "Deposition," and with the best art of the day, like this Caravaggio.

Each room features a masterpiece, like this intriguing look at Napoleon's sister Pauline by Canova.

The polished marble is lifelike, even sensuous.

Again, Rome is the birthplace of the Baroque style, and Gian Lorenzo Bernini, who sculpted some of his greatest works for this collection, is considered its father.

Bernini's "David" is textbook Baroque.

Bursting with life, David's body -- wound like a spring, with lips pursed as he prepares to slay the giant, shows the determination of the age.

Bernini was just 25 when he sculpted this, and the face of David is his.

Bernini's "Apollo Chasing Daphne" is a highlight.

Apollo, happily wounded by Cupid's arrow, chases Daphne, who is saved by turning into a tree.

In typical Baroque style, Bernini captures the dramatic moment when, just as Apollo's about to catch Daphne, her fingers turned to leaves, her toes sprout roots, and Apollo's in for one rude surprise.

The statue, as much air as stone, makes a supernatural event seem real.

This classical scene, while plenty fleshy, comes with a church-pleasing moral -- chasing earthly pleasures leads only to frustration.

The place to contemplate that thought is at the Vatican.

Here's a case where crossing a street is crossing a border.

I just left Italy.

Vatican City may be the world's smallest independent country with just a thousand inhabitants, but it's the spiritual capital of hundreds of millions of Roman Catholics.

The Vatican is built upon the memory and grave of the first pope, St.

Peter.

Its centerpiece -- St.

Peter's Basilica.

Even though Vatican City occupies less than a square mile, this country has its own radio station, newspaper, post office, and a cute little train station.

Along with the grandest church on earth, it has a massive museum.

Vatican City, ruled both politically and religiously by the pope, is embedded in the city of Rome.

It's surrounded by a mighty medieval wall that evokes a less than peaceful history.

The Vatican "military" is made up of the Swiss Guard.

In 1506, the pope imported mercenaries from Switzerland who were known for their loyalty and courage.

Today, about 100 Swiss soldiers, clad in their flamboyant Renaissance-style uniforms, still protect the pope, keep the crush of visitors in order, and patiently answer tourists' questions.

Piazza San Pedro sits on the site of an ancient Roman racetrack.

Imagine chariots making their hairpin turns around that obelisk.

For added entertainment during the races, Christians were executed right here.

In about 65 A.D., the Apostle Peter was crucified within sight of this obelisk.

Peter's friends buried him in a nearby graveyard on what pagan Romans called the Vatican Hill.

For 250 years, Christians worshiped quietly at his tomb.

Then, in 313 A.D., Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity and changed the course of history.

A basilica was built here, and this became the head of the Roman Catholic Church.

1,200 years later, the original St.

Peter's was replaced by this most glorious church in Christendom.

Upon entering, your first impression is it's huge.

600 feet long, bathed in sunbeams.

It can accommodate thousands of worshipers.

As a tour guide, I've lost entire groups in here.

Michelangelo's "Pieta" is adored by pilgrims and tourists alike.

Here, the 24-year-old Michelangelo makes the theological message very clear: Jesus, once alive but now dead, gave his life for our salvation.

The contrast provided by Mary's monumental robe makes his body, even though carved in stone, feel soft and believable.

Shining in the apse at the far end, featuring the Chair of St.

Peter, is another masterpiece by Bernini.

With sunlight illuminating its alabaster window as if powered by the Holy Spirit, it lifts up the legendary throne of the first pope with a starburst of Baroque praise.

Directly above the altar, rising above the tomb of St.

Peter, stands Bernini's bronze canopy and above that, Michelangelo's dome, taller than a football field on end.

The inscription declares, in Latin: Tu es Petrus... "You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church."

This is the scriptural basis for the primacy of Rome in the Catholic Church.

A viewing perch gives visitors a close-up look at those huge letters and a heavenly perspective into the church.

From the rooftop, you can size up the dome you're about to climb.

To fully appreciate Michelangelo's dome- within-a-dome design, climb the 300 steps up to the cupola.

The view from the top is unrivaled, both of Rome in general and the Vatican grounds.

You can survey the entire country from this perch.

The long, rectangular building is the Vatican Museum.

With the adjacent Sistine Chapel, it holds perhaps the richest collection of Western art anywhere.

Over the centuries, the popes have amassed enough art to fill miles of museum hallways sumptuously decorated with precious tapestries, dramatic frescoes, and ancient statues.

The museum features art from every age.

Its exquisite painting gallery includes Raphael's much-loved "Transfiguration."

Halls and courtyards are littered with ancient Greek and Roman masterpieces like the "Laocoön," so inspirational to the great masters of the Renaissance.

And the Pope's apartments tell Christian history.

This is that battle in which Emperor Constantine was led by angels and a holy cross, both to a key military victory and to his own religious conversion.

And these rooms celebrate pre-Christian philosophy.

Here Raphael paints "The School of Athens," a who's who of ancient intellectual heroes, many painted with the features of Renaissance greats -- Leonardo, Michelangelo, and even the painter himself.

While Raphael worked in the Pope's apartments, Michelangelo was busy painting his chapel, the Sistine Chapel.

He depicted no less than the entire history of the Christian world, from the Creation to Adam and Eve and, much later, to the grand biblical finale, the awe-inspiring Last Judgment.

Michelangelo painted God busy creating from every conceivable angle.

And the centerpiece: the central act of creation, God passing the divine spark of life to his greatest masterpiece, you and me.

Of course, there's much more, as we've just scratched the surface of this vast collection.

If you're pondering eternity, try covering the Vatican Museum thoroughly.

Ancient Rome was born here along the Tiber River.

This point was as far upstream as boats could sail, and the first place the river could be crossed by bridge.

As a center of river trade, Rome connected the interior of the Italian peninsula with the Mediterranean.

This riverbank would have been bustling in ancient times.

Imagine busy docks, ramshackle boats, water mills, and platforms for fishing.

For 2,000 years, Rome's river was a major part of its economy.

Then, in the 1870s, to protect the city from flooding, the Romans walled off the Tiber.

They built these tall, anonymous embankments that isolate the river from the city to this day.

Today, the town mostly ignores its river, but its graceful bridges still connect some of its most venerable neighborhoods, many with their own distinct heritage and character.

For example, just over the Tiber from the old center is Trastevere, the place to immerse yourself in the crustier side of Rome.

The name Trastevere actually means "across the Tiber River."

Wandering here offers a chance to hone your senses, to see Rome more intimately.

You'll discover a community of people who've found their niche and love it.

The people here, "Trasteverini," are proud.

Old-timers once bragged of never setting foot on the opposite side of the Tiber.

As we explore and observe, the big city seems worlds away.

For maximum Trastevere fun and insight, I'm joined by my friend and Roman tour guide, Francesca Caruso.

Especially here in Trastevere, you get this sense of the many layers of Rome.

-Certainly.

That is really the key to understanding Rome.

This city and its almost 3,000 years of history was never abandoned.

So people have just built on top and around of what was already there.

-It's like a layer cake, isn't it?

Well, there's a beautiful roof garden.

-Yeah.

And most of us in Rome live in apartments, so no gardens, no backyards.

So we all dream of the attico con terrazzo.

-Attico con terrazzo.

An attic with a terrace?

-Yes.

So the skyline of Rome is full of these little jungles on the rooftops.

-Everything's so intimate.

It's like -- It's like we're walking through somebody's laundry room.

-We've always lived very close together here.

Sharing space is really not a problem.

We don't even have the word for "privacy" in Italian, we use the English word instead.

We simply roll the "R."

So we say "pr-r-r-ivacy."

-Pr-r-r-ivacy.

I know one more Italian word now.

The concept of a piazza serving as a community center goes back to ancient times.

Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere is the heart of this neighborhood.

With its broad and inviting steps, the fountain was actually designed to be a kind of neighborhood sofa.

And as usual, the district's main church fronts its main square.

The Church of Santa Maria in Trastevere is one of Rome's oldest and most beloved churches.

This is built on the site of a third-century home where early Christians worshiped illegally.

And, like the city itself, it's been a work in progress, rebuilt continuously over the centuries.

The portico is decorated with ancient fragments filled with early religious symbolism -- an anchor, birds, Christians praying with hands up as evangelicals do today.

As we saw in the catacombs, many of these stones were originally lids to burial niches.

Stepping inside takes you back centuries.

The granite columns were scavenged from ancient Roman buildings.

The church feels like an ancient hall of justice.

That's because early churches adopted the pre-Christian basilica floor plan, a rectangular space divided by rows of columns.

Across the river from Trastevere is another neighborhood with its own story, the ghetto, or Jewish Quarter.

In ancient times, this bridge was called Jews' Bridge, because Jews and other foreigners who weren't allowed to live in central Rome would commute from Trastevere, over there, across this bridge, to get into town.

To learn more about her neighborhood, I'm joined by my friend and fellow tour guide, Micaela Pavoncello.

So what is unique about this Jewish community?

-Well, this is the most ancient community outside of Israel that was created before the destruction of the temple, therefore before the diaspora.

-So before 79 A.D.

-Exactly.

-When did your family come?

-Oh!

My father says, before Caesar and I trust him.

-Before Caesar?

-Yes.

-So now when people think about the Jewish people in Europe, it's normally... -Ashkenazi and Sephardim.

-But this community was even before that.

-Yes, we are authentic from Jerusalem.

-Way back then, why did they come to Rome?

-Rome was good for business, after all.

-So why were the Jews tolerated originally?

-It was more than tolerated.

It was protected because they could speak Greek.

They could establish connections with the other Jewish communities of the Mediterranean.

They were loyal, laborious, and above all, they did not want to convert others.

-Huh.

Okay.

But then things changed.

-Yeah, definitely.

After the reform with the Counter-Reformation, the Catholic Church felt threatened by any alternative religion.

And that's when, in 1555, the pope established the ghetto and Jews were confined in this area.

-Wow.

-And that was really the beginning of a tough time for my community.

-Hmm.

So what was it like to live in the ghetto?

-Well, it was miserable.

Imagine a four blocks area right into the edge of the water of the Tiber.

Flooded every single winter because of the rain.

In buildings, they were keeping adding floors because there was no space.

So you have the first skyscrapers of Rome in the ghetto.

-So what's the state of Rome's Jewish community today?

-Well, we're still here.

There's 14,000 of us.

We have Jewish schools, kosher restaurants, and our culture is still strong.

-The synagogue was and is the community center.

Designed around 1900 after Jews were granted full civil rights, it became one of the city's most prominent places of worship.

The interior is Art Nouveau with a dash of Tiffany.

The dome gleams with the colors of the rainbow, a reminder of God's promise to Noah that there would be no more floods.

The stars symbolized that the Jewish people would be as many as the stars in the sky.

While most of the squalid ghetto was demolished with Italian unification in 1870. the buildings facing the main drag survive.

Shops sell fine, locally produced Judaica, the bakery keeps grandma happy, and kosher restaurants proudly serve traditional dishes like those with artichokes.

While the Jewish community now lives all over town, many Roman Jews still enjoy gathering here in the neighborhood where they have such deep roots.

Another of Rome's oldest neighborhoods hides behind a towering wall that dates to ancient times.

This was a firewall built to protect the monumental center from a rough and fire-prone working-class neighborhood on the outside.

Today, this survives as a trendy and quintessentially Roman district called Monti.

More trendy than rough these days, Monti is an inviting place to enjoy funky boutiques and fashionable shops, to hang out with friends, and to enjoy a relaxed vibe.

How this charming little bit of village Rome still enjoys life on its terms, so close to some of Italy's busiest sites, is a marvel.

Monti's charms continue into the evening, when you can enjoy a simple meal or a spritz with friends at an inviting trattoria or bar.

Or you can join the gang at Piazza della Madonna dei Monti.

Its fountain is the neighborhood's meeting point, and after hours, it's thronged with young Romans with their mini-market drinks to go, socializing and enjoying a Monti moment on the cheap.

Another popular gathering place is Piazza del Popolo.

While for centuries the starting point for pilgrim visits, today it's the starting point for my favorite Roman ritual, the evening stroll, or passeggiata.

Ciao, Francesca.

-Good to see you.

-Nice to see you, too.

I'm meeting up with Francesca Caruso again to join in the fun.

Let's go for a walk.

I think this is a great time.

-It's a perfect evening.

Let's go.

-As the sun goes down, the people come out.

Downtown Rome's main street, the Via del Corso, is pedestrianized and strollers just love it.

It's a scene offering some of the best people-watching anywhere.

-I think in the end, what I really like about the Italian way of life and I can really enjoy it here in Rome, is the fact that all I have to do is step outside and I'm surrounded by people.

I never feel lonely.

I always feel connected with a sense of community.

I think a passeggiata is a wonderful way of living the city.

-So this is just sort of an inclination.

Early evening cool of the day.

-Oh, yes.

You just go outside and meet your friends, have a gelato, an aperitivo, and just enjoy.

-Check out who's with who, who's wearing what.

-Oh, yes.

That always.

You know how the Italians are so aware of themselves and they like to be looked at and they like to look at each other.

-After dark, Rome takes on yet another personality and a short walk laces together its top nightspots.

Back at Campo de' Fiori, the artichokes and tomatoes have been packed away, and the social street lamps are turned on.

These characteristic lanes, even late at night, feel safe and friendly.

The nearby Piazza Navona is a carnival 365 nights a year.

While this oblong square got its shape from a long-gone ancient stadium, today the games are limited to browsing and flirting around its famous Bernini fountain.

Just down the street is the floodlit Pantheon.

It looms high above our 21st century, as if aching to tell its story: 2,000 years of Roman history.

And at the same time, it provides a venerable backdrop for al fresco diners.

There's too much life in the streets to go home yet.

The Trevi Fountain is close by.

This bubbly Baroque avalanche, though from the 1700s, seems purpose-built for today's Roman embrace of life.

With history, art, and people perpetually partying under the stars, it's no wonder people come here in droves for the promise that a coin tossed over the shoulder will assure their return to this Eternal City.

That may sound silly, but every year I go through the ritual and it works.

But we're not done yet.

The final stop on our nighttime walk is back at the iconic and ever-popular Spanish Steps.

It's been the hangout of countless romantics over the years, and I hope someday soon that includes you.

♪♪ Rome -- of course it's a grand city of Caesar, popes, and flood-lit fountains.

But for millions of people, it's also simply home.

Thanks for joining us.

I'm Rick Steves.

Until next time, keep on travelin'.

Ciao.

By the way, this show is one of four hour-long specials featuring my favorite European cities.

You can also enjoy Paris, the City of Light, London with its royal splendor, and Istanbul, where East meets West.

-Everyone else, bar-bar-bar-barbarians.

-♪ Bar bar bar bar bar barbarians ♪ ♪ Bar bar bar bar bar barbarians ♪ Yeah, baby.

Ha ha ha!

-It's funny.

When I have kids on my tours, and they hear a telephone cord, they have no idea what that is.

Yes, you have to... -Trevi Fountain.

-Trevi Fountain.

Look at this.

-Are you Rick Steves?

-Yeah.

How are you?

-Shut up!

-"Shut up!"

[ Laughter ]