By Lisa T. Bergren 

We loved our semi-private Context tour and the day’s escape to Tivoli. We met up with our archeologist docent, Francesca, and two other couples at a train station in Rome, then set off in a hired car for Villa Adriana (Hadrian’s Villa).

We quickly got to know one another as we drove toward the famed summer escape for Roman nobles, set among the Appennine Mountains. One couple was nearing the end of a month-long stay in Rome; the other was traveling for a couple of weeks; both were American. All were kind and gracious to my teen, and Francesca was especially good with her, working to engage her in the deep history we saw unfolding before us.

Overview

In my opinion, the highlight of this Tivoli tour is how one can connect the majesty and vast scope of the ancient (Hadrian’s Villa) with the rediscovery of the ancient during the Renaissance (Villa d’ Este).

We began at the visitor’s center of Hadrian’s Villa, which offers a diorama of the entire estate, so you understand the vast expanse of the three-hundred-acre property and catch a “glimpse” of the thirty-plus buildings and vast gardens, pools and baths. Emperor Hadrian had it built in the 2^nd Century AD, at the height of Roman power. The story goes that the emperor wasn’t fond of the Palatine, and had a family connection to land here, so he eagerly began construction and eventually, even ruled the empire from this location.

This guy was the Emperor-on-the-Move. He spent a great deal of time inspecting the outer reaches of the Empire and what he saw in the border countries impacted him greatly. Even now, visitors can see it throughout the ruins.

Exploring Villa Adriana

Inspired by his travels, Hadrian set about reconstructing what he’d seen among the Greeks and Egyptians, and built many palaces, libraries, thermae (utiizing conveniently located underground springs), temples and apartment complexes for firemen. Previous to this trip, I’d believed Roman life was largely lived in one- or two-story buildings. On this campus, we could clearly see that some lived three to a room and three-high. They packed those fire-fighting boys in like asparagus in a jar.

Many buildings had barrel-vaulted ceilings and domes, which must’ve been pretty inspiring, back in the day. One of our favorite stops was the “Maritime Theatre,” (pictured at top of post) with its ring-shaped pool and small villa on an “island” that was accessed by one of two bridges. It looked like a romantic escape, and we could picture noblemen in togas, wandering about. It may have once served as Hadrian’s hideout, a place for him to escape when court life got to be a little much. Now only massive, orange koi enjoy its murky waters, disrupting reflections of the surrounding column remains as they surface, apparently waiting to be fed.

We moved on, peeking into one of the many tunnels that riddle the property, once used by servants, reserving the upper streets for nobility. The royal guard scored better living conditions than their firemen brethren and lived three to a single-story room, and enjoyed beautiful mosaic floors and pretty fresco-covered walls.

We continued our exploration of more temples and baths and public rooms. And in the midst of an artificial grotto, we spied swimming turtles, relaxed and at peace in their ancient pool, guarded by copies of Greek statues and flanked by the remains of temples.

Our two-hour visit complete, we moved up and into the hills to see Villa d’Este. A thousand-plus years after the Roman empire faded, a rich cardinal stole inspiration from Villa Adriana (as well as more than a few beautiful columns) to recreate the ancient in perfect Renaissance fashion.

And honestly, awe-struck, we could do little but applaud his thievery. (Part 2 post coming soon.)

Disclosure: We were kindly hosted by ContextTravel on this excursion to Tivoli. But we whole-heartedly recommend this tour to all friends and family, as well as every reader of our blog.

Been on a tour of Tivoli? What was your experience like?