Rome, Italy’s capital, is a sprawling, cosmopolitan city with
nearly 3,000 years of globally influential art, architecture and culture
on display. Ancient ruins such as the Forum and the Colosseum evoke the
power of the former Roman Empire. Vatican City, headquarters of the
Roman Catholic Church, has St. Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums,
which house masterpieces such as Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel
frescoes.
Venice, the capital of northern Italy’s Veneto region, is built on
more than 100 small islands in a lagoon in the Adriatic Sea. It has no
roads, just canals – including the Grand Canal thoroughfare – lined with
Renaissance and Gothic palaces. The central square, Piazza San Marco,
contains St. Mark’s Basilica, which is tiled with Byzantine mosaics, and
the Campanile bell tower offering views of the city’s red roofs.
Castel Sant'Elia's main attraction is the Basilica of Sant'Elia or Sant'Anastasio, a medieval church built, according to tradition, over an ancient temple of Diana. It dates to the 1120s and is built in tuff
with three portals, all sculpted with flowers, animals and monstrous
figures. The interior comprises a nave and two aisles, divided by
re-used ancient columns. Under the apse is the crypt, housing the tombs of St. Anastasius and St. Nonnosus.
Nearby is the Sanctuary of Santa Maria ad Rupes, housing a tunnel
with 144 steps carved by hand by a local hermit, an endeavor that took
14 years.
