Hotelrome.net Blog : A guide to news and events in Rome

Our Blogger: Stefano

The bouquinistes are the sellers of second-hand books in Paris who have installed their wooden stands along the Seine. For decades, they have been offering the best of arts, litterature and entertainment at an affordable price in the largest “open air library” in the world. Today they are considered “heritage of humanity".
The bouquinistes are a part of the history of Paris. The same term, "Bouquin" in argot is an old book.

We can find in Rome a similar tradition, a sort of book trade, sometimes wandering the city, not formalized, but with a long tradition. Indeed we can find markets, book stalls and kiosks set up in many parts of Rome: Campo de ‘Fiori, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Piazza Pasquino, and the Fontanella Borghese. This is the place to sell books, not to be confused with other stands dotted around the city that have nothing to do with the tradition of which we speak.

Today their business is gradually changing in line with market needs and demands of tourists. And so, instead of old books and prints of works of art, on the kiosks appear now posters of famous actors or, in Paris, small plastic Eiffel Towers.
For this reason it was decided to revisit the streets of Paris by an exhibition dedicated to bouquinistes.
The exhibition will be inaugurated during the eleventh week of culture. It proposes materials coming primarily from the collection of the National Library Ceccarius and that of the Parisian museum in Rome.

The exhibition will display images and documents from the XIX and XX centuries. We’ll find many books, newspapers, posters and postcards that tell the story of this ancient tradition.
An unusual exhibition that will bind two great capitals that have always been culturally close. The photographs will be on display on the National Library on Viale Castro Pretorio 105, only a couple of steps away from Hotel Des Artistes!

In fact, Des Artistes and Yes Hotel are two wonderful accomodation structures in Rome. Their location and comfort standards are great, and will offer you everything you need to have a fantastic time in the Eternal City.

Our Blogger: Arianna

Started the 5th of April and closing the 5th of July in Rome you can visit the biggest exposition regarding Beato Angelico (known outside Italy as Fra Angelico), organized to celebrate the 550th anniversary of the death of this Domenican friar who is considered one of the most representative painters of the Renaissance

In the Capitoline Museums you’ll have the chance to take a trip back on  time during the Renaissance. Literally Renaissance means “rebirth”, in this case from the dark years of the Middle Ages; rebirth in many aspects of life, including painting.

A Religious man, the artist could had become a famous and rich, but deeply devoted, he choose the life of the prayer and he used to devolve all the money gained to the friary where he lived.

I consider Beato Angelico one of the most importans masters of painting for several reasons, but the most important one is that in his paintings we can observe the passage between gothic art and the renaissance.

For example in The Annunciation and The Adoration of the Magi we find examples of this transition. In particular you’ll note that despite the colours and the ornaments are those typical of the middle ages, the figures seem to have some volumetric development which is a trait from the Reinassance.

A great base to explore the many stimulating attractions Rome has to offer is Hotel Des Artistes. Due to its strategic location you’ll be only a short trip away from the most interesting sights in the Eternal City!

Attending to the opera is an experience many look forward to experience when they visit Italy. But the opera academies in Italy are not always touristic-friendly and getting a ticket can prove difficult. So, if you’re able to attend a quality Opera concert you can call yourself lucky, but if you are coming to Rome during may you’ll have the chance to have the opera experience of a lifetime.

On May 25^th the famous Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli will offer in the Colosseum (no less) a charity concert to help the people from Abruzzo, where some villages have been almost destroyed recently by an earthquake.

In case you still don’t know him, Andrea Bocelli is a blind tenor famous for its prowess in both the opera and popular music fields, an ability that has enabled him to conquer a wide audience and to spread the interest in Opera all around the world.

That night Angela Ghiorghiu will share the stage with Bocelli. Gheorghiu might be less well- known outside the opera world, but she is one of the new stars of the genre, and another of the many reasons that make this event unique.

The tickets cost one thousand euros and can be bought through the internet.

Don’t miss this beautiful experience and don’t miss either the chance to enjoy Rome staying in two of the best hotels in the city: Yes Hotel and Hotel Des Artistes, both very well located, near Rome main station and only half an hour away from the Colosseum!

Our blogger: Stefano

“Dissonanze” is a festival that proposes live music and shows of electronic and alternative. It has become and important manifestation dedicated to the arts and the electronic and digital music in various areas in which they occur: concerts, dj and laptop, multimedia installations, performances and vj projections.

This year the Festival will take place on 8 and 9 May 2009 and for the occasion, the Palazzo dei Congressi and Ara Pacis in Rome will light up with famous names of electronic music as A Critical Mass, Bat For Lashes, Buraka Som system, Kenny Larkin, our beloved Daedelus and many others.
This Festival was born in 2000, initially as a show-case, a selection of little-known international “indie” artists . Today, it has become an important reference point for fans of the genre.

So the date to remember are 8 and 9 may 2009, at the Ara Pacis and the Palazzo dei Congressi, and you’ll see artist like: Costa vs Ad Bourke, The Gaslamp Killer vs Daddy Kev, Flying Lotus feat. Samiyam, Daedelus Visuals Clichevideo, Mokadelic, Telepathe, Atom, Byetone, Signal and others.

To enjoy Rome and all the incredible activities it has to offer, come to Hotel Des Artistes or Yes Hotel, where we’ll be glad to guide you to this and many other events taking place in the city.

Il Nostro Blogger: Arianna

Lo aspettiamo tutti con ansia, il nuovo tour di Claudio Baglioni “Questo Piccolo Grande Amore 2008 – il concerto”

I nome del tour prende spunto dal film da poco uscito “ Questo piccolo grande amore” ispirato all’omonima canzone dell’artista, del quale il cantautore ha curato la parte musicale

Un concerto che, attraverso musica e parole, ripercorrerà le tappe della carriera artistica di Claudio Baglioni, con particolare attenzione alle canzoni dell’album che lo ha reso famoso.

Dal tour prende il nome anche il doppio cd live, una chicca per i romantici e per quelli che volessero fare un salto indietro del tempo.

Personalmente amo molto le canzoni di Baglioni, hanno accompagnato la mia infanzia e la mia adolescenza.

Molti non sanno che gli inizi non sono stati facili per il cantautore romano ma proprio con l’album “ Questo piccolo grande amore” arriva un successo spiazzante che dura fino ai giorni nostri.

Non solo cantante Baglioni, ma un’artista in piena regola. ai suoi concerti siamo abituati a vedere dei veri e propri spettacoli, mai banali ma pieni di musica e colori.

Credo che anche questo concerto meriti di essere visto e mi chiedo quali sorprese ci riserverà questa volta.

Qualche piccola curiosità: Claudio Baglioni è stato il primo cantante a esibirsi negli stadi. Il primo concerto è al Flaminio dove viene applaudito anche per avere posizionato il palco al centro dello stadio, aperto in tutte le direzioni, così da avere un contatto a tutto tondo con il pubblico

L’artista si presenterà a Roma il 22/05/2009 in piazza di Siena.

Vi invito tutti a stare qui da noi all’Hotel Des Artistes. Il nostro hotel costituisce infatti la base ideale per raggiungere la sede del concerto.

Partendo da via villafranca 20, camminare per 450metri e prendere la linea M per sei fermate, scendere alla fermata Victor Hugo e ancora a piedi per 450 metri.