This travelogue from a contemporary's perspective offers tourists and pilgrims to Rome an in-depth preparation for their visit to the city and a handy guide to carry throughout their journey. The author explores the complex mixture of present and past, of tempting restaurants and imperial monuments, of Catholic history and contemporary pages, of exuberant life and memories slumbering underground. This personal encounter with the eternal city offers a critical but admiring history of the city for tourists and scholars alike.