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Living in an Artist’s Loft in Rome

By Madelyn Miller

Rome is a city of artists. Just imagine what it would be like to live like one.

I recently stayed at a wonderful loft bed and breakfast that is owned by an artist, and it was like visiting a creative friend who had invited me into her home.

When I walked into Barbara Reale’s home, I felt like I was in a contemporary museum. Her artwork is everywhere, and her colorful style is reflected in her furnishing choices.

Two matching couches—one red, one orange, are covered with carefully selected pillows. A mannequin wears a dress by one of Italy’s most famous designers Roberto Cavalli, and it co-ordinates with the colors in the couches. Barbara told me when she ordered the couches, they kept asking her if she was really sure she wanted two matching couches in different colors. Barbara is very sure of what she does, and her style works wonderfully well.

She showed me the recent issue of VOGUE Taiwan, a country she has never been to. Yet a store in Taipei is named after her, Barbara Reale, because she selects and buys all the Italian clothes for them.

Her handsome husband Marco made a pasta dinner with truffle sauce. We talked so long, I did not even get to “my” loft until very late. It is actually a suite with a living area, bedroom, kitchenette, and a slanted ceiling bedroom. There is a small enclosed porch off the kitchen. You could easily stay here for awhile, as there is even a washing machine in the loft. Best part is Barbara’s touch is everywhere—the silverware is in an interesting pot, the mirrors on the bedroom wall, and of course, the art.

Here is how Barbara describes her place:

Girasolereale b&b - Rome, member of bedandbreakfast.com:
”I have available charming Italian suites in my Home Art Gallery (I'm painter) with living room with sofabed, small kitchen fully furnished and bedroom included breakfast.
Every suite has minibar and some have laundry.

Girasolereale B&B is located in south Rome to the Blue Village, residential area near EUR, exactly to the 15 Km of the Viale Cristoforo Colombo in front of the Natural Reserve of Malafede WWF, twenty minutes by car from the Fiumicino¹s Airport, 20' from the beach, 15' from italian fashion outlet and 35' from the center.

Girasolereale b&b is a villa surrounded from a big garden, to the inside of which, the guests could find lodging in one of the suites.

On request, extra services are available: Personal Trainer, shiatzu massage and normal massage in the b&b,  Beauty center, Art Therapy, pick up to and from airport, babysitter, light dinner.”

The price is a bargain by Rome standards and includes breakfast.

There is a separate entrance so you can have total privacy, but Barbara and her husband Marco (who will happily drive you into the center of Rome each day when he goes to his store) are so much fun to be with you will feel like they are your new friends. Both Marco and Barbara speak excellent English.

Barbara also does web design (this girl has a lot of energy) and is very computer savy. By the time you read this, they will probably have wi-fi.

Next time I go back, I want to go shopping with Barbara. She gave me some great tips about markets. And she is near the outlets.  It all adds up to a perfect place to stay.

www.girasolereale.com
info@girasolereale.com
MOBILE PH +393476204172
HOME PH +39065084265
FAX PH +39065084265

Best Way to Get to Italy

US's seventh-largest airline, serving 181 communities in the U.S., Canada, Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America.  US Airways, US Airways Shuttle and the US Airways Express partner carriers operate approximately 3,400 flights per day.  For more information on US Airways flight schedules and fares, visit US Airways online at
WWW.USairways.com or call US Airways Reservations at 1-800-428-4322

Best Way to Get Around in Italy

RailEurope offers a Trenitalia Pass network which covers 16,000 km (10,000 miles) running daily through beautiful landscapes to connect big cities and small towns, all famous for their art and history. The trains are comfortable and quick and easy to navigate. I got to Turm directory from Venice in about three hours, it took just a little longer to get from Turm to Milan.
WWW.RAILeurope.com

 

WHERE TO EAT:
Try brunch at the Cavalieri Hilton or dine in their rooftop Garden which has two Michelin stars
Rome Cavalieri Hilton
via A. Cadlolo, 101
00136 Rome, Italy
tel+39 06 35092233
fax+39 06 35450331
www.cavalieri-hilton.it
www.hilton.com

L’Olimpo is a rooftop restaurant above Ber…….with a fabulous view of Rome. Enjoy a wonderful panorama over the town from a very central location

Sina Hotels
Piazza Barberini
23 - 00187

GREAT GUIDEBOOKS:
Fodor’s see it Italy
Detailed maps and lots of color pictures
www.fodors.com

The Complete Idiot's Guide To Italian History And Culture
By Gabrielle Euvino with Michael San Filippo
www.idiotsguides.com

Italy
Insight Guides
www.insightguides.com

Fodor's 04 Italy
Shows you the way on and off the beaten path
www.fodors.com

Rick Steves Italy 2004
Avalon Publishing
www.ricksteves.com

Berlitz Pocket Guide Italy
www.berlitzpublishing.com  

SPEAK LIKE AN ITALIAN:
The Complete Idiot's Guide To Learning Italian
By Gabrielle Euvino
www.idiotsguides.com

The Pocket Idiot's Guide To Italian
By Gabrielle Euvino
www.idiotsguides.com

Rick Steve’s Italian Phrasebook And Dictionary
Avalon Travel Publishing
www.Ricksteves.com

BERLITZ Surviving in Italian
A handy mini phrase book with maximum information
www.berlitzpublishing.com

BERLITZ Shopping in Italian
Pocket-size with easy to read pronunciation
www.berlitzpublishing.com

EAT LIKE AN ITALIAN:
BERLITZ Eating and Drinking in Italian
Convenient pocket size
www.berlitzpublishing.com

How to Pronounce French, German and Italian Wine Names
By Dianna Bellucci
They also include a bonus of Austrian, Spanish and Portugese Wine Names
Luminosa Publishing
www.howtopronounce.com

Langenscheidt's Pocket Menu Reader Italy
A gastronomic dictionary, phrasebook and guide

Europe's Top Restaurants 2004
Zagat Survey
www.zagat.com

TASTE ITALIAN FOOD AT HOME:
Try Sacla’s Classic Basil Pesto Sauce on your pasta at home. Robust bail leaves, fresh Grana Padano and Pecorino Romano cheese, ripened pine nuts, biting garlic and pure olive oil.

Rick Steve's Rome 2004
Avalon Travel Publishing
www.Ricksteves.com

Shopping In Rome
Insights Guide
www.insightguides.com

Insight Guide Instant Rome
www.insightguides.com

Access Rome
By Richard Saul Wurman
HarperResource
www.harpercollins.com

Insight Fleximap Rome
Laminated for durability
www.insightguides.com

Wear your favorite city on a scarf! Tasaram's 100% silk Map Scarves feature detailed street plans of London, Paris, Rome, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. with more cities coming soon.
www.mapscarves.com

BERLITZ City Guidemap
www.berlitzpublishing.com              

ITALIAN LITERATURE TO GET YOU IN THE MOOD:
Venetian Stories
By Jane Turner Ruylands
Pantheon Books
www.pantheon.com
The thoroughly engaging characters who are the focus of these stories are from different backgrounds and various Venetian neighborhoods, but their lives—and the stories—overlap and intersect in surprising and playful ways.

Casa Rosa
By Francesca Marciano
(author of Rules of the Wild)
Pantheon Books
www.pantheonbooks.com
A mesmerizing story of three generations of a twentieth-century Italian family who lived in a farmous in Puglia.

John Paul II
A personal portrait of the Pope and the Man
By Ray Flynn
St. Martin’s Press
www.stmartins.com

Behind Locked Doors
By Frederic Baumgartner
The author is a former president of the American Catholic Historical Association and takes readers behind the scenes and offers an insider’s view on the highly secretive Papal Conclave.
Palgrave Macmillan
www.palgrave-usa.com

Dances With Luigi
By Paul Paolicelli
A moving an intimate memoir of award-winning television journalist Paul Paolicelli’s ancestral search.

Under The Southern Sun
By Paul Paolicelli
Stories of the Real Italy and the Americans it Created
Part Travelogue, part journalism and part sociological study, this book follows Paolicelli as he explores Southern Italy dealing with the concept of heritage.
Thomas Dunne Books
A division of St Martin’s press
www.stmartins.com

Venice Against The Sea
A city Besieged
By John Keahy
In a few years, much of Venice may be under water..can this beautiful city be saved?
Thomas Dunne Books
A division of St Martin’s press
www.stmartins.com

COOKBOOK TO TEMPT YOUR PALATE:
MANGIAMO  Let’s Eat!
A collection of family recies by Sylvia Sebastiani
Sebastiani Vineyards

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