Language adventures – part 2

If you are feeling adventurous, consider travelling off the beaten path on your next visit to Europe. English speakers may be harder to come by in these less well-trodden places and you will really benefit from language lessons in advance of your trip to help you navigate your way around. At The Modern Language School in Huddersfield, classes start from just £4.75 an hour. Contact us to arrange your lessons so you can make the most of your European adventure.

ITALY
On your next trip to Rome, explore some of the lesser known highlights of this vibrant city. Visit Cinecittà film studios where you’ll find the set of HBO/BBC blockbuster Rome, including an impressive reconstruction of the Forum as it would have been in ancient times. Full of props from iconic films, Cinecittà has no shortage of tributes to classic movies from the days of the Dolce Vita, plus spaghetti western memorabilia and more.

A palm-shaded park north of the centre, Villa Torlonia is a cool retreat on a hot day and has an intriguing history to boot. Gifted to Mussolini in the 1930s for as long as he needed it, the park and his home the Casino Nobile are open to the public. Nearby, you can take a guided tour around the World War II bunker built for Mussolini and his family. Tucked away in the corner of the park, you’ll find the Casina delle Civette (‘Little House of the Owls’), showcasing several Art Nouveau features. Ornithology enthusiasts will enjoy spotting the owls and other birds in the stained glass throughout the house.

Behind the high stone walls in the Testaccio district is The Protestant Cemetery. Though not an obvious sight-seeing choice, it’s a surprisingly enjoyable place to wander around. The cemetery’s most famous residents are Keats and Shelley. Keats died of tuberculosis in Rome in 1821 and has an unnamed grave. The epitaph on it at his request is “Here lies One Whose Name was writ in Water”.

http://www.roughguides.com/article/the-best-places-to-get-off-the-tourist-trail-in-rome/

Watch out for out next blog on adventures from languages: France.