Serene Gardens for Romantics near the Eternal City

A crazy, hour-long bus drive from the frenetic Rome and you have escaped to the hills of Tivoli and the serenity of Villa d’Este.

Upon entering the Villa on a hot summer’s afternoon, a pleasant coolness engulfs the visitor, inviting to absorb the calmness, surrounding the place.

The ear catches the sound of streaming water and through an open terrace door the eye catches a glimpse of shaped shrubs and Roman statues as well as a vast horizon.

I step out into the famed garden and my senses transport me to another world, a world reminiscent of perfection – sounds, shapes, colours and smells all come together offering the romantic in me to experience a very special moment… I can almost hear Franz Liszt playing the piano at the end of the garden… or is it just the sound of cascading water…?

I wonder for a moment, if our eternal fascination with gardens over the cause of history is a deep-seated memory of Eden – still alive, still haunting us like the image of a long lost love….