An alluring experience in Rome

This article was featured in Escape, the travel and fashion supplement distributed with The Sunday Times of Malta.

A strong mix of memorable sights, awe-inspiring art and pulsating street life, Rome, Italy’s Eternal City is one of most beautiful and inspiring capitals of the world which brings a warm feeling to my heart every time I visit.

A trip to Rome is as much about soaking up the dolce vita lifestyle as relishing its culture and art, relaxing into the city’s Mediterranean rhythms and idling around the picturesque streets. Getting lost in the pretty piazzas, stopping at typical cafes, shopping and people-watching are a fundamental part of the Roman experience. In the evening, the city has a different energy with restaurants and little bars humming with activity, with fashionable crowds gathering at popular hangouts before heading off to cocktail bars and clubs.

I was recently in Rome again for a weekend, celebrating life and my birthday, and it was here that I shot a beautiful Raoul Fashion gown by Rebelli in the Villa Borghese Gardens for my fashion blog www.graziellecamilleri.com/Blog.

My wish was to highlight the elegance as well as the striking colour and texture of this gown in a venue that is well-known among travellers from across the globe that could do it justice. We also spotted a blooming tree that had bright pink flowers, the precise colour as the dress. It was just meant to be!

I must say it was a very amusing experience, walking around in this evening gown in broad daylight, attracting crowds of onlookers who obviously enjoyed a morning tour of the gardens with a difference, as we were shooting the dress and dancing to a musician’s tunes as if no one was watching. It was great fun and I would do it all again!

About Villa Borghese

Villa Borghese is a landscape garden in central Rome, containing a number of buildings, museums and attractions. At 80 hectares, it is the third largest public park in Rome after the ones of the Villa Doria Pamphili and Villa Ada. The gardens were built by the architect Flaminio Ponzio, developing sketches by Scipione Borghese who used it as a villa to entertain his friends and to house his art collections. These beautiful gardens as we see them now were re-created in the early nineteenth century.

Few cities can rival Rome’s astonishing artistic heritage. Throughout history, the city has been involved in great upheavals of Western art, attracting the top artists of the time and inspiring them to push the boundaries of creative accomplishment. The result is a city overflowing with priceless treasures. These gardens are one of them.