Not only should you not miss this incredibly beautiful Villa, if you are in Rome on a Monday, almost all the museums are closed - but not this one!

I saw this on my second trip to Rome (Monday) when I had just one day in the city (in between flights). I found it perfect and breathtaking - the ceiling frescoes in the room of the Galatea are incredible. While Raphael has all the fame (and did one very fine work in this room) the rest of the ceiling is equally fine - in a different way. It's the horoscope of the patron/owner of the villa, painted in mythological and celestial images. I cannot imagine anything cooler.

The Psyche and Eros frescoes are also stunning, as are the frescoes in the upper floor of the house. This is one of the most intact villas in Rome, surrounded by gardens, in a beautiful and easily accessible part of Trastevere.

If you have not already seen the Santa Maria of Testevere, that makes a nice stop before or after the villa.

I also bought the book guide and the DVD of the villa for myself and for others as gifts. It is something very unique - and much more intimate and quiet. A good place where you can really absorb the experience of the art.

Also the gate/arch nearby is one of the very recognizable spots in the film To Rome With Love (Woody Allen) where Alec Baldwin first meets Jesse Eisenberg...