Picture-postcard views of Castel Sant'Angelo

Within the vast selection of world famous attractions Rome has to offer, there are some that deserve your attention even though they usually do not make it to the top 5 lists. Castel Sant'Angelo is one of those attractions.

This cylindrical building on the bank of river Tiber was built by Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family and was later used by popes as a fortress, castle and a retreat in times of trouble. It is now a museum.

Amongst popes that found this fortress especially useful was also pope Alexander VI of the Borgia family. He is the main character of the popular TV series The Borgias (starring Jeremy Irons). It was him who built the secret passageway linking the Vatican and Castel Sant'Angelo, for which also many of his successors were duly grateful.

If you approach the castle from the other bank of the river, you will have to cross a beautiful bridge with angel statues (Ponte Sant'Angelo). There is also a great photo opportunity from the bridge in the direction of Vatican.

The castle and the surrounding area offer many great views every photographer will appreciate. You can see a few quite nice examples here, but I guess if I visited the same location at some other time of day (or night), many new photo opportunities would appear.

Among highlights this castle has to offer are also views from the top of its walls. You can see most of the city but the view towards Vatican city is one of the best. You are also welcome to check out a photo taken in the direction of St. Peter's Basilica from the castle's cafeteria in the next Wordless Wednesday's post.