Program 554: Why I Love Rome; Garden Lust; Mountain Switzerland

Hear why Romans love their city, even with all its flaws. Then take a deep breath of fresh audio air as author and garden designer/director Christopher Woods tells us about his favorite contemporary botanical gardens around the world. And listen in for advice on visiting Switzerland and hiking in the Alps.

• Nina Bernardo, Francesca Caruso, and Susanna Perrucchini, tour guides based in Rome
• Garden expert Christopher Woods, author of "Garden Lust" (Timber Press)
• Tour guides Don Chmura

• Reservations are required for visiting the collection at the Borghese Gallery in Rome.
• Francesca Caruso recommends the Basilica San Clemente for viewing the archeological layers of Rome.  
• Francesca Caruso's website includes her contact information, and tips for securing tickets to  major venues in Rome.
• Christopher Woods wrote the book "Gardenlust" as a botanical tour of 50 of the world's best contemporary gardens.  He posts blog commentaries at his UrbaneHorticulture.org website.
• The Washington Post reviewed "Gardenlust."
• The Kew Royal Botanic Gardens are near London.
• Don Chmura has written a detailed guide to the hiking trails of the Bernese highlands of Switzerland.   
• Maisie Hitchcock is a co-host of the English-language Radio Spatkauf podcast about news and events from Berlin.     

Riga collapses
green nets hold it together,
keeps buildings intact.
— Rebecca Saffron, San Diego, California 

Greece was calling me
Where history was first taught
Civilization
— Nick Popolo, Staten Island, New York

I'm half Italian
My blood is from Vicenza
You're in big trouble!
— Chris White, Marlborough-on-Hudson, New York