Rome's river island, the Isola Tiberina, has long been associated with healing. In the 3rd century BCE, it was the site of a temple to the god of medicine, Aesculapius, and still today people come here to be cured at the island's small hospital.
From near the hospital, steps lead down to a river-level path where you can enjoying cooling river breezes as you walk around the ship-shaped isle.
The island is connected to the mainland by two bridges: the 62 BCE Ponte Fabricio, Rome's oldest standing bridge, which links with the Jewish Ghetto, and Ponte Cestio, which heads over to Trastevere.
Visible to the south are the remains of the Pons Aemilius. Also known as the Ponte Rotto or Broken Bridge, this was ancient Rome’s first stone bridge, and was all but swept away in a 1598 flood.
