Sunday, June 3, 2018 (Rome)

Arch of Constantine

Colosseum

This would be our last full day in Rome.  Before going to bed, we’d made a plan.  We decided Pompeii would have to be eliminated since it would take the entire day, and there would be considerable transportation cost.  Our drawback was that this was FREE Sunday so the crowds would be enormous at the Colosseum. We had no choice.

We had our first breakfast in Rome from a vending machine, included in the room price.  We headed over to the Colosseum.  We were stopped and offered a tour that would “skip the lines” and get us right inside.  We had lost our original tour and the lines were crazy long so we agreed.  Our guide had good English.  When he led our group in an opposite direction to the Roman Forum, we were all a little surprised.  He had good information about the Forum.  As the tour started an French girl, who was not with us, walked over to our group and said, “This is a sham!”  She harangued the guide about how he didn't start at the beginning with Romulus and Remus.  The tour guide and girl exchanged a few words and she walked away.  The tour resumed but the guide continued to bring up Romulus and Remus throughout the tour.  Apparently, he holds a grudge.

Our guide is in the lower right of the picture.

We heard about the Vestal Virgins.  They were selected between the ages of 6 and 10 and were to keep the flame going in the middle of the forum.  They held this position until they were 36-38 years.  They could marry after serving this position.  The average death rate was 29 so marriage was unlikely. Indiscretion before the age of 36-38 was punishable by being buried alive. This only happened three times.

Part of the Roman Forum

House of the Vestal Virgins

Johnnie

So-Called Temple of Romulus

The bronze door is original and the lock still works!!

These tombs reminded me of what Christ was likely buried in.

Tiffany showing you the Colosseu

Our group wanted to go back to the Colosseum so we returned to even longer
lines and hotter temperatures.   When it was first built it was originally called the Flavian Amphitheater after the Flavian dynasty of Emperors.  The Colosseum took less than 10 years to build.  It was built of travertine on the outside and tufa and brick in the interior.  The main pedestals were built of marble blocks.  There were 76 entrances which were numbered but there were four grand entrances that were not numbered. Tickets were distributed for the shows, each one with a seat number, tier number and entrance number.  The Colosseum consisted of four floors.  The first three stories had high, arched entrances.

The area at the bottom would have been covered with a floor. 
You are seeing the underground labyrinth.

We were not able to tour the underneath but learned how they are designed in a circular pattern similar to a labyrinth.  Animals were kept in the cages and the gladiators lived across from the Colosseum.  They would walk over through a tunnel and then remained in cages awaiting their turn to fight.  Animals were sometimes pitted against each other or highly trained hunters, either way being a blood bath for the spectators.  Animals included elephants, rhinoceroses, hippopotamuses and giraffes, bears and elk from the northern forests, hyenas, crocodiles, zebras, and creatures like onagers (wild donkey), ostriches and cranes.  Most popular were the leopards, lions, and tigers and the African beasts. As many as 5000 animals were slaughtered in one day, causing many wild animals to become extinct.

The Colosseum covers 6 acres.  There were two layers of underground tunnels and 32 beast cages.  Admission was free and the Colosseum held between 50,000 to 80,000 Romans. There were 36 trap doors in the arena allowing for elaborate special effects.  An animal might come up through the door.   The spectators would come and bring lunch and drinks for the entire day.  They would see gladiator fights as well as animal fights.  During lunch, executions would be held before the fighting would resume.  An estimated 7000 people died in the arena.

After our tour we had lunch and went looking for a bookstore that sold the book our guide had used that was very well done.  Alas, it was closed on Sundays.  We were hot and wanted to rest so we decided to take a bus ride to see some of the town. 

We caught the next bus which turned out traveled a route way on the outskirts of Rome.  Sometimes you just run upon interesting sites.  We kept seeing fresh flower stands along the side of the road.  Tiffany commented that we hadn’t seen any flower stands in Rome.   We soon found out why as we drove through the largest cemetery you can imagine.  There was a variety of venues for the final resting of loved ones.  We saw hundreds of spaces for the interment of ashes. There were grave markers of all sizes from ornate cement houses, massive to small headstones, down to plain wooden crosses. We were shocked at the numbers that must be buried here. While the grounds definitely needed care with tall grass and overgrown flowers, there were fresh flowers on most graves.  There were actually three bus stops within the cemetery.  On our last bus stop we picked up a lady who appeared homeless.  She brought aboard a duct taped suitcase, a couple of sacks and a bouquet of fresh flowers.  She was interesting and we enjoyed watching and fantasizing her next encounter as she carefully selected a purple flower to add to the side of her hair.

For the well to do...

Hard to tell but these buildings are full of tombs.

Little Wooden Crosses on the Hill

We decided to stop at the Pantheon since it closed early. When we arrived at the Piazza by the Pantheon, they were having some type of lymphoma cancer fund raiser. There was music and dancing and FREE HUGS. There was a huge line but we managed to meander in with the crowd.

Tiffany didn't notice the huge line and we just skipped in to the front.  Oops!

The hole is open to the sky.
There is a drain in the floor.

Tiffany had to have a free hug!

Pretty cool marching band with
some untraditional instruments.

Afterwards we headed to Palatine Hill to see it before it closed. I had gone to Pompeii on my previous two trips and had never had time to see the Roman Forum or Palatine Hill. I wasn’t looking forward to the walk up all the stairs (remember where we are staying) but Tiffany talked me into it and I’m glad. It was beautiful and there were numerous ruins so you could see how the area had been laid out many years beforehand.  The views were spectacular, overlooking the Roman Forum, the current city of Rome, and Circus Massimo where chariot races had been held.  It was a scene straight out of The Gladiator.

This was our last day in Rome so we had to see it all this evening.  We hopped onto another bus and went to see the Spanish Steps. Tiffany has been our navigator so she got on her GPS and led the way from our bus stop to walk to the Spanish Steps and then on to find Trevi Fountain.  Tiffany tossed her coin over her shoulder and as the legend goes, she’ll return one day.  I’ve been here three times so while always appreciating the blessing of being able to see other parts of the world, I decided Rome would not be a personal future destination. While we’ve been able to navigate the city, frustration has also been there as the bus schedules don’t always stop where the schedules indicate.  More than once we have waited for a bus, only to find it wasn’t coming.  While there were many choices for food around the Fountain, it was very touristy and prices were higher.  We decided to return to our area by the Colosseum and find dinner.  I had seen an interesting place the night before so we dined there and then retired to our room.

We had a very full day and were tired.  Around 11:00pm we slowly descended up the stairs to our room.  There were big gates on the front entrance which you unlocked, then another to the main building, and finally a key for our room.  Tiffany opened the big gate and we headed inside.  It was dark but they had motion lights that quickly came on in the courtyard.  Tiffany tried the front door lock and it would not open.  We could hear it clicking but it would not unlock. She tried several times, pushing and pulling. I kept swinging my arms so the motion light would stay on for us. Panic was starting to overcome us.  We rang the three doorbells but no one ever came down.  We could hear the doorbells ringing inside the office but no one was in the office.  I started praying for help and noticed a window open on the third floor.  I started to yell when Tiffany turned the key once more and it opened. Thank God for answered prayer.

We had a very early train the next morning so evening preparation was necessary.  We packed up and made a plan for leaving early.  Then, we realized we had not paid the balance of our room fee. We had not seen anyone in the office all day but we had been gone for most of it. We contemplated what time we should wake up in order to have plenty of time for a 6:55 train.  We decided to wake up at 5:00 just to be safe.  Good thing!

WALKING ACTIVITY:  10.1 miles; 22,684 steps; 15 floors