This morning we woke with high expectations of the things we were going to accomplish today. First off, after breakfast, we would get the Roma Pass which gave us free access to 2 sites and discounts on the rest. Included was the free use of the metro system (buses, subway, trams, etc.). We headed over to the railway station which is about 2 blocks away to search out the information center. I use the term search accurately since the station is multiple layers and a about 2 blocks in size.
Then we headed to the metro to go to the coliseum and what a mad rush that was. Once again we basically got pushed into the metro car and held our breath since there was no room to breath. No worries about falling over as the subway started and stopped. However you become very conscious of feeling of hands anywhere on you since the warnings are out there to be aware of pickpockets and this is a prime time and place. After Athens we are very aware and careful where we put our wallet and other important things. We are using our money belts and that should be safe but we still have to be aware. However, I have to admit that my camera case is an issue since I have to hold it up out of the way so it is not snatched and not digging into those around me on the subway. Ok, no issues on this trip.
We arrive to he coliseum and the first thing as we walk into the area is we are approached by someone in costume offering to have his picture taken with him. Not thinking I said sure thinking he was part of the local publicity. However when he asked for 40 Euro I had to say no way. It was a good picture so I did give him 4 euro and although he was not a happy camper I suggested that if he had told me up front about the costs I would have refused. So be happy with the 4 euro.
With the Roma Pass you by-pass the line-ups to get into the coliseum which we were told is not a huge issue right now in the spring, but in the summer the line-ups can be very long and slow. Today the line-up we passed was a bit long but likely only 15 minutes. We simply walked by and right in so that was nice. We decided to take a guided tour but had about 40 minutes to wait for the tour so we did a quick walk around and picture taking on our own, and then enjoyed the tour. I found this to be very relaxing since I had an idea of what she talked about and was not trying to take pictures at the same time. Basically the coliseum can be viewed in 4 levels, the outside views,
the upper levels where seating occurred,
the stage or main floor level, and the sub-floor level.
The Coliseum is well described by this article I found on the internet and if you are interested in the history and use of the coliseum follow this link.
The Palatine Hill was our second goal of the day. The Palatine Hill is the centermost of the Seven Hills of Rome and is one of the most ancient parts of the city. It stands 40 metres above the Forum Romanum, looking down upon it on one side, and upon the Circus Maximus on the other.
The Circus Maximus (Latin for great or large circus, in Italian Circo Massimo) is an ancient Roman chariot racing stadium and mass entertainment venue located in Rome, Italy. Situated in the valley between the Aventine and Palatine hills, it was the first and largest Chariot Racing Stadium in ancient Rome. It measured 621 m (2,037 ft) in length and 118 m (387 ft) in width, and could accommodate about 250,000 people, over a quarter of the city's population. The site is now a public park and retains little evidence of its former use. We did not get over to see this park.
It is the etymological origin of the word "palace" and its cognates in other languages (Italian "Palazzo", French "Palais" etc).
Rome has its origins on the Palatine. Indeed, recent excavations show that people have lived there since approximately 1000 BC. According to Livy, after the immigration of the Sabines and the Albans to Rome, the original Romans lived on the Palatine. Many affluent Romans of the Republican period (510 BC – c. 44 BC) had their residences there. During the Empire (27 BC – 476 AD) several emperors resided there; in fact, the ruins of the palaces of Augustus (63 BC – 14), Tiberius (42 BC – 37) and Domitian (51 – 96) can still be seen. Augustus also built a temple to Apollo here, beside his own palace. The Palatine Hill was also the site of the festival of the Lupercalia.
One building, believed to be the residence of Livia (58 BC – 29), the wife of Augustus, is currently undergoing renovation. Situated near to the house of Livia is the temple of Cybele, currently not fully excavated and not open to the public. Behind this structure, cut into the side of the hill, is the so-called House of Tiberius.
Overlooking the Forum Romanum is the Flavian Palace which was built largely during the reign of the Flavian dynasty (69 – 96) – Vespasian, Titus and Domitian. This palace, which was extended and modified by several emperors, extends across the Palatine Hill and looks out over the Circus Maximus. The building of the greater part the palace visible from the Circus was undertaken in the reign of the emperor Septimius Severus (146 – 211).
Immediately adjacent to the palace of Severus is the Hippodrome of Domitian. This is a structure which has the appearance of a Roman Circus and whose name means Circus in Greek, but is too small to accommodate chariots. It can be better described as a Greek Stadium, that is, a venue for foot races. However, its exact purpose is disputed. While it is certain that during the Severan period it was used for sporting events, it was most likely originally built as a garden shaped like a stadium. According to a guide from the Sopraintendenza Archeologica di Roma, most of the statuary in the nearby Palatine museum comes from the Hippodrome. (Domitian also built a larger stadium that was actually used for foot-racing competitions; it exists today as Piazza Navona, lo stadio di Domiziano.)
The Palatine Hill, and the Roman Forum beneath it, is now a large open-air museum and can be visited on the same ticket as the Coliseum. The entrance is on Via di San Gregorio, the street just beyond the Arch of Constantine, going away from the Coliseum.
The Roman Forum was our third area of touring today as we left the Palatine Hill and dropped down into the forum. The Roman Forum is a small, rectangular forum (plaza) surrounded by the ruins of ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this marketplace as the Forum Magnum, or simply the Forum. It was for centuries the center of Roman public life: the site of triumphal processions and elections, venue for public speeches, criminal trials, and gladiatorial matches, and nucleus of commercial affairs. Here statues and monuments commemorated the city's great men. The teeming heart of ancient Rome, it has been called the most celebrated meeting place in the world, and in all history. Located in the small valley between the Palatine and Capitoline Hills, the Forum today is a sprawling ruin of architectural fragments and intermittent archaeological excavations attracting numerous sightseers.
Many of the oldest and most important structures of the ancient city were located on or near the Forum. The Kingdom's earliest shrines and temples were located on the south-eastern edge. These included the ancient former royal residence, the Regia (8th century BC), and the Temple of Vesta (7th century BC), as well as the surrounding complex of the Vestal Virgins, all of which were rebuilt after the rise of imperial Rome. Other archaic shrines to the northwest, such as the Umbilicus Urbis and the Vulcanal (Shrine of Vulcan), developed into the Republic's formal Comitium (assembly area). This is where the Senate — as well as Republican government itself — began. The Senate House, government offices, tribunals, temples, memorials and statues gradually cluttered the area. Over time the archaic Comitium was replaced by the larger adjacent Forum and the focus of judicial activity moved to the new Basilica Aemilia (179 BC). Some 130 years later, Julius Caesar built the Basilica Julia, along with the new Curia Julia, refocusing both the judicial offices and the Senate itself. This new Forum, in what proved to be its final form, then served as a revitalized city square where the people of Rome could gather for commercial, political, judicial and religious pursuits in ever greater numbers.
Eventually much economic and judicial business would transfer away from the Forum Romanum to the larger and more extravagant structures (Trajan's Forum and the Basilica Ulpia) to the north. The reign of Constantine the Great, during which the Empire was divided into its Eastern and Western halves, saw the construction of the last major expansion of the Forum complex — the Basilica of Maxentius (312 AD). This returned the political center to the Forum until the fall of the Western Roman Empire almost two centuries later.
We finished our day of touring very tired. We had skipped lunch since we were inside touring the forum at lunch and did not want to leave since re-entry is not an option. So by 3 we were ready to call it day and go find lunch back near our hotel. Then we returned to our room and had a rest until about 7:30 when we decided to for a walk before eating dinner. As you can see our eating schedule is a bit out of sorts right now but we are surviving. Tomorrow we are off to the Vatican, so that will be interesting and hopefully not as much time on the feet (yeah no likely!). We have decided to extent our stay in Rome one additional day so we can have a day to go to a couple of art galleries and museums. Still we will miss seeing a lot here.
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