Rome, Italy

In Rome, we only had one day, but we had a lot planned. We would need more that a day to see Vatican City, so we decided to bypass that and see it next time. What we wanted to see the most was the Colosseum, so we opted to ride the subway there and make our way back through the city on foot, stopping at the Forum, the Pantheon, The Trevi Fountain, and the Spanish Steps.









We had to wait in line about a half hour to get in the Colosseum, but it was well worth the wait. The Colosseum was built in 80 AD and is still the largest building ever built in Rome. It was used for gladiator shows, among other things, and was able to hold 50,000 people. The structure is partially deteriorated due to earthquakes and stone robbers, but you can still get a really good sense of what it must have been like originally. On the inside, the original wooden floor is missing, so you can see the maze of rooms below where the gladiators and animals were once kept before entering the arena.





Right outside and across the street from the Colosseum is the Roman Forum which is a plaza surrounded by numerous ancient government buildings. It was the center of Roman life for hundreds of years and although it is in great ruin, it is amazing to see it still standing here. It consists of a great number of structures, mostly government buildings, but also temples dedicated to gods, royal residences, and an assembly area. Some are in better shape than others. We were particularly fascinated with the temple of Caesar and the complex of the Vestal Virgins. When we approached the complex, we were lucky enough to be right behind a tour guide who told us about the Vestal Virgins. They dedicated their lives and their chastity to the Goddess Vesta, but if they strayed from they're path, were buried alive.





Our next stop was the Pantheon, but we needed to stop and rest our feet a little. We sat at a cafe directly in front of the Pantheon, which is probably one of the busiest cafes in Rome. When I asked the waiter if he spoke English, he said "probably better than you do". Although the cafe was busy, we couldn't have picked a better setting. There were a lot of tourists, but also a lot of Italians passing by in their daily grind.



The Pantheon was truly amazing. Built in 126 AD as a dedication to ancient Roman gods, it's ceiling is the world's largest unreinforced dome. It has since been used as a tomb for the painter Raphael and several Italian kings, and a Roman church. It has a beautiful marble floor and a hole in the center of the ceiling called the oculus, which is it's only source of light.






Next we went into a small deli and got some arancini, small deep fried rice balls, and sat on the Spanish Steps for some people watching. The steps are the widest staircase in Europe and there were a lot of people doing the same thing we were.








Our last stop was at the Trevi fountain. A must do for anyone visiting Rome. They say if you throw a coin over your shoulder, you will return to Rome one day, and we definitely wanted to come back. We needed way more time in this beautiful city.