Roman Ruins & Coliseum | Spanish Steps
Rome: This was a big day. Our last day in
Rome and our last day together. Tomorrow, Steve and Mary will be heading off
to Greece with Woody and Kathy and DT and I will be heading south to
Sorrento to meet up with Shirley & Martin!
Mary had arranged for a tour (again through
Angel Tours Rome)
of the Roman Forum and The Coliseum, so we were up early for breakfast on
the roof-top terrace (yummy cappuccinos) and we walked from our hotel to the
ancient ruins. Another day, another ancient ruin.
Our guide today was a young English girl - in love with Italy and in love
with an Italian sailor. We met at the top of the Coliseum Metro station and
divided into groups - our group being the six of us! Our walk started
through the Roman Forum and included many temples, triumphant arches, baths
and government buildings. Most things have been excavated to their original
level - many things are undergoing excavation presently and others are in an
unspecified situation. We walked on the ancient and famed Roman roads.
Again, it was impossible to absorb everything in a two-hour tour. It would
take a life time to understand the intricate lifestyle of early Roman
society.
Yet another winged goddess
Those fun Romans: celebrating their plunder from Jerusalem -
the solid gold menorah is still missing
Our
tour of the Forum area outside of the Coliseum went through many temples and
government buildings, but we also saw elaborate bath houses (with hot, warm
and cold baths) where massages and foot rubs were offered. We also saw the
sophisticated sewer system and fresh water system. The water system - still
in use today - ensures that water from any water source in Rome is potable.
It is safe to drink from the sink in your hotel, the spigot on the street,
or from any fountain in Rome.
Just a few minutes into our tour, a beautiful young Central European girl
approached our guide and asked if this was the tour she had signed-up for
on-line. There was a bit of a discussion and it was determined that she had
indeed signed up for our tour and since she had the face of an angel... the guys said it would be acceptable that
she join our tour. Anna was a knock-out. The boys were happy.
Kathy called this photo "relics amongst the relics" (except for Anna)
A close-up of the winged Goddess of Victory (Nike) on an arch
A lizard living in the ruins
The Roman Forum (dt)
Roman Forum ruins
The ruins
After our walk through the Forum, our tour continued "next
door" at the famous Rome Coliseum with our guide. We climbed brick stairs
that were once covered in marble and entered the stadium where Gladiators
once fought to entertain the Emperor.
Everyone together in the Coliseum - photo by Anna
Added later: Our new friend Anna, was
beautiful - but the girl should only be in front of the camera - never
behind a camera! Here are (never before seen in public) copies of the
photos Anna snapped with Mary's camera before the final shot (above) was
finally produced.
Anna's Photos:
Anna's feet
Anna was deleting me!
Timing is everything
Please forgive me; but we found Anna's photos priceless.
The Coliseum
The Coliseum
Photo from the floor level
We were on our tour for over 3 hours and were ready for a
rest, a cold drink and something to eat. We stopped at a nearby pizza
restaurant (there is one on every corner) for a tasty lunch. After lunch, we
split-up and headed off in different directions to see the last sights or to
do a little shopping.
Pizza, soda and a coffee for eight Euros!
After lunch, DT and I walked all the way around the Coliseum
and Roman Forum ruins to the Circus Maximus. Chariots once raced on this
course - now joggers and dogs walk the circle.
Circus Maximus
We continued our walk down the Tiber River, over the river
and back across via the pedestrian bridge over a small island in the middle
of the river. Our goal was Rome's historic Jewish temple, the Great
Synagogue of Rome. The temple is open twice daily for tours and prayer, but
when we arrived there was a funeral, so our tour plans were abandoned.
Instead, we walked through the Jewish neighborhood of Rome - where the
Emperor once walled-in the Jews and would not let them outside the walls
after dark. With the amount of security, guards and bomb-barriers in place
in the area, it doesn't look like things have changed much for Rome's
Hebrews. The synagogue was beautiful and huge and the homes and apartment
buildings in the area were very nice and there were actual trees lining the
streets.
The Great Synagogue of Rome
Our next stop was the cat sanctuary. Hundreds of cats live
in a sunken garden amid 4 ancient temples. They are some sort of refugees
from the Coliseum - which used to be their home. They now live in safety,
are neutered, vaccinated and very well-fed.
Roman feline (dt)
Lucky kitties (dt)
More
walking and more walking. As we approached the Pantheon there were police
sirens and about 6 African men came running down the streets with their arms
loaded with fake designer handbags - street vendors selling counterfeit
purses. The police chase them off, but the bootleggers just place their
wares on the next corner. There are signs at the airport warning tourists to
not buy the bags and I guess they are serious. As we entered the square in
front of the Pantheon, the police were handcuffing two Italian women and
putting them in police cars and an undercover cop was gathering the
confiscated handbags into a pile. The African men had all escaped.
More walking - we still had not visited the famous Spanish Steps. Sorry to
say, they were a big disappointment. So mobbed that it was nearly impossible
to climb the monument and the church at the top was in scaffolding, so the
photo below isn't very attractive. All the shops surrounding the Spanish
Steps were top-line designer - Gucci, YSL, Ferragamo... plus one shop,
simply named "Expensive". We did not go inside.
The Spanish Steps (iStock photo)
The Spanish Steps the day we were there
So, it was back to the Trevi Fountain for us - it was on the
way back to the hotel and I wanted to get a daylight photo. We stopped at a
cafe - it had been hours and hours and miles and miles ago that we had sat
down - for a cool drink before finally arriving back to the hotel.
The Trevi Fountain, in black & white
This is what Neptune's sees. Another mob scene.
We gathered with our friends for a last meal together. We
finally have learned the art of eating Italian. You wander around until you
find a cafe that looks nice. They all have basically the same menu, so that
isn't as important as ambience. You secure a nice table and order a
cocktail. Later, you order an appetizer. Even later, a salad and on and on.
If you place your order all at once - everything arrives all at once, or it
comes in waves and it is inevitable that one person is sitting there with a
salad and an entree and another person has no food at all. Americans are in
such a hurry - we need to learn to relax!
After dinner, we walked a bit, stopped for another glass of wine and I
snapped another photo of my fat friend, Mary. Bigger than a car. That girl
simply needs to keep away from the carbs.
Pedometer: 31,199 steps (HUGE!) 13.3 miles! Gelato of the
day: Coffee. Two scoops.