Oak Street Ranch

Disneyland for the Ancients

Day Three, More of Rome!

March On! To Rome!
Today, we have more sightseeing planned. Thank heavens for the continental breakfast at the hotel. Got a lot more walking to do!

We decide to get an earlier start to the day. Another walk - back through the city, to The Forum area, the Colosseum and the Palantine Hill area. To the heart of imperial Rome.

There is so much to describe, that we would simply not do it justice. We started slow, with Trajan's Market (the first real mall); the Forums of Trajan, Augustus, and Julius Casare. The size, scope and scale of these constructions is stunning, when viewed in person. It is amazing to see what basically amounts to "modern" construction of plazas and throughfares, but done in marble and columns and mosaic.


Arches (through the Forum area, the Capital area and the Palantine) of Septimus Severus, Constantine, and Titus. Basilicas and temples.
One winds one's way up to the top of Palantine Hill (one of the Seven "original" hills of Rome). There are several really good reasons - The Romulus Huts (the start of the city of Rome); The height of the hill, upon which to view the panoramic scope of the heart of imperial Rome; the site of the imperial palaces (renovated and expanded by Tiberius, Nero, Domitian, Hadrian and Septimus Severus); and, most importantly, at the Palantine Hill, you can buy a combo ticket that gets you in the Palantine area, AND into the Colosseum without waiting in the epic line outside of it!

You also get quite a sense of the daily life of imperial Rome. You see parts of what was basically a Roman apartment/housing complex.
You walk the pathways which those visiting Rome would stroll down, into the heart of the city, past the temples, through the arches, down to where the senate met.

The Colosseum - Also - epic. Words fail to describe the way it strikes you. Throw in some snack bars and lighting, and its like being in the Rose Bowl (the seats in the Colosseum might actually have been more comfortable). Although damaged by earthquakes, stripped of marble to make other monuments, and of course the ravages of time, you STILL get the sense of the scale of the place.

The Colosseum, Forums and Palantine area is like Disneyland - with tourists checking out the Temple of the Vestal Virgins, rather than "Its a Small World" (though, I think the Vestal Virgins have a better song....). People taking photos, tour groups, an entire cottage industry of souvenir vendors (think mouse-ears), food stalls, guides, etc etc etc. Its just surreal.

We've thrown in some photos. Perhaps more to come on a third party photo site. For now, let me just say that the photos and descriptions till won't do it justice. You could spend days on just these areas. Suffice to say, it was just pretty darn cool to stand on the plazza overlooking Domitian's private stadium where horse and chariot racing took place, also where you could see the Colosseum off to your left - and think, yeah, this is pretty much what life would have been like for him (and I think life would be pretty good!)

Lunch was just some pizza from a small place between the Spanish Steps and the Metro station. After everything we did today (walking-wise), NO guilt at eating pizza!
Tonight's dinner should be good. Another place with a lot of recommendations.

Thank you to everyone who took a moment to look upon our little travelogue. Greetings and good wishes to you all.
A special thank you to:
Kel -for taking care of everything at home (including Mabel!);
Sandie W. - thanks for everything - the planning, the good advice and the good wishes!

Cheers for now!

Mitch & Jen

posted by Mitch @ 7:41 AM