To start the day, Marsha wanted an American breakfast. We found a few places searching online, but none of them were near the Colosseum. We finally located a place that was really cute (covered in ivy) and had great reviews. And best of all, it was about two blocks away.
Upon arrival though, it was really, really small and didn’t look like it had enough seating. However, there was another little place called La Licata that was right down the street. Their “American Breakfast” was a little off (included lettuce salad), but their pancakes were great and fresh squeezed orange juice even better. We finished up in plenty of time to walk around the Colosseum a bit, snap some pictures, and then sit in the shade while we waited for our tour.
After we got signed in, given our stickers and headphones, we were introduced to our terrific guide. She hailed from Japan, but had lived in Italy for over two decades, and from my count, spoke at least three languages.
Side note: We ended up going with Crown Tours, which I think is fairly new. I’d originally tried to get the official guided tour that included the arena and underground, but it sold out right away. After looking at the other official tickets (audio tour, limited access), we opted to go with a tour group. And boy are we glad we did. The Colosseum has a maximum capacity of 3000 people, and tour groups are given first priority. Even if you have a set entry time, you could be waiting forever (in the hot sun) to get in.
Our first stop was outside the Colosseum where she explained that it was in use for about 500 years. Half of it was destroyed in an earthquake, and much of the marble was re-used to build the Vatican.
NOTE: Sorry for the image rotation issue. I'm working on that.
From there we went into the Gladiator’s gate that led straight to the arena floor. The original floor is long gone, but they’ve reconstructed a portion of it. Here you can see where the ruling class sat, the commoners in the upper tiers, and a view of the underground. She also explained that Gladiator is only about half right. It was more akin to Broadway with producers who put on the shows. Many involved parades of exotic animals (elephants, giraffes, crocodiles), and the gladiator games were both with mercy and without. Only 10% of the shows were without, and the men killed were typically condemned prisoners. And since only one of each pair died, the actual death rate was only 5%. Brutal, just not overwhelmingly so.
Next we went into the underground, which was the part I really wanted to see. It was smaller than expected (hence the limited access), but still cool. They had a reconstruction of a lift that was used to raise gladiators and animals to the stage. Of which there about 80, all hand-cranked by slaves. While the underground was well lit for us (sunlight), in its day it was dark and lit by torches. Almost everybody (animals included), waited their turn under the stage. Except for the big stars who came in through the Gladiator’s Gate.
After our tour, we were given some time to wander the upper tiers (and refill our water bottles) before heading out to meet our next tour guide. He took us over to the Roman Forum (seat of government) and Palatine Hill (where the ruling class lived). This was a large area and extremely fascinating. Like the Colosseum, much of the marble had been stripped and use for construction elsewhere (like the Vatican). He also showed us a photo from around 1920 where most of what we sawwas still buried a good 20 feet underground, prior to excavation. The ground in the photo below was once even with the top of the steps.
But what was most fascinating to me was that we got to stroll the actual streets once walked by Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, and other historic figures. Today we think of them more as fictitious characters, but this is where they really lived anddied.
Speaking of which, Julius Caesar wasn’t actually assassinated in the Roman Forum, but at a smaller building nearby. But he was publicly cremated in the Forum. What’s more, his nephew and successor, Octavian, spent the next several years bumping off the folks who’d killed his uncle. The first Godfather?
After the second tour, we found a good shady spot with a breeze and cooled down for a bit. Eventually we worked up enough energy to climb the stairs up to the top of Palatine Hill. From there the views were just incredible: of the Forum, the Colosseum, and the “Wedding Cake” nearby.
By this time we were getting tired (and tired of sweating), so we decided to take a chance and see if the restaurant where we had dinner reservations would let us in an hour early. On our way out, we passed the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument, aka the Altare della Patria, aka “The Wedding Cake.” It was built to honor Victor Emmanuel II, thefirst king of a united Italy. Until 1871, Italy was actually a collection of city states, which had a long history of being conquered by other countries.
As soon as wegot to Luciano Cucina Italiana, I knew it wouldn’tbe a problem. They had plenty of seating. They’re known for their Carbonara, which is highlighted on the menu and served with a gold fork. Marsha wasn’t crazy about her dish (fries meatballs), but Madison and I loved ours. Naturally, I had the Carbonara. Which was excellent!
We ate dinner outside in the piazza, and had a glass barrier around us. I say that because we’ve noticed that in Rome the street hustlers and beggars are far more aggressive here (most of whichdo not appear to be from Italy). We had a guy come right up to our table last night and shout “Hey!” when I didn’t immediately noticed the spinning thing he’d stuck up near my face. They’ll chase you down even after you tell them no and throw their bracelets at you, trying to get you to pick them up. Tonight we had an older woman step right up to the glass and start talking to me. I couldn’t quite hear her and tried to tell her so in Italian. Then I tried to tell her I couldn’t understand her. I assumed she wanted money because she had her hand out. But she wasn’t budging. Finally, one of the waiters had to tell her to move on.
Finally, we started the long trek back to the hotel. We found ourselves in Piazza Novona again and just had to stop. It’s even more beautiful at night and has easily become our favorite. Most especially because you don’t have to fight your way through hundreds of people just to see the fountain.
Speaking of which, we ended up going by Trevi Fountain again on our way back. We thought maybe, this being a Monday night, it would be less crowded. Not a chance. It was even MORE crowded. Couldn’t even see the fountain, so we just kept going.
Another thing I’ve noticed is that because the older streets are so narrow and there’s so many pedestrians, you’d easily think they’re pedestrian only. And while some of them are, you’d be dead wrong about the rest. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve had to get out of the way of cars squeezing their way through. Even down alleys I was convinced were too narrow.
Once we made it back to the room, all three of us were so sweaty we had to shower. Tomorrow we head to the Vatican, which we’re praying is mostly indoors.
Ciao!
Ciao!
No comments:
Post a Comment