We FINALLY went and toured the colosseum!
With a little
trick we learned from some of the resident students here in Rome, we bought our
tickets that work for both the colosseum and the Roman Forum in the short line
at the Roman Forum, with which we were able to walk straight into the colosseum
(and not stand in line all day). The Colosseum today looks very different from
when it was in use, beginning in 80 AD.
Today, what was once under the floor of
the center where the events occurred is now exposed, and it’s easy to look
around and be totally confused where anyone sat, or really where anyone did
anything…
With that being said, it was so impressive! It’s still hard to wrap
my head around the fact that I’m actually living in Rome and can just casually go to the Colosseum like I'm going to the movies or something.
Afterwards, we still had half the day left, so we explored
yet another part of the city we hadn’t seen yet. We walked down Via del Corso
to Piazza di Popolo, where we were amused by people making giant bubbles for
probably an hour – I don’t care how old you are, bubbles will always be
entertaining!
(Me, Bridget, Paige, and Kasey!)
Then we walked up some stairs that led to Villa Borghese! (This is the view of Piazza di Popolo from Villa Borghese)
The
view of the city was spectacular, but the park was a wonder of its own. We
tried to discover all of its secrets (which we did not achieve) and found
ourselves on the opposite side still wandering.
(Paige, Bridget, Kasey, Caitlin, and me in front of a pond in Villa Borghese)
A bust of Lord Voldemort
A very fancy restaurant in the Villa
Sunday was dedicated to exploring the Roman Forum, and
finishing homework. The Forum and the Palatine were just HUGE.
We walked around
for three hours and still didn’t see everything. It was a beautiful day to
learn about Ancient Rome. There are so many landmarks in this one location that
it would be impossible for me to tell (if I knew) all the history on here. But
I did learn that Mussolini had this area excavated to try and unite all of
Italy when they were still a very young country and the north and south were divided. I believe his intentions were to remind the Italians how united the Romans used to be.
(Places in the Palatine)
Also, the Vestel Virgins are really interesting to learn
about; the Pontius Maximus would choose girls between the ages 6 and 10 to
become a Vestel Virgin, and then they would be treated to a life of pampering
for about 30 years.
(where the Vestel Virgins used to live)
However, if they didn’t follow their rules, like sleeping
with a man before they were allowed to, for example, they would be put in a
room underground that was then covered with dirt in order to suffocate them.
The Romans were really quite nice people.
Nevertheless, it was amazing to walk the same paths that
were used thousands of years ago, some even in BC times.
Observation of the
Day: When the going gets rough, just remember how lucky you are! I could
have stood at the top of Piazza di Popolo in Villa Borghese all day and just
soaked in how amazing Rome is, and truly lucky I am to be standing there in
that moment.
