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It took some convincing after our horrible tour guide at the vatican, but finally we were all convinced (or at least agreeable) to paying the extra 10 euro (plus 11 for the entrance fee) for the Colosseum. |
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But first, a few sites nearby... This is a war monument (not a city entrance) - the Arch of Constantine - to celebrate the liberation of Rome. |
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Posing (sorta) for a picture with the paper... My mom works for the paper in Garden City, and they have a policy where if you have your pictures taken at a well known location they'll put it in the paper. |
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Ever wonder what happened to these walls? No, it wasn't designed to be like that... they look finished off now because they've been reinforced to prevent further damage. The original damage was mostly caused by an earthquake in 1349. |
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Notice the numerals above the arch ways, these are marking the entrance number so the people coming to the games would know which entrance they were supposed to use. The colosseum was divided into multiple levels, each one for a different class, with women (other than important women) only allowed at the very top so their chatter wouldn't disrupt the games. |
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They've rebuilt a bit of the ground level so you can se where the games took place. All the area underneath was where the animals for the games were kept, and then under the seating area was whee the gladiators cages were. |
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The smell wasn't anything to pleasant... the floor would be covered with sand, and after the animals were slayn and the sand soaked up all the juices, there was quite a stinch. Of course, the most important people sat down close, so this wasn't acceptable... they used many strong perfumes, possibly burning in various places around the arena. |
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Around the top far above this was a system of ropes creating a net leaving an oval opening in the middle open. They would slide out banners along the ropes creating shade for the seating, but letting light come in to the center of the arena. |
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Across the way in the roman forum, here we see posts of what was a giant game room. You can see that the brickwork used to be covered in marble. Various places in the brick were left open where scaffolding was used during construction. Since it was all covered up anyway, they just left it open. |
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The tour guide for the roman forum... a very exciting fellow. |
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The roman forum with the Colosseum in the background. |
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The progression of the roman empire (the first one on the far left just shows Rome by itself) |
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Monumnet to Vittorio Emanuele II.("Altare della patria") - a monument to the first king of unified Italy. It was completed in 1935. |
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Fontana di Trevi. Man was this place packed! It's the largest baroque fountain in Rome. Its name stems from the fact that it's located at the meeting point of three roads (tre vie). The tradition is that throwing a coin in ensures that you'll return to Rome. The fountain collects about 3,000 euros per day! |
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Flowers & Mom. |
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The Pantheon ("Tempe of all the gods") built as a temple to the gods of ancient Rome. One of the best preserved ancient Roman buildings (125 AD), and possibly in all of the world. |
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Inside the Pantheon. The Pantheon was turned into a Christian church in the 7th century. |
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The oculus of the Pantheon lets in light. And rain, on rainy days. |
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Piazza Navona, home of Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi. |
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Column of Marcus Aurelius, built in honor of the Roman emperor for whom it is named sometime around 180 AD. It hasn't moved from its original site, here at Piazza Colonna right outside Palazzo Chigi, the official meeting place of the council of ministers - headed up by the Italian Prime Minister. About 3 meters of the column's base are below ground level. The relief tells about Marcus Aurelius wars, with oversized heads so you can see the facial expressions. |
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It's the top of the hour! Bell tower at the top of the spanish stairs, at Santissima Trinità dei Monti |
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The view from the top of the spanish steps, Fontana della Barcaccia there at the bottom (fountain of the old boat). |
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Fountains at night, at Piazza del Popolo (plaza of the people) |