Rome

After Florence, we took the train to Rome. The next morning, we went straight to the Colosseum, which was right by our hotel. It has such a violent and gruesome history, it's a little funny that so many people celebrate it.

It's made entirely of travertine and is about 4 stories tall.



The seating area was arranged by class. The lowest and closest to the floor was for knights, the middle area was for wealthy citizens, and the top level was for general population. The whole Colosseum could hold about 45,000 people.

This is the area underneath the floor. The animals were kept here as well as some slaves.

These pictures show the process of how they excavated things.

This is what they excavated in the pictures.

This is a tribute to the Christians that were martyred there.

After the Colosseum, we went to the Roman Forum, which used to be the city center of Rome.

This is the Arch of Constantine. It commemorates the battle that led Emperor Constantine to convert to Christianity.

The Meta Sudans , which was an ancient fountain.

Palantine Hill, where most of the Romans lived. Excavations have shown that people have lived there since 1000 BC.

The Fountain in the Grotto.

Overlooking all of the ruins from the top of Palatine Hill.

The Arch of Titus. It was constructed by Titus' little brother at his death and celebrates Titus' battle victories. It inspired the Arc de Triomphe in France.

This part of the arch commemorates the Sack of Jerusalem. It shows the Romans taking the most valuable stuff from Jerusalem.

The Temple of Vesta. It was the center for one of Rome's most revered cults.

The building on the right is the Curia, where the 300 senators deliberated and has a speaker's platform, where they could address the general project.

The remains of the Temple of Vespian.

The three columns are the remains of the Temple of Castor and Pollux. There was a shrine there were the Dioscuri appeared in 499 BC to announce a crucial victory of Rome.

The column on the right is the Column of Phocas.

The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina. It was dedicated by Antoninus Pius in 41AD to his deity wife.

The Basilica of Maxentius. It was the largest building in the Roman Forum.

The Piazza Venezia.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

You need to enlarge the picture to see it, but the Pantheon is sponsored by McDonalds. :)

The back of the Pantheon.

The front.

The Oculus. The hole is about 27 feet.

The Dome here is the widest in Europe and is precisly high as it is wide.

The statue over Raphael's Tomb.

Raphael's Tomb.

One thing that amused us in Europe was the obsession with American fast food. Every fast food place we passed, especially McDonalds, were always crowded.

Trevi Fountain.

The Spanish Steps.

The Trinita dei Monti.

People in Rome, more that other places in Europe, walked where they wanted to. You can see some cars trying to drive down the road admist the pedestrians.

While we were at the Spanish Steps, the Rome Police Department band were doing an adaption of A Christmas Carol.

There were churches everywhere.

The Piazzo del Popolo.

The Santa Maria del Popolo.

The Keats and Shelley House. The exterior is exactly how it was when John Keats traveled to Rome while sick and he eventualy died here.

We went back to the Trevi Fountain at night. It really is a beautiful fountain. We tossed some coins in. We've heard a couple of variations of what wish you get when you do this. The tour book we had said if you threw a coin in, you would ensure a return visit to Rome, but we had heard that you would get any wish.

There was a guy who kept offering to take our picture with his polaroid. We told him about 4 times we didn't want one, but as soon as he saw us have someone else take one with our camera, he came running over and started following us around, telling us he could take our picture. I almost paid him to go away.

Our hotel was right by the Colosseum, so we went back to get a picture at night. We got caught in a tremendous rain storm, but it was definently worth it.