Strolling through ancient Rome

I think it is safe to say that the most iconic site in Rome is the Colosseum.  It has stood the test of time and is a wonder to behold.  For someone who has never been to Rome, I knew my visit would not be complete without seeing it, as well as the Roman Forum and Palatino Hill.

Thanks to the advice of friends, guidebooks, and Internet forums, we decided to start our visit to these ancient Roman ruins in the early afternoon rather than first thing in the morning.  It wasn't as hot, and there weren't nearly as many tourists.

The ticket for the Colosseum is also good for the Forum and the ruins on Palatino Hill.  You have 48 hours to use it, which is nice because there is a lot to see and you don't have to rush.  We were told to buy our tickets at the entrance to Palatino Hill, which was one of the best tips we got since there was no one waiting to get in when we showed up, and we were able to bypass the massive line at the Colosseum.  Win-win!

Even though we had two days to see everything, we decided to do it all in one afternoon which made for a ton of walking.  We walked 40 minutes to get there, around the sites for another four hours, then to Trastevere for drinks, and then back home.  Mike's pedometer said we walked about seven miles, but it wasn't working the entire time so we think it was closer to ten.  We earned our carbs for dinner that night.

Since there were three different sites that we saw, I'm going to break this down into three different sections.

Palatino Hill

Palatino Hill is where Romulus and Remus were found by their wolf mother, and where Romulus supposedly founded the city of Rome in 753 BC.  The majority of the ruins on the hill are from Emperor Domitian's huge complex, which was built in the 1st century AD.

The ruins were expansive and beautiful.  It would be the perfect place for a picnic since there is a ton of shade and lots of places to sit.  We enjoyed wandering around, drinking water out of the many fountains, and looking at the different views of the city as well as the Forum.

The Forum

This site was my favorite.  The Forum was the heart of ancient Rome, and was so cool to walk around.  We downloaded Rick Steve's audio tour and listened to that on our phones as we went from place to place.  It was free and well done.  I highly suggest it.

We saw Julius Caesar's temple, where the vestal virgins lived, Titus's arch, and so much more.  Unfortunately, some of it was closed off but we managed to enjoy roaming (horrible pun) around anyway.

Perhaps the best part about the Forum was stumbling upon an elevated grassy area where there was almost no one.  It provided the greatest view of the Colosseum, and we managed to get some of the best pictures without a ton of tourists in them!

The Colosseum

We saved Rome's most famous site for last.  As I said above, we bypassed the line for buying tickets and were able to go directly in to the site.  We downloaded another Rick Steve's guide for here, but we barely used it because the way the site was set up was different than how his guide was.  Plus, we were getting tired by this point.  Since I have watched so many documentaries on the Colosseum, I knew a lot about what we were looking at.  I can't tell if that makes me a nerd or if that's a humblebrag.  Either way, if you're looking for a good documentary to watch about the Colosseum, check out the one NOVA did.  The elevator they constructed for this episode is still there.

The lighting was perfect for taking pictures inside and out.  It was also starting to cool down, so you didn't feel like you were roasting while climbing the steep steps between levels.  We probably spent only 40 minutes there, but it was enough time for us to grasp the magnatude of the site, as well as imgaine what it must have been like when it was full for games.

It was a long day for seeing the ancient Roman sites.  I came back to our apartment and slept for close to 13 hours.  No kidding.  But it made for a fantastic time and I wouldn't have done it any other way.