Rome Day Three

The first thing we did was head out to the Trevi Fountain.  We wanted to be there early to miss most of the crowds.  This site was popularized by the film Three Coins in the Fountain.  Legend has it that if you throw coins into the fountain (over your shoulder, back to the water) then you will be guaranteed to return to Rome.

We didn't want to screw up that karma so we tossed the coins over our shoulders for luck.

We got there early enough to see the armed guards watching as the coins from the previous day were cleaned out with a giant shopvac.  Turns out, they collect approximately 3,000 Euros a day.  This money goes to subsidize a supermarket for the needy.  When you toss coins in, you're helping the less fortunate.  It's a beautiful fountain, and a win-win for the tourists.


Since we got such an early start, we walked toward the Tiber River.

The view of Saint Peter's Basilica was tremendous.  It was a little hazy, but still a lovely view.  Rome is lovely with its twisting alleys and streets, cobbled paths and walkways, and winding roads.  We strolled through the tiny streets meandering our way down to the Coliseum.  The  Flavian Amphitheater was also called 'colosseum' because of the colossus statue of Flavius that used to stand outside it.

I could devote a whole blog to the Coliseum.  It's one of the greatest architectural wonders of the world.  I tried to imagine what it looked like all clad in shining marble before it was stripped off by the Christians to gild their churches.

In its heyday, this venue housed gladiator games and competitions.  There were beastieries below
the floor of the stadium with mechanical trap doors and gates to allow the handlers to move them from their cages into the theater.




There were several layers of seating.  The ground floor was reserved for the senators, rulers and their guests.

Lower ranking men climbed a rank of steps up to the next levels.

I'm told that merchants and freed men had the next level.  Then slaves, and on the top rank, women were allowed to watch.

It figures that I'd have to schlep up all those sets of stairs.

I don't know how anyone could fail to be impressed by the sheer size and structure of this amphitheater.



We climbed up a mess of stairs and from the top, you can see into the lower sections where the animals were housed, and the slaves pushed the wheels to raise and lower the doors.

The conjecture is that there was a wooden floor, covered with sand, that the gladiators fought on.  At some point in time, they built a half stage out of wood over part of the Coliseum and they've left that there as a partial example of what the floor might have been like.

You can only walk in, and on, some of the sections.  Restoration is ongoing, and I imagine it will always be so at the Coliseum.  Romans are devoted to preserving this symbol and part of their historical heritage.

From the Coliseum, we strolled past the Roman Forum and saw the ruins of the Gladiator School and Barracks.  From there we climbed the Palantine Hill to see the birthplace of Rome and the scenic vistas.  Throughout Rome, you see images of what it must have looked like, but on the Palantine, it's laid out for you as far as the eye can see.  The site was undergoing renovations so we couldn't get to the side with a view of the Circus Maximus, but I don't feel ripped off.  I think it would take a month to actually see all the sites in Rome.

For dinner, we ate at the Taverna dei Fori Imperiali.  It was lovely.  We shared our pastas and main courses and it doesn't matter what Spano says, I won that round.  I had raviolis in pesto sauce that were to die for, and my veal course was magical.

--  Sandee Wagner