To start off we visited the Roman Coliseum. For the second site, again, we were sure to pre-buy our tickets before we left the States. This saved us standing in line for the second time, but today we made it on time! We met up with a group of about 12 people and had a guided tour. Afterwards, we had plenty of time to explore on our own.
It officially opened in A.D. 80 and was used consistently for four hundred years. The "basement" of the Coliseum is open to the air, it is thought that there was a covering but it was movable. Fighters or animals could be raised on elevators through openings in the floor for ease of movement.
Each level of the Coliseum was reserved for different castes of people. Nobility were allowed to sit the closest while those that were poor could observe from the highest levels. Very similar to today - your seats in a stadium are mostly based on where you can afford to buy tickets (yep, upper level for me!).
There are a few shops and restaurants surrounding the Coliseum. If you can walk a few blocks away it will save you some money. We stopped at a little place for lunch and sat outside in the shade (at least there was a bit of a breeze). Of course we had to order pizza, but we also tried an interesting appetizer made of pumpkin flower. It was deep fried and tasted delicious - if you get a chance, try one!
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| Fried pumpkin flower |
After lunch we walked over to the Roman Forum. This is where the people used to live and interact with one another. Rick Steves also offers an audio guide of the Forum, so we popped on our headphones and took a self-guided tour.
Some of the buildings have served multiple purposes over the centuries. A temple built for a wife by a grieving husband stood at much higher ground. Later, when the building became a church and the street level had been lowered a set of stairs was added to provide access.
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| Temple of Antonius and Faustina, later on became a church. |
Julius Caesar lived and died at the Forum. His funeral pyre is preserved and many people have left offerings of money.
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| Caesar's funeral pyre - many have left offerings. |
The Forum also contains the House of the Vestals and the Temple of Vesta. This classic story of the Virgins that kept the fire burning to Vesta. Young aristocratic girls were chosen (aged 6 to 10) to serve in the temple for 30 years and were required to stay chaste for the entirety of their service. In A.D. 394 the temple was abandoned when Theodosius I, a Christian emperor, ordered it.
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| Temple of Vesta - the Vestal virgins lived behind the temple in an elaborate house. |
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