Rome Part 1, Italy 09.08

After arriving on the overnight ferry, we took a train back to the central station in Rome. We had a place to stay at in Olgiata, but we decided that it would be fun to stay in Rome for a few nights. We wandered away from the main station, and found a tourism office. It was more for booking flights and stuff like that, but we asked where we could find a hostel. She pointed across the street, there was one just behind us! We liked the central location, so we checked straight in to the hostel.

We were eager to see the much anticipated city, so we headed straight out for some sightseeing. Our first stop was the Colosseum! Nice place to start! We stepped out of the subway station, and there it was in front of our eyes, the incredible and huge Colosseum! It was quite amazing to see for the first time in real life. Artur had visited before, but this was Loren’s first time. We just wandered round admiring it and the nearby monuments until we were ready to go inside.
Unfortunately, getting inside was a lot easier said than done. The queue for tickets was about 2.5 hours! We weren’t prepared to lose that much time in our short stay, so we went looking for a loophole. We found it just out the front, as we were approached by countless hired backpackers selling tours of the Colosseum. The tickets enabled us to skip the long queue and the guide would tell us all we needed to know about the history of the building. It was perfect, so we bought tickets and then tried to find a place to wait for our guide in the shade. Unfortunately she was running late, so we were stuck in the heat along with other disgruntled tourists from our group.

Soon enough the guide arrived, and captured our hearts immediately. She was a hilariously eccentric Italian woman, carrying a red parasol and a transparent plastic handbag. She had a high pitched voice with a strong accent, which we found adorable. She also had a funny way of smiling, where she only moved the mouth region, so it looked like a dentist had asked her to show her teeth, or like she was asking someone to check if she had food stuck between her teeth. It was very funny! She would also become very distracted at times between explanations and be mouthing words to herself, or she would freeze in the middle of her funny mouth stretch smile, and be staring distractedly into the distance.
To begin the tour, she led us to the back of the queue of people waiting to go through the metal detector. On the way, she was waving her arms in the air at the people in line, saying ‘Please, please keep moving, keep moving’. There was nowhere for them to go, so it was funny watching their faces as this mad woman came past. We were surprised to be at the end of the queue as we thought we were skipping it, but it turned out we were skipping another queue; the one after the metal detector, that was for people without tickets.
The building was quite overwhelming inside as well as out, even for Artur who was on his second visit. In its prime during the Roman times, the Colosseum was covered in marble and could hold 50,000 spectators seated, and 75,000 if they were standing. There were box seats, sections for the plebeians and lots of reserved seating for the rich and aristocratic members of society. Even the Vestal Virgins, who were the pagan forerunners for nuns, had reserved seats. There were even refreshment stands, toilet facilites and a giant retractable sail that served as a roof and shade against the sun.
The Colosseum was built by Emperor Vespasian in 72 AD and was finished by his son Titus in 80 AD. It was built on the site of a huge artificial lake that Nero built in honour of himself. After Nero died, Vespasian decided to return the huge expanse of land to the people, by building an entertainment facility there for them. It was built in an ellipse or oval shape (180m by 160m).
The Colosseum was actually able to be converted into a huge pool of water, instead of just a sand arena. This enabled people to watch real sea battles on boats, in the middle of the Colosseum! However, the gladiators were the main feature of the games at the Colosseum. People treated them like movie stars and celebrities of today, but their performances involved fighting panthers, hippopotamuses, crocodiles and occasionally one another. The stories about Christians being killed in this building, are actually just stories. It was in another bigger venue that this took place, the Circus Maximus. Despite this more recent revelation in archaeology and history, a cross still remains in the Colosseum today, where the Pope put it long ago, in memory of the Christians who never died there.

It was also possible to visit the underground section of the Colosseum, but if you want to do it, you have to write a letter to the Ministry of Tourism, and request a private viewing. We didn’t have enough time to do something like that that, so we contented ourselves with seeing all of the higher levels of the Colosseum. There was an amazing view from the top level. We could see the layout of the whole building, and the winding maze of underground tunnels, which are exposed without roofs in some sections. We could also see a temporary stage which had been set up for a ballet performance. They occasionally hold concerts and theatrical performances there.
We saw an exhibition on one of the floors, which showed a lot of pieces of statues, carvings and inscriptions that used to decorate the Colosseum and other buildings from ancient Rome. It was great to see some of the decorations, as most of the marble that was used to cover the Colosseum and these other buildings, was stolen by rich families. These stores of ancient marble were kept until a family member became the Pope and then it would be donated to the Vatican. This way, the families produced a powerful Pope and had their names displayed along with their donations. The Church was also involved in deconstructing part of the Colosseum, so they could take its marble. This was before archaeology was invented, and they didn’t realise they were destroying history.
The Church also left a few souvenirs of their own, including the huge cross. Some of these include plaques that they placed onto the columns of the Colosseum. If you kiss one of these plaques, you are granted pardon for your sins for the next 12 months. As you can imagine, this is popular with religious pilgrims and ‘barely believers’ alike.
After our tour, we were hungry and craving some real Italian pizza, so we wandered off to find a restaurant. We found a great place right near the Colosseum, that served spectacular pizzas. It was so nice to sit down, after being on our feet in the heat for so long.

Catacombs of San Sebastiano
Next we decided to visit some of the ancient Catacombs, where the Romans and Christians buried their dead. We had a bit of trouble figuring our how to get there though. We took the train to the nearest subway station, which was still a long way away. We were hoping to catch a cab the rest of the way so we wouldn’t miss the opening hours, however there were none to be seen. We asked for directions to Appia Antica, where the Catacombs were located, just so we’d be walking in the right direction. We headed on our way, but still we found no taxis, and our walk was getting longer and longer. We ended up walking for 1 hour in total at an extremely fast pace. We were walking like they do in walking races!
Eventually we made it to a park, that looked like wild land, but had a path leading through it. We made our way to the other side of the park, and eventually reached Appia Antica. Unfortunately, the catacombs were still several kilometres away. The Appia Antica was actually a very famous road, and was the most important and strategic road for 2300 years! It was built in 312 BC for military purposes. After Spartacus’ revolt in 71 BC, it was lined with the bodies of crucified slaves, as a blood warning to all those who travelled this road.
The road looked very old, and was lined by huge walls on either side. It was impossible to guess what lay on the other side of these walls, until you caught a peek through an open gate or door. There turned out to be lots and lots of huge houses and the occasional fancy looking restaurant. It was nice to look at, and it felt ancient, but to walk along it was petrifying! The road was extremely narrow, and there was little or no footpath. We plastered ourselves against the wall the whole way along, trying to avoid the crazy Italian motorists. It was hard enough for them to fit cars going opposite ways, let along us on the side.
Eventually we made it to the Catacombs of San Sebastiano. We made it about there about 15 minutes before they ran the last tour for the day. Tours were compulsory, as the tunnels stretched for literally hundreds of kilometres. While we were waiting for the tour guide, we admired the ancient pieces of sarcophagi on display in the foyer. There were lots of carvings on the side of the sarcophagi, and many depicted scenes from the Bible, or pictures of the deceased. Most had some sort of Christian symbol on them, which were explained by a big picture chart. It explained what each of the symbols meant, and why they were put there. There was even a Swastika symbol, which meant death when pointing one direction, and life when pointing in the other.
These Catacombs were actually the largest complex in Rome. They were first used by the romans, but then the Christians took over them as a place to meet in secret and a place to bury their dead. The Roman tradition was to cremate bodies and put them in jars inside the crypts, but the Christians wanted to bury the bodies as a whole. During the time of their persecution, bodies were often displayed in horrible ways by their persecutors. In order to prevent this, the bodies of martyrs and of Christians were stolen back or hidden away after death in these catacombs. Entire families were buried in one shelf in the wall.
There were several floors of tombs, and the tunnels looked very similar, so it would have been easy to get lost. The guide pointed out the shelves on either side of the path, that were used for storing bodies. She also showed us the symbols that the Christians had carved on their tombs, and the remains of an old oil lamp that would have been used to light the passageways.

The Roman tombs were the best preserved, as they were only discovered quite recently. The Christian ones had been plundered and many things were taken or damaged, so it was nice to see the untouched Roman tombs. They really looked more like little houses inside, rather than a tomb. There were little paintings and patterns on the ceiling and the walls. They were quite empty, but pretty and interesting to see.
After seeing the Catacombs, we saw the big San Sebastiano church, which was just above us. There were some beautiful sculptures in the alcoves, including a famous one by Bernini. The church was quite spectacular, with ornate carvings on every doorframe and arch, and a spectacular gilded ceiling, with paintings of the saints.
There was also a beautiful sculpture of San Sebastiano, on his own sarcophagus. He is depicted with arrows stuck into his body. This is because he was sentenced to death for being a Christian, and shot with arrows. He managed to survive somehow, and a Christian woman found him and saved his life. He was discovered a second time, when they found out that he didn’t die, and he was successfully executed.
After seeing the catacombs, we managed to find a bus that would take us back, instead of walking. We were very relieved, as we were fairly tired by that point. We took the metro after that to subway station ‘Piramide‘, which is aptly named after the pyramid shaped building there. We admired the pyramid, and had a cold drink, before we headed off to see the Spanish Steps.

Spanish Steps and Piazza de Spagna The Spanish Steps were quite impressive, and were absolutely filled with fellow tired tourists, sitting and taking a break from being on their feet. It was a beautiful place, a little overcrowded, but still great to visit. Apparently it has been a meeting point for tourist and locals for centuries. It was originally built for the French in 1725, but in the end it became dedicated to the Spanish Embassy. The steps lead up to a church at the very top of the hill. The steps were built to link the Piazza de Spagna with the rich people living at the top of the hill.
In the Piazza itself, is the Fountain of the Baraccia, which is by the famous Pietro Bernini. Tourists were crowded around it in throngs, some people grabbing some fresh water from the ancient aqueducts in their drink bottles. It was great to see another amazing icon from Rome that we had seen in pictures and movies so many times before.
As we left the Piazza, we entered one of Rome's most expensive and elegant shopping districts. The main street was filled with beautiful boutiques selling the most recognised designer brands in the world. Not only did you see names like Louis Vuitton, Emporio Armani, Hermes, Gucci etc, but sometimes you'd see the same store repeated further down the street. One store on a street just isn't enough for these brands.

We spotted lots of Goth girls near our restaurant. This marking on a wall nearby could mean they had a bar or hangout point nearby.

After drooling at the beautiful shoes and dresses, we left that street and found a great restaurant. It was called 'Gusto', and is well known for its huge list of wines and cheeses. We recieved a folder full of wine listings to choose from. It looked as thick as a student's school folder for their hardest subject. The writing was very small, and there were tables of stats on each one. We took a wild guess at what a good one would be, and hoped it would turn out ok. The restaurant also had a great selection of appetisers. There was a buffet of appetisers to choose from, and you were given a small plate, to fill once, but as many things as you liked. The wine, the appetisers and the pasta were all spectacular. We would definitely be happy to come back there!

Piazza del Popolo

Next we walked to Piazza del Popolo, which wasn't too far from where we were eating. We were amazed by its size, and by the enormous obelisk in the centre. At one end of the square, there were two huge churches. They looked identical, but if you looked closely, you'd realise that one was octagonal and the other was hexagonal.
There were fountains at the base of the obelisk, and another two beautifully lit fountains at opposite ends of the square. Inside the fountains, there were beautiful sculptures, and at another four side of the square, there were even more amazing sculptures. We were very impressed by all of the pieces around the square, and by the huge and architecturally spectacular buildings.
At one end of the square, there were steps leading up to a high viewing point. It was getting dark, but Artur can never resist a good view from a mountain or tower. In this case it was a very large and steep hill. We made the long climb to the top, on our very tired legs, but we were very pleased with the view when we finally made it to the top. The wind was nice and cool, a refreshing change to the day, and the lights all over the city were just beautiful.This hill is actually pretty famous. We found out later that Strauss, Grandi and Mussolini all liked to stroll along here and watch the life below in the city.
We walked back towards the Spanish steps, along the top of the hill. We saw some amazing paintings on the way, which Loren was very impressed by. They were a beautiful impressionist style, with pretty Italian landscapes, flowers and houses. They were very expensive, and the best ones were the large ones, so we decided it would be too hard to look after while we were travelling. We had to settle for just admiring them.
To see the photos from the post in slideshow mode, click on on the link below:
Rome pictures