Well, the early birds continue to rise and we are down to the breakfast area of the convent bright and early to see what damage we can do this time! Liz was able to operate the coffee machine no problem – check. Lynda did not make a mess getting her tomato and bocconcini cheese – check! We have gluten free items available – double check! No one is stealing our gluten free items – even better! Lets have breakfast!
We decided to strike out fairly early today and go to the Colosseum. Liz has only seen it from the outside and I was able to obtain tickets to the area (Colosseum, Palatine Hill and Roman Forum) for us to visit without queuing in line. Let`s just call it the “rollator” express entrance to the Colosseum. I find the colosseum awe inspiring with how large it is along with the fact that those walls were built by hand – no cranes existed in those days! Andrew and I have taken a tour of the Colosseum previously so I went the same way that I had gone before and we checked out all the views. Basically we went up to the 2nd floor (elevator) and walked all the way around and then went down the elevator and based on my last experience, went to exit. However the guard looked at our tickets and said that we could also go to the ground floor of the Colosseum and check it out! So that was pretty cool – to be able to walk into the Colosseum where gladiators have walked and check out the views. This access is on a platform which used to be the floor of the Coloeum and underneath, but not accessible to me, is all the inner workings of the Colosseum from times past – such as rooms for the animals, gladiators etc. After exiting the Colosseum, we then walked over to Palatine Hill which I have never explored previously, so this was a new experience for me!
If you are walking away from the Colosseum and towards the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill is to your left. I think a lot of people miss it – the tour that I took with Andrew did not take us there and I can see how easy it would be for people to not understand what is up the hill. Palatine Hill is one of the 7 hills of Rome and based on what we saw. was inhabited by Romans many eons ago. Once up the hill (which is hard going due to the cobblestones) we saw some dwellings that had been restored along with some interesting sculptures. We walked over to a house looking structure and its gardens and found next to it, while probably was the peak of the hill, a wonderful HUGE patio or vantage point over the Roman Forum and looking towards the Venetian Piazza. We stat for a while and people watched and realized our tickets were for 2 days so we could do the Roman Forum tomorrow, so at that point started our walk back to the convent.
As we were in the area pf a restaurant that Andrew and I had been to previously, Liz and I decided to go there first for an early dinner of pizza and salad. That worked out well and then we were on our way back to the convent. At this point in time, the sky was a little bit grey and no sooner than 2 minutes after we each got into our rooms, the sky opened up with a torrential rain downpour! I was very glad that we had gotten back to the place were were staying on time! It was an early night for me, while Liz went for a walk after the rain storm just to up her total milage for the day.
Tomorrow – Pantheon and Roman Forum!
