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2nd day in Rome..
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With a good nights sleep under our belt we wake up feeling pretty much adjusted to the time and totally excited to see some major sights!! Our plan today: Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill. Weird thing we noticed right away - Italians don't eat breakfast! Seriously. So, Don and I were desperate for some kind of substance this morning - we end up getting croissants and a soda. Needless to say we had a lot of locals giving us very strange looks! After our powerbreakfest we hop on the metro and head to the Colosseum!
We arrive and step outside and the metro stop is right there smack dab in front of the amazing Colosseum! Our jaws dropped at the first sight of it. Keep in mind Don and I have been huge fans of this piece of history and have studied a lot about it - that is another reason why it was the first thing on our list of things to see. It was kind of funny actually we were almost stumbling as we were walking because we couldn't take our eyes off it. It's hard to put in words what it was like but all I can say is it was just unreal and awesome!
We walk around it and just take it in for a good half hour and then decide to get in the line to get in. The line was very short and before we know it we were next to go through the metal detectors. Just as the person in front of me put her backpack through the machine the power went off! At first we didn't know that the power went off - the security guards were all going crazy and wouldn't let anyone move - I was little scared at first thinking that they found something bad in someones bag. But then without knowing their language we could unfold what was happening. It was kinda cool - you can tell what is going on by reading body language and so on...
As we were waiting in line we noticed the huge flocks of tourist groups starting to join the line - it was getting longer and longer and we were at the front of it! Problem is.....we were now waiting 45min and still nothing was fixed. Do, we wait it out or come back another day? We wanted to see it sooooo badly! So, we hung in there and an hour and a half later we were in! Good news - the place was practically empty. Bad news - in about 20 mins it will be packed! But, we really didn't care either way - we were about to go inside the Colosseum!
We get in and our jaws just drop. The first thing I think of is that the ground I am walking on was once where Romans thousands of years ago were walking! Wow. It was all so amazing and surreal. We loved it and will never forget our memories there.
One funny thing to note is that when we done we sat in a park next to the Colosseum and watched these Con artists. Luckily our travel book (the best ever!! It's by RickSteves) warned us about these guys who dress up in a gladiator costume and offer to have your photo taken with a gladiator. They tell you its free but it really isn't. They manage to get anywhere from 1 Euro to 20 Euro's from suckers. So, Don and I watched as they did their magic and got people to pay them!
After our little break it was time to move on to the next awesome site! The Roman Forum.
We were blown away from this. The forum wast he political, religious, and commercial center of the city. Rome's most important temples and halls of justice were here. My two favorite things here were the Temple of Vesta and the Senate House. Don't get me wrong it all was absolutely amazing but these two just really stuck in my mind. The Temple of Vesta was cool because that could be considered Rome's most sacred spot. Inside the temple a fire burned, just as in a Roman home. And the Romans believed that as long as the sacred flame burned Rome would stand. The fire was tended by priestesses known as Vestal Virgins. I mean come on that is just plain awesome!
The Sentate house was super cool for two reasons. One, it was the most preserved thing in the Forum and two, because it was the most important political building in the Forum. I mean think of all the famous emperor's and senators that were in there and all the decisions that were made there. Awesome!
Then onto Palatine Hill. Phew! Palatine Hill is jam-packed with history -- "the huts of Romulus and Remus," the huge Imperial Palace, a view of the Circus Maximus -- but there's only the barest skeleton of rubble left to tell the story.
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| 6. | 2nd day in Rome.. - Rome, Italy Feb 05, 2008 (  8 ) |
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