Rome's Colosseum

After a 2 course lunch, I decided to try to make it to at least one famous Roman site. Looking at them maps I got from the hotel, it appeared that I could walk to a train station, change trains once, and get off at the Colosseum.

Setting out with my umbrella I found the train station a few blocks from my hotel. During my walk it started raining, and continued to rain until the late evening. Going north wasn't too hard, and after 5 stops I came to the subway. Getting off the train was easy, but now it was 6pm and rush hour. I have never felt like a sardine in a can until that ride. I got on quickly and many more got on in back of me. The door started to close, but couldn't. Someone from the outside pushed the last person in and I was surrounded by a sea of humanity.

I only had to go two stops and get off, but how do I get off from the middle of a packed subway car? When my stop came I pushed as hard as I could and, while I didn't know what was said, could hear Italian curses. But I did get off. Once outside the station I could see the imposing edifice that was the Colesseum!

The building was much larger than I imagined it. I had a hard time trying to take pictures and not get rain on my camera. Surrounding the Colosseum was a world of antiquity. The only one I knew was the Arch of Constantine. It was built in 312 AD to commerate Constantine's victory over Maxentius but for some reason it looked almost new, despite its almost 2 millennium existence.

There were obvious archeological digs going on as well as resorations and lots of "deferred maitenance". If Rome can put it off for 2,000 years, why not California Parks. (An inside joke for DPR folks.) But the area was indeed filled with ancient Rome. And, despite the contant rain, the area was filled with tourist from all corners of the globe.

Looking at my Rome map, I could see so many areas that I would have liked to explore, but my time in the city was pretty much limited to a few early evening hours. Fortunately the historical monuments here don't close early like they do in California.

My ride back to the hotel was somewhat less crowded at 8:30 than it was earlier. And while I enjoyed seeing the beautiful colosseum (remember that Bruce Lee killed Chuck Norris there), I already missed Lago di Como. Hopefully I can return to my Northern Italian roots in the future.