This morning we arrived in Civitavecchia, the port for Rome. By 7:30 AM we were off the ship and on our way for a private tour with several friends. Our driver and guide was Marco of Rome Connection. What a great job he did! Today was a big holiday in Rome and despite that he managed to get us to everything on our itinerary.
Our first stop was the Colosseum or as it is properly called the Flavian Amphitheater. It is amazing to see this edifice that was completed in 80 A.D. Our guide told us that when it was built it seated around 30,000 people and would operate all day long. People would drop in for a little while to see events and then go on about their business..
We next did a whirlwind tour of ancient Roman sites. We visited the area that was once the Circus Maximus, the place where chariot races were held. Now all that’s left is a grassy oval with an area that approximates the track on which the races were run. At the time it was in use there were stands around which would hold 300,000 people. The city of Rome had an estimated population of 2 million even in its early days. We saw the Palatine Hill with the ruins of the palace of the Caesars and the Forum, the center of Roman life. Our final stop at ancient sites was the Pantheon. This was built as a temple to all the gods of ancient Rome. The present structure was completed in 120 A.D. and it is intact, not in ruins. It has been in continuous use since then, first as a temple and from sometime in the 8th century as a Roman Catholic church.
After lunch we visited some of the other must- see sights. We stopped at the Trevi Fountain and tossed in our coins to ensure our return to Rome some time in the future. After a quick stop at the Spanish Steps, we drove to St. Peter’s and the Vatican. Because it was a holiday the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel were closed. We were able to go into the Basilica though and look at Michelangelo’s beautiful statue of the Pieta and look at the magnificent nave. The scale of St. Peter’s is difficult to comprehend from photos. The dome over the center of the nave has a Latin inscription around the base of the dome. The letters of the inscription are about 6 feet high. The structure around the main altar includes columns that are four stories high. The building is magnificent!
After a lot of walking on a lovely warm, sunny day we decided we needed a treat. Close to the Vatican we stopped at what Marco told us is the best gelateria in Rome. All of us had a nice big gelato and it was delicious!
During our nine hour trip we saw lots of beautiful and interesting things but really only had a brief taste of this wonderful city.
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