QUANDO IN ROMA
- Hannah McDonald
- Jun 29, 2017
- 6 min read
Updated: Jun 10, 2022
St. Peter and Paul: A Christian holiday only celebrated in Rome. This is why we couldn’t get tickets for Vatican City. It was closed. However, we managed to get two tours, so it was going to be a big day.
After a taxi ride to the Colosseum, we met the tour group at 8:15 am. It was a nice and relatively cool morning. Our guide gave us each headsets, so we could hear what he was saying without shouting. It was a cool contraption I hadn’t seen before.
We got the privilege of entering the Colosseum through the stage area, which, apparently, isn’t common. My first reaction upon entering was “wow.” It was huge, but, while the walls were still standing, much of the inside is rubble. This partially has to do with the seats being deconstructed and reused throughout the centuries for other buildings. There was also another wall surrounding what can now be seen of the Colosseum, which was destroyed by an earthquake. Holes could be seen in all of the stone where steel reinforcement had been removed. Had the steel been left, the outside wall may have withstood the earthquake. In the upstairs level of the Colosseum there was more of a museum set up. You could see a stone seat that remained, which had a name carved in it of a gladiator who died in one of the fights. You could also see some of the original railings with decorations. I can’t even imagine how beautiful it was in its time.
Leaving the Colosseum, we walked over to Palatine Hill, where Rome is said to have been founded. Although it was mostly rubble, you could kind of get a feel for the palace and some of its rooms. We walked through both the private and public areas of the palace, what remained anyway. We saw where the fountain was, where royalty sat during events, and much more. I was surprised by how much remained in some cases. You could still see some original decoration and inscriptions.
Next, we went to the Forum. There was a good lookout point where you could see the Forum ruins along with a view of modern Italy. There were many columns that still remained and a couple of buildings with doors that still functioned. However, there were many areas where it was difficult to visualize what once was there.
After three hours on our feet walking, we took a cab to the chosen lunch restaurant because our tired feet didn’t want to walk. The restaurant was unique, vegetarian, and had lots of art on the walls. Unfortunately, they didn’t start serving until 12:30 pm, so we had about a half hour to wait. Joey and I both passed out on the table. Waking up to food ready though was really nice. It was buffet style, so we started with a plate with a little of everything. From rice and beans to pesto it was delicious. I went back a few times for sure.
Close to the Spanish Steps, we walked that way after lunch. They were completely covered in tourists. After climbing them, the view down the steps and down the street was beautiful.
From there, we took a cab back to our apartment for a fifteen minute power nap before our next tour. At 2:30 we met our next guide in the hotel lobby. He was full of energy and quite funny. A cab took us over to the Catacombs where our tour began. On the way, our guide mentioned how incredibly smart it was of us to come to Rome on the holiday, which was an interesting new perspective. We had been thinking of it more as, “of course we end up here on the one day so much is closed.” However, the guide is correct in that Rome was not busy at all today. Many roads were closed, so it was much easier to walk and get around.
Entering the Catacombs was eerie. The temperature dropped a great deal, so we were grateful to have jackets. All of the bones had been removed from this section, but it was still very mysterious. There were so many twists and turns. It would be easy to get lost, so I was glad we had a guide. There were slots after slots lined up for the deceased, and it seemed to go on forever. We saw both the traditional, simple slot covering with a first name written on it in red and a marble slot covering with a first name carved in it. The slot covering received simply depended on how much money one had. The single slots that lined the walls were called “locker rooms,” and rooms for a family to be buried in together were called “cubicles.” In many of the cubicles, you could see decorations and paintings lining the walls still. Although old and worn down, they were still beautiful. We even saw what they claimed to be the first ever drawing of Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus, but I don’t think there’s any way to know for sure if that’s the first. After seeing all the areas we could, the guide helped us to wind our way back out.
Back in the heat of the day, our guide asked us if we wanted a treat. The treat was a traditional Italian dessert similar to ice cream but just fruit and ice. Excited to hear of something I could eat, I said yes without hesitation. We got the peach and lemon flavors, which were delicious, There were clumps of peach in the peach flavor, showing just how fresh it was. I couldn’t get enough of it.
Next up on the tour was St. Clement Basilica, which is close to the Colosseum. This wasn’t any old basilica though because below the church was a fourth century structure that now is museum like, containing replicas and other exhibits. Below that is a 200 AD home where the quarter-master of the gladiators had lived and another building where money was made and kept, possibly. Each level had been buried throughout time and built on top of. Recently, another level was found even below the home and mint, but the guide said we will never be able to go down there. It was amazing to go down and see a bedroom in the quarter-master’s home. There are two statues in it, and you can see the beds. Walking into the mint, the walls got much thicker, indicating the value that was once held inside. In addition, there is only one entrance and one exit. Once we had climbed back to above ground, we admired the basilica that now stands. It is beautiful with a lot of detail, which the guide told us a little bit about. From there we went out into the court yard where there was a fountain. Some Irish monks live in apartments attached to the church, which you can see from the court yard. At the end of the tour, we asked our guide one last question. The past few days I had noticed a lot of military presence throughout the city, but I didn’t know why. He informed us it is to make everyone feel safer and to have more security. The Pope does live here after all.
Having returned from our big day, we treated ourselves to some crepes from a shop in the square by our apartment. They weren’t San Sebastian good, but they were good. We ate them on the roof of our hotel where the view was beautiful. It overlooked the entire city all the way around. There was a cello and guitar player down in the plaza, so we got to listen to music as well.
From there, we went back to the room for a quick power nap before meeting the Burris family for dinner. It was their first night in Rome after traveling down from Florence. We met them at an Italian restaurant in the square by our hotel that our Catacombs guide recommended. He was giving us advice on how to pick where to eat, but he wouldn’t give us specific recommendations. However, he did tell us where he was eating that night and ended up making us a reservation as well. As a result, we saw him at the restaurant, and he meet the Burris family. As the guide said, the food was delicious, and it was nice to catch up with the Burris family and their travels so far.
After dinner, we went to the roof of the Burris family’s hotel to see the view. They were staying in the hotel the Pope stayed in while the Vatican was being built. It had a great view of the entire city as well. They were touring the Vatican early the next morning though, so we said goodbye shortly after.
We heard fireworks going off in celebration of St. Peter and Paul, but our long day had gotten to us. We went to bed.
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