Roma II: Imperial Rome, Trastevere

Day 2 saw us up early to get to the Coliseum before the crowds. Abby had pre-purchased tickets so we just needed to find out where to pick up our audio guides. We arrived before the booths opened and were among the first people in -- though the crowds picked up quickly.

There was nice morning sun and shadow as we roamed the Coliseum. Here are couple of photos from outside before we entered:

     

And then we made it inside. I wasn't sure what there would be to see -- I had heard it was not in great shape -- but it was worth paying to go inside. Over the course of the day we would learn a lot about gladiator contests and other spectacles in the Coliseum. I won't bore you with the details, but it does seem that most proper gladiator fights did not result in death. Rather gladiators were trained to fight without killing their opponents, and they were all free-men and fairly well-remunerated. They were part of a sports-entertainment business, like modern day boxers or UFC. They were members of a manager's stable of fighters, an investment, and so death was a loss of investment. On the other hand, slaves and prisoners were not so well treated, and the Coliseum was also the site of gruesome events, including executions by wild animal or by putting a prisoner in the ring with a seasoned fighter. It was also the site of other entertainment, and one interesting thing about visiting is seeing the tunnels and rooms underground, including holding cells for exotic animals, under the now-disappeared floor where the fighting or show actually took place.

        

As you walk up the steps and along the various decks and concourses of the Coliseum, you realize how little modern stadium design has departed from it. Though some of its stones were taken for later buildings in Rome, it is intact enough to let your imagination take you back 2000 years.

Abby thought the kids might enjoy the audio guides at both the Vatican Museums and the Coliseum, and she was right. They both got a lot from listening to the recordings.

In these next couple of photos I appreciated the way the shadows hid the people.

Look at the column in this next photo. Ancient Rome was just filled with massive columns like this. It is mind-boggling how much labor -- slave labor -- was required to build and maintain this ancient city of bronze and marble and stone.

I did take the opportunity to teach Charlotte and Cyrus to identify the three main sorts of capitals on columns from the Greeks: Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian. I don't remember exactly when my dad first imparted this bit of knowledge to me, but I do remember him driving me around Syracuse (NY) in search of the three types of columns for a school project I was doing.

We then made the short walk from the Coliseum over to the Forum area, where so many great historical events took place. You can just let your imagination go in a place like this while reading about the events and realizing you are walking where the ancient emperors and other historical figures walked. Among them was the philosopher Seneca, whom we last saw in in the outer reaches of the Roman Empire, in Cordoba (where he was born, before coming to Rome as a young child). Seneca was tutor and adviser to Emperor Nero.

The following pictures capture some of the scene.

Notice the menorah in this carving on the 1st century (!) Arch of Titus -- depicting some of the spoils the Romans won in Jerusalem.

Here, by the way, is Titus himself addressing the crowd, from the Vatican Museum sculpture rooms:

This is an original bronze door:

The ruins...

In that previous photo, the Senate building is the one furthest to the left. It is in very good shape.

In the next photo, up on the top of the hill (Palatine Hill), you can see many little people looking back down at us. The structure just under their feet is Caligula's Palace:

One tidbit we learned this day: because all of Rome's young and middle-aged men were in the military maintaining order somewhere in the empire, the city itself was made up mostly of women, children, and the elderly (those who had completed their military service), and of course housemaids, slaves, and so forth.

At this point, we were tired and had time before our next activity. We decided to head up a hill into the nearby Monti neighborhood, where Eric the previous year had directed us to a church, San Pietro in Vincoli, that is most famous for housing Michelangelo's sculpture of Moses. We found a spot for lunch near the church, but were disappointed to discover it was closed during the middle of the afternoon.

Despite some tired legs, we continued our lovely walk in the Monti neighborhood, and we did find our way into another beautiful church that Eric and I had also visited, Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore. There was no bathroom, however, so we did not stay long.

It seems almost every church in Rome is a basilica. And there are so many large, beautiful, old churches -- which in other cities or towns would be the star attraction -- you start to wonder just how much money they all cost to build at the time. But, besides the artwork, one very nice thing about these churches is the quiet escape they offer from the busy streets. By the fourth day, I came to think that introverts had a real incentive in Rome to become Catholics (though of course anyone can enter).

Anyway, at this point we needed a bathroom somewhat urgently, so we hailed a taxi a bit early to head to our next destination: Gladiator School. It was located out a bit, along the ancient Appian Way.

This gladiator school had been recommended on a travel blog for kids that Abby found, and though I was skeptical -- thinking it must be hokey -- the reviews were so positive that we decided to sign up. It was worth it, and not just for the bathroom.

After waiting around a bit, we were joined by one other family -- the Odens from Minnesota -- and our guide. The guide was an avid amateur historian of the Roman Empire and skilled practitioner of various fighting styles. He was knowledgeable, but also remarkably tone deaf about the downside of empire (he seemed not to register that being conquered by the Romans might not have been viewed as a good thing by some peoples), and he relied on sexist and other stereotypes for a lot of his banter. For instance, he made a big deal about what good fighters Australian women are: "They fight like men!" I guess gladiator school is not where we should expect a more enlightened worldview.

In the course of two hours, the guide introduced us to the more militaristic elements of ancient Rome, described the business of gladiator fights, and then led the participants in gladiator training and fighting. Only Charlotte and Cyrus were signed up, so Abby and I watched. Overall, it was a lot of fun.

The school had not only a museum section with helmets and spears and so forth, but a small arena in which to play gladiator. The group that organizes this school works to promote the study of ancient Rome elsewhere, as well, and so puts on demonstrations and other events for educational purposes.

            

 This next one is a video:

Towards the end of these battles, Cyrus whacked Charlotte pretty hard on the arm and then Charlotte caught Cyrus on the cheek, also causing a bloody nose. Nothing a gelato couldn't fix, but here is a photo of Cyrus's badge of gladiatorial honor:

From there, we headed to the artsy, offbeat neighborhood of Trastevere, where again my colleague Justin (who once lived in Rome) had given us a great recommendation -- this time for dinner at a place called Roma Sparita. While we waited for the restaurant to open, we walked around the neighborhood a bit, and popped into the beautiful church of Santa Cecilia just next door. Trastevere is a wonderful area. It is near a curve in the Tiber river, and the narrow streets are filled with art shops and cafes and hanging plants and interesting mosaics. The restaurant itself is famous for its cacio e pepe served in a bowl of crisped-up parmesan cheese. Justin said I really should try it, and I was not disappointed.

Church of Santa Cecilia (note the Ionic capital and colorful mosaics in the first photo):

Its outer courtyard, at night:

Along the Tiber:

The next photo shows the Piazza di Santa Cecilia at night, with the church courtyard entrance to the left and the Roma Sparita restaurant to the right. We sat outside under those lights with a view of the piazza:

And that was that. A wonderful Day 2. We were ready to head back to the apartment to bed.

I am sure Abby and the kids remember more details about the Coliseum and the events of the day, so I hope they do comment. It must be said again that they did so well on another very full day of walking and sightseeing.