The Coliseum

I slept so hard the first night. I had barely slept on the flight and the first day was already a lot. We were both falling asleep by 8 pm (2 pm Florida time). So when I woke up at 6:30 a.m. Italy time I was feeling very rested.

It was 9 a.m. by the time I slugged down a coffee at the lovely bar/restaurant in our little lobby. It was a chilly 40 degrees, but soon the sun was warming up the world and we were heading for the Coliseum. I was in Rome only one other time in 2014 with Katie. She had completed a summer college semester in Florence and I spent a couple weeks with her there. We took a train to Rome and stayed in an Airbnb. In fact it was that train trip that made us commit to packing light! She and I each had a massive suitcase hogging seats on the train when a young woman jumped on with only her backpack. It was June and very hot and crowded. Now, Rome was chilly and only a little busy.

Mike realized the The Forum was right next to the Coliseum. It was a huge area with hundreds of monuments and statues, columns and religious sights. And everywhere you look, there are ruins. The city is built in and around them. Every corner you turn, you see old buildings or pieces of ruins built within the existing walls.

I noticed a group of students on a field trip, like Katie’s 8th grade history students but instead of going to the Fun Spot they are touring The Forum….imagine!

The Coliseum was bigger than you can imagine, nearly the size of the lower bowl at the Citrus bowl. Below you could see where the lions and people were kept with the waiting crowd above. I once heard a lecturer discuss that in ancient times if you could provide entertainment, whatever that was, then you were really something so leaders learned to incorporate entertainment in order to remain popular. Still, this was hard to imagine.

We walked to the park where Katie and Alec got engaged in June awww <3 It was a lovely place with these crazy green Monk Parakeets flying around! We stopped at Trevi Fountain and it was verrrry crowded, as you can see below!

Notice how nearly everyone is wearing dark colors! Mike and I were both feeling like we stood out, he in his blue down coat and me in a fleece which although it is dark gray, no one is wearing a fleece. We started looking for coats–standby for updates!

The Pantheon is not far from Trevi Fountain. It is very quiet inside and as you can see it is open at the top. It is a marvel to see, with the oldest unreinforced dome. We sorta forgot it is also a church until a man directed Mike to remove his hat. Luckily for me, I got to keep mine on with my hair situationnnnnn just saying!

When we left there was a large gathering outside and people waving Communist flags. I was looking at the crowd and stepped off a curb I didn’t see, so another safety Note To Self–keep looking down when you’re moving!

I remember now that in Europe the police are obvious everywhere as they are here in Rome. Military personnel are also stationed in small groups frequently. And though they carry AK-47’s and in some places have it angled up with their finger near the trigger, there are so few shootings in Europe compared to the average 2 mass shootings per day in the U.S. that it feels very safe here.

The sunset from atop the city across the river was lovely even though the rain was blowing in.

Everywhere you look you see domes or crosses in the sky. We have already wandered into a couple small churches. In Europe I have found their doors nearly always open. Inside is a quiet place to stop your life for a moment, with each church uniquely beautiful.

The food has already been absolutely amazing! I remember from Italy before that their spices are way more subtle and almost no garlic is apparent. Our second meal was a vegetable soup with like croutons and a pecorino cheese pasta. Yes, it was fantastic!

Breakfast was a very yummy chocolate croissant and espresso. In Europe if you order espresso you get one of the tiny cups of very strong coffee, like only a teaspoon full. The cup in the picture is how it arrived–half empty. If you want a traditional cup of coffee, you have to order Cafe Americano.

I’m hoping to hit my stride with my writing and pictures, but wanted to post an update as I am able. (Sorry some of the pics are so big, I can’t remember yet how to size them.) It has already been incredible and we have thought about so many of you many times as we see things we know you would appreciate <3