Italy Trip Day 5: Roman Forum, Palatine Hill, and Colosseum

We enjoyed a delicious meal with wine last night after touring Vatican City. I was all set to relax and maybe catch up on a bit of sleep, but apparently my body had other plans. Have I mentioned that I am a painfully light sleeper? Like snoring, moving, lights, any noise from other floors, heck even breathing too loud wakes me up and then I have trouble falling back asleep? Yep. At home we sleep with not one, but two box fans on in our room and half the time Barrett or I ends up on the couch upstairs. I've tried earplugs, Melatonin, sleeping with music, etc, etc, etc. So, I knew sleeping might be an issue on this trip as it usually is when I travel, but here I was saving money by rooming with Candi...

Halfway through the second night I scrawled out a note to Candi and grabbed just the bare essentials (I still didn't have my luggage!) and trudged down to the front desk. The night-time clerk at the hotel happened to be the kindest and most helpful clerk there, and he was able to get me my own room for the remainder of that night at half price and then a different, smaller room, for the rest of the stay on the same floor as Candi. I was so thankful, and though  I felt pretty dumb to have to get my own room, sleep is pretty essential. So, 4 hours of sleep later (this was becoming my nightly average), and a quick cafe latte, I was ready for an all day tour.  

I have to say that, for the most part, this tour was very enjoyable. The ruins at the Roman Forum of various temple, sculptures and arenas were amazing to see. Palatine Hill topped that with the sweeping views. I personally loved Palatine Hill for all the greenery. The pines and gardens were quite literally a breath of fresh air as well as offered much- needed shade. Rome in August is hot...each day was between 82-88 degrees for a high, and the humidity made it very sticky. We breaked for lunch in a cute little neighborhood that our guide recommended and had slices of "real" pizza. It was delicious. We sat and ate right next to the ruins of the training camp for gladiators that connects to the Colosseum via an underground passage. 

The Colosseum itself was amazing. It had been a downpour when we awoke that morning, and we had been told first thing that the underground part of the Colosseum tour would be closed due to dangerous conditions (it floods rather easily). Luckily, not even 20 minutes into the tour the sun came out, and since the Colosseum was our last stop in the afternoon we did end up getting to go underground. I am so glad too. To see where the gladiators and the animals were kept, as well as the rudimentary elevators they used, and to gaze at the stage in the arena above, you could get a feel for the whole thing. The wooden stage has been partially rebuilt just to show how it once was. We were told that gladiators waiting to fight could see blood seep through the floor above and hear everything that was going on. Many gladiators took their own life rather than chance losing it in an even more brutal fashion. Interesting fact we learned though, is that contrary to popular belief, often the fights were stopped before a death occurred. You see, the gladiators were prize fighters that were gambled on by wealthy emperors, and if there was a good fighter, he was worth a lot of money. The battle would be stopped before a fatality happened, and these fighters would fight just a few times a year for a few years before being released. A popular job for them was to train the next line of gladiators. Then we went out onto the stage to experience the feeling a gladiator would have of looking up into the stands. Finally, we went to the top of the Colosseum for amazing views of the entire arena. 

After a few hours of dinner and rest we left again for a night-time tour called Ghosts and Mysteries. It was to show us creepy places in Rome and hear the legends that went with them.

 Honestly, it was our least favorite tour. Some of the sites were interesting enough, but the guide was not that great. It turned that day into a very long one with a very early morning the next day as we had a tour to Assisi and Orvieto planned.