First Day in Rome: AKA The Marathon

Here is the lovely beginning of a pretty incredible day that was more arduous than we realized it would be. Our first night in Rome passed well but with our bodies raring to go at around 3-4AM we were a little behind at the get-go of our tour of the ancient core of Rome: The Palatine Hill, Forum, and Colloseum. Let it be known that I was not really dumb enough to choose a walking tour like this on our first day. However, the tour was full on Thurs. and this was our only choice.

After getting on the bus going the wrong way, we finished our unexpected tour of the outside of the Borghese area. I pointed out the hotels without graffiti that we could have stayed in for hundreds of dollars per night. Very posh area. And beautiful. We made it down to the Colloseum. It is true: the first side of that edifice is absolutely breathtaking and beautiful.

We had a really incredible walk up the Palatine Hill to begin with. Our guide, Graham, showing us the sites of the imperial palaces and recounting historical tidbits along the way. The hill is rich with history, beginning with the legend of Romulus and Remus beginning here with the spot where the she-wolf found the twin boys and nursed them.

It is a bit of a hike with stroller and 3-year old, but not strenuous, and the stroller went well over this part of the journey. It was still morning and really a beautiful walk. An unexpected thrill was seeing a newly-excavated home of Augustus, which contains incredible fresco fragments. The well-preserved reds were brilliant, and some very delicate fairy-like mythological figures and whisps of horses were visible along the top. Incredible ruins and fragments of ancient history were all around us. The kids clambered on pieces of columns probably more than 2,000 years old.

One of the more memorable sites pointed out to us was the Vomitorium. No kidding. Exactly what it sounds like. And entire room was devoted to helping the Emporer's guests make it through some of the more sumptuous banquets -serious gastronomique marathons which entailed getting through 40-50 courses over many hours, each dish representing a territory Rome had conquered. This is it to the left. In order to make it through, guests would retire to the Vomitarium when completely satieted partway through their meal and slaves with long sticks tipped with feathers would, as Emma elegantly puts it, "tickle it out". After that, they'd go back and do it again... repeatedly. Just unbelievable that these kinds of extreme excesses were the norm for humans at any time in history!

At the top of the hill, we were rewarded with incredible views of both the city of Rome and the Forum down below us. At this point, the sun was really beating down and it was approaching 11AM. We were all feeling laggy at this point and little did we know the more difficult half lay in front of us.
We descended the Palatine Hill, which was actually more difficult for me due to my broken leg of 5 weeks ago than the ascent had been. It has been going very well so far, with just a little tenderness left over, but the thing that has not fully healed is my ankle and I still have to take stairs one step at a time. We were hot and sweaty by this time, and beginning to tire.

I wish I'd been more alert for the next part of the tour, the Ancient Forum ruins. Huge paving stones which were actually part of the ancient Via Sacra (Holy Way) which Emperors and triumphant generals trod in pomp and circumstance, are still intact, and most unfriendly to strollers. Basil was a real trouper, as was Emma, and neither complained in the oppressive heat and all the walking. I haven't time to recount the incredible history and ruins we saw, but here are just a couple more pictures.

After the Forum, we had the great privilege of visiting the Mamartine Prison, in which St. Peter was imprisoned when the angel came and miraculously broke his chains. It is known as St. Peter in Chains. Stairs descend to a small grotto with a very low ceiling. I didn't catch what everything was there, but it was most obviously a small prison. A hole in the ceiling is where prisoners were let down - in St. Peter's day it was the only entrance.

Our guide announced that we would now leave for our final destination: the Colloseum. Had I known that it would be such a long walk in the blazing sun down the sidewalk of a major street, I probably would have said goodbye to the small group and cut our losses. We were all extremely tired by this point. To me, that walk literally felt like the final leg of a marathon. Everything ached, I was tired, hot and sweaty. We had not eaten much that morning, trying to get out as early as we could, so the yogurt was long gone by that time and it was 1PM.

We finally did make it, however, and I must say it was absolutely awe-inspiring. Thinking of all the martyrs who died here, the soberness of the place coupled with the grandeur of the building itself really was something I will remember for a long time.

We had a wonderful evening back near our hotel which I'll write more about later. For now, it is already 8AM and we are going to grab some breakfast here then head off for our next day of adventure. We are considering axing the Vatican. I know it's a shame, but our pace is not very swift and if we need to rest again in the afternoon, we can only choose one thing to see. My priority is the Catacombs, so we plan to head out there this morning.

Macrina signing off in a very pleasant and sunny Rome.