Day 3: The Great Roman Empire

Day 3, I venture out on my own for the first time in Rome. I know the basics. I buy tickets from a tabacchi, a tobacco shop, and take the Metro B from Laurentina to the Colliseo. I'm staying with family friends in Laurentina which is south of Central Rome, about half an hour by train. It's sort of like living in Howard or Rosemont.

There is a convenient train stop that takes you to the Colliseo. There was a long line to get in so I skip it and head over to Foro Romano where the remains of the Great Roman Empire lay in ruin. Even in its ruined state, the greatness of old Rome is apparent. The engineering is sophisticated. Domes the size of football fields, columns 50 or so feet long. I spent hours just roaming around and had I not caught the last half hour of a free English Tour, all of it would have been a bunch of stones and ruble. Ancient Rome is worth a paid tour to give context to all that is left. This is the religious and political center of Rome some 2000 years ago. After seeing this I am convinced that Religion and Politics will forever be mixed. The space that occupies the ruins is huge but you could see that except for a small center square which may have been the prototype for the piazza, the formal gathering places of Italians to this day, the Arch of Titus abuts the Basilica of Constantine that faces the Arch of Augustus that is to the left of the Temple of the Vestal Virgins which in turn has a great view of the Senator's Platform and all this could be seen from the Palatine Hills where the emperors lived. This was 2000 years ago. So if we haven't been able to separate Church and State now, we never will.

The Temple of the Vestal Virgins was interesting. I spent hours trying to locate it in the map because the story was pretty interesting. Romans are big in symbolisms and showmanship. There is an allegorical figure for everything, even such words as salubrity. I had to look that up and it means healthfullness. Anyway, they have this thing about fire symbolizing the Roman Greatness and they choose six vestal virgins from noble families to keep the fire of Rome alive. Vestal virgins serve a term of 30 years starting at age 10. If she remained faithful, she is given a huge dowry and is revered all her life but if she was found unfaithful to her vows of chastity she is dragged on the streets of the Via Sacra, the main street of Ancient Rome, in a funeral car, and thrown into a crypt with just a loaf of bread and a lamp where she eventualy dies. That is cruel. Why not stop at throwing at crypt, forget the useless bread and lamp.

Never did find the stupid temple of the vestal virgins because apparently it is in renovation and all the signs are in Italian and no translations are available. Oh well.

Much like yesterday at the Vatican Museum, the grandeur is inspiring and overwhelming. So I take the advice of Denise's friend Mary who used to live here and allow myself to sit and just take it all in. I choose the Basilica of Constantine with a view of the Palatine Hills. I bought pizza and have a bottle of water that I replenish from fountains spread all over the city, still powered by ancient aqueducts (amazing).



Later in the day, I found my way to the working class town of Trastevere, just west of the Tiber River, south of the Vatican. It is a short 15 minute walk to Piazza Belli which unlike the main piazza, Venezia, is quietly busy with daily local life. I like this area a lot. I think I'll come back here if I have more time. Every piazza is anchored by either a government building or a chiesa (church) with an obelisk and a statue on top or a fountain. At Piazza Belli, I visit Sta. Maria in Trastevere church. Then I browsed shops, bought gelato (only my first) and parked myself at the fountain steps.



I end the day with a night stroll at Piazza Navona, through the Trevi, where I made the customary 3 coins in a fountain wish and head over to see the Pantheon at night. Not so late, I'm safe at home by 7:30pm, took the same Metro B train back to Laurentina.