Revisiting Rome

After finishing up in Milan, we took a train down to Rome. This was not my first time in Rome, but I wanted my family to experience Rome. Plus, it’s always good to see it again. 

Rome is an enigma. The amount of graffiti in Rome is shocking. It seems like everywhere you look someone has written their name or painted a beautiful picture. After some research, apparently, it’s something that is in the blood, dating back to ancient times. We’ll see some more on that when I talk about Pompeii. At the same time, Rome is full of beautiful, ancient ruins.

The Colosseum

The last time I saw the Colosseum, my friend and I had an open-time ticket. That means you can go at any time on the scheduled day. This time, I booked a tour for my family. The tour is done through the Colosseum, although there are also options for third-party tours. 

The guide told us a lot of information. We learned about the types of people that fought there and how gladiators were “sorted” into different families. Gladiators really only fought once or twice a year. If they were too tired to continue, they could beg for mercy. The emperor would pardon them if they were a crowd favorite.

The Colosseum also derives its name from the statue of Colossus that once stood outside the stadium. In fact, it’s more of an amphitheater, but now we have adopted the term “Colosseum” for the building. It was built over a span of eight years, from 72-80 AD. I’d say it’s still in pretty good shape for being nearly 2,000 years old. Meanwhile in today’s times, we knock down our modern stadia after a few decades.

My favorite part, in fact, is not the Colosseum, but the Roman Forum. It is included with your ticket to the Colosseum. If you feel tired after the Colosseum, you can visit the Forum the following day. I love the Forum because it shows how the people lived. You can see the tomb of Julius Caesar, the temple of the Vestal Virgins, and just get a great view over the Forum from above.

Vatican City

I feel lucky to have visited St. Peter’s Cathedral and the Vatican Museums a few years ago. We visited on New Year’s Eve, and it was INSANE. We ended up having to do a tour of the museum because all of the tickets were sold out. This should have been our first warning.

Before you go to the Vatican, you definitely should check for holiday hours or closing times. The pope was doing a service in the evening, so they closed the cathedral at 12:30. They closed off St. Peter’s Square at 1:30. 

The Vatican Museums

Our first stop was into the museum. Even though we had “skip-the-line” tickets through the tour, we still had to wait a long time to enter the museum. When we did enter, we had a quick tour through the museum to try to get into the cathedral before it closed. We did learn some good information about the art, but it was packed with people. The Hall of Maps is my favorite place, but it was so crowded, you couldn’t see anything. On top of that, I was not moving on my own accord. We were like an ocean wave, flowing about with no control.

Because we wanted to see the cathedral before it closed, we only got to see the Sistine Chapel for about five minutes. I had already seen it before, so I wasn’t too concerned, but I felt bad for my family who may never have the chance to see it again. We also didn’t get to continue on to the rest of the museum to see the Raphael paintings. Instead we headed into the cathedral.

We just made it into the cathedral before they closed the gates. Unfortunately, part of the cathedral was blocked off for a service later that day. We didn’t get to see the tomb of John Paul II. LI did learn something very cool, though. The cathedral is made so that everything looks the same height, but really, it’s not. For example, the letters lining the cathedral at mid-level at 3 meters tall, while the letters at the top are 5 meters tall. When you look at it, though, everything looks the same size.

I wish we had had more time to see the museums and the cathedral, but at least my family had the opportunity to see it, even if briefly.

Walking Around

In my opinion, walking around is the best way to see the city. There are two metro lines, but they aren’t very helpful in getting around. They are STILL trying to build the third line in the city. While you are walking around, you can stumble upon Roman ruins just chilling. We found the gladiator school that is right across from the Colosseum, but it’s in front of some shops and restaurants. 

We also checked out some of my favorites from the previous time: Angelino’s and Giolitti. My dad really loved both of these places, and they will always be on top of my must-eat list in Rome.

New Year’s Eve

If you have the opportunity to be in Rome on New Year’s Eve, you won’t be disappointed. This year, they had a sort of carnival feel to their celebrations. We went to the Circus Maximus where they switched back and forth between music and acrobats. We watched from the top of the hill because we didn’t want to walk down, but they had giant TV screens so you can’t miss anything.

With five minutes left, the announcers came on and started talking non-sense. Then, with one minute left, everyone started preparing. We counted down from 10 in many different languages. When the clock struck midnight, I gobbled down 12 grapes (a Spanish tradition) while I watched fireworks burst over the ancient chariot ruins. It was an incredible moment to witness. 

So what do you think? Would you revisit Rome?