RomeJul 3, 2011
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| We needed another day in Rome as there is just so much to see. First we went to Palatine hill to see the ruins of the original city of Rome. Palatine Hill has a great view over the whole city and it was incredible to see all of the domes and old buildings from up on the hill. Rome was started in 754 BC. In 44 BC Augustus decided to move to Palatine hill. From then on almost all the Emperors of Rome went to live there. It was gradually transformed into a beautiful royal residence and its name comes from the word Palace (Palatine). During our visit to Palatine Hill we saw the ruins of Augustus’s house (the first Emperor). We saw ruins of their theatres, churches and basilicas, mosaics and frescoes, temples and victory arches. Then we crossed the road and went into the Colosseum. We didn’t have to queue for long because we got our tickets at the Palatine Hill – the people queuing for tickets would have had to wait for hours and hours! The Colosseum was originally called the Flavium Amphitheatre and was begun in 70 AD, it was opened by Titus ten years later. Its opening ceremony went on for 100 days and over 5000 wild animals were put to death during that time. At one time they sent 100 lions out at once and the roars were so loud that the crowd went immediately silent. The floor of the arena was wooden and was full of 80 trap doors. Underneath the arena were cages with the animals. The animals were winched up into the arena when it was their time to fight. Sand was put on top of the wooden floor to help absorb all the blood. The Colosseum could hold 70,000 spectators – bigger than any sports stadium in NZ today. Then we had a relaxing lunch and walked around the centre of Rome. On Sunday the centre of Rome is blocked to traffic so it had a really nice feel. We enjoyed wandering along listening to the buskers, trying to walk on the shady side of the street and watching all the people. We then travelled back to the campsite and watched Djockovich beat Nadal in the Wimbledon final. |
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