Rome, Italy - March 2017

This post will focus on my most recent place of travel - I took a 6 day trip to Italy, spending 3 days in the Naples area (Pompei, Herculaneum & Capri) and then 3 days in Rome. I will write respective posts for those places but for now, it is the home of ancient history - Rome!

We stayed in an area just south of the River Tiber called Trastevere. It was barely touristy; frequently you would see the local women hanging out their washing from the windows and shops containing kitchen goods rather than the usual tourist tackiness (don't get me wrong, I love a good tacky tourist shop too!) and we realized only on our final day there, how great it was to just wonder around these back streets taking in the smells, watching your step on the cobbles and feeling the warm sun.



Our hotel was the Relais Le Clarisse a Trastevere (see official website) which was a converted old convent - definitely added to the atmosphere! The rooms was small but good enough, bathrooms modern and very near a tram link (number 8) to Piazza Venezia or a short walk to the bus stops (which is how we got from the train station).

On our final day before heading to the airport we took the time to just walk around this area and enjoy it which was a great decision - we also ended up taking a small hike uphill to the green area we found on the map (turned out to be called Parco Gianicolense) where there was a couple of nice monuments to look at (including an impressive fountain called Fonte Acqua Paola) and some awesome views right across Rome. We could see from the Vatican all the way across to the Pantheon (my friend asked what the 'space-ship' looking roof was!) and towards Capoline Hill.

This hill was steeper than it looked and then preceded and proceeded by a large staircase...

Fonte Acqua Paola

View across Rome

This park was littered with busts of Italian patriots who fought for the unification of Italy

I made friends with one.

So... moving on to the more 'touristy' things that we got up to during our time in Rome. Of course, I will start with the Colosseum as most people do... to be honest, I was a little underwhelmed. Naturally, the area in front and around these tourist attractions is going to be littered with people trying to sell you things (just like when I visited Paris and definitely came home with a plastic Eiffel Tower) but in this day and age it is Selfie Sticks. I think I got offered one literally 25 times during that morning. Other than that, people just offered to give us private tours however I had already read online to purchase the tickets in advance which definitely was a good idea!

I bought our tickets from the official website Coopculture.it - see this link - which, as the various websites I used for this trip went, was pretty easy to navigate. The ticket for the Colosseum is €12 plus a €2 booking fee and this gives you access to both the Colosseum and the Roman Forum (more on that later!). The good news is, that if you're 18-25 and from the EU you can get reduced tickets or even in for free at some of the attractions in Italy! Unfortunately, I'm too old...

So, once we arrived, chaos ensued. We got in the right line but we were not directed to the ticket office to exchange the email confirmation for an actual ticket. Once we realized this, it took a further 15 minutes in that line, then we opted to purchase the videoguide (€6.00 or audio only for €5.50 - to be honest, the video didn't give very much more info than the audio - and it's credit/debit card only) so we had to get in another 15 minute line to pick it up. Finally, the longest line was for the ladies bathroom (about another 15 minutes!) so after we had finally done all of that, we could enter the Colosseum itself.

The videoguide was not very straightforward... in most attractions it will give you the number to activate in the appropriate place but the Colosseum isn't like that, you kind of have to guess or use the lacklustre map that they give you. It contained some useful facts and information but overall I think it would be better to have a good guidebook. Personally, I used Rick Steve's guide to Rome (see this Amazon link) which is aimed at American visitors but was perfectly fine for me (although I've been in the US so much I am basically a mix of both). He has lots of tips, information and even guides which I used at the Roman Forum and also at The Vatican eliminating the need for an audio guide.

So, we looked around the Colosseum. It's impressive but I never realized the brutal nature of the games there. Maybe I just never had my eyes opened to it until now. It's amazing that so much has survived and been restored - the part I found most interesting was the way the underground tunnels were designed. In future maybe I would consider the 'underground & third tier tour' which they offer at very limited availability.

We were only there for around an hour. Tummies rumbling, we left to find a restaurant nearby for lunch where I had a pleasant spinach & ricotta pasta dish and of course, wine.

 Top tip - always wonder away from the main piazza and main streets especially near these attractions - prices for the same if not better quality food will almost half! Mostly, we paid not more than €8-10 for a big pizza or pasta dish and €5 for a glass of wine at most at lunch or dinner!

Moving on... to the Roman Forum!

I honestly expected this to be a pile of rubble in the middle of a city. How wrong I was. Using my guidebook, I was taken around step by step of this amazing place where you could really picture the past 2000 years ago...

Entering the Roman Forum

There are a couple of hills, and you have to be steady on your feet to visit as the majority of the paths were big cobblestones - no texting and walking here! However, it was not a huge site and we saw everything at a casual pace for around 1.5 hours. Highlights included seeing where Julius Caesar was assassinated, the Forum itself where Romans would have shopped and socialized, and the Temple of Antoninus Pius and Faustina which was just HUGE and very impressive.

The Forum

Julius Caesar's memorial where he was killed

Temple of Antonius Pius and Faustina

The Roman Forum is located right next to the Colosseum so it makes sense to do both in one day however the ticket is valid for 2 days consecutively.

As, theoretically, Vatican City is another country (!), I will do a separate post for it and I think this one is long enough!