Roma

Part I: Veni, Vidi... Vici? [monday]

It’s been over 24 hours since I got to Rome at the time I write this. On Monday alone, I have climbed two of the seven hills, walked through the Forum, stood at the head of the throne room in the Imperial Palace, walked through Septimus Severus’ arch and past Constantine’s, perused the famous Colosseum, and eaten authentic Italian pizza. Though the weather is scheduled to bring us more high temperatures, I find it quite bearable considering WHERE WE ARE. The Colosseum was a bit of an underwhelm on the tour, oddly enough. I suspect I’ve read far too much about it and seen way too many TV specials on Rome to be surprised-- and I am rarely impressed by sports or sporting venues. That said-- it does look pretty cool at night, and music echoes nicely on the old rocks that once rang to the cries of beasts and gladiators. Yes, there was a concert-- Bryan Adams played a set and was followed by Billy Joel. The stage was set at the bottom of an avenue where the Colosseum could provide it’s best face for the performance: they light it with floods and different colors. Someone had brought sparklers, which came out every time there was a lighter waving moment in a song, and though the speakers were loud enough to knock down what’s left of the amphitheatre it was tolerable.

I will be waking up in about 6 hours to head off for Pompeii on an early train. Hopefully there’ll be time to drop by Naples, too.