When in Rome: Day 3 & 4

The first two days of our Rome trip were packed with learning as was day 3, and then day 4 was more relaxed. Sunday, day 3, we started off early with the Palatine Hill followed by the Roman Forum. We finished at the Roman Forum right at lunch time which was perfect because it was peak heat and everyone was ready for a break. So, we separated to eat lunch, had some free time and then reconvened at about 5pm to go see the Colosseum as a group while the sun was shining perfectly on it. Then on Monday, day 4, we went to a museum first thing in the morning, ate lunch together and headed back to Volterra!

Firstly, at Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum it felt as if we were walking through history with Wladek sharing every bit of his knowledge with us. We learned about how the different spaces were used for shade, dining, servants quarters, food storage, lookouts, and more. The image on the left above is a glimpse into one of the open air courtyard spaces that had a fountain display, open field, and arcades to take shelter from the sun. One thing about the Romans is that they knew how to truly balance indoor and outdoor. Thick walls and strategic use of openings for lighting and doorways allowed for their spaces to be cool during the hot seasons and warm during the cool seasons. They also built on top of existing structures meaning that most of the palaces connected to each other and you would have been able to walk through all of the previous emperor’s palaces.

As we walked through the ruins, and made our way up the hill, all of us realized just how big these palace were and how rich the emperors must have been. There was marble left everywhere and some of the spaces such as a dining room were as wide as 90 feet. Then, once we reached the highest point of the hill there was a lookout spot where you could see the whole city and take photos that make you feel as if you are on top of the world! It was an amazing sight to say the least. The only downside to this morning was the intense heat from direct sun and a lack of clouds or shade. Nevertheless, we kept going and soaked in every bit of history that we could! At the end of the Roman Forum we got to see Trajan’s column which has 155 scenes of victories and military campaigns on it. They are carved in a spiral and as they go up the column, the carvings get bigger so that from far away it seems to be the same size.

Once finished at Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum everyone went their own ways for lunch and free time, and then we met up again at about 5pm.

The Colosseum is 277 feet long, with an essentially hollow substructure that was used for some sort of storage. The actual arena floor was made of wood and then covered in sand. This is where animals and gladiators would fight, or where other activities would take place. When the fights would take place animals and less important gladiators would come up from the underneath part of the floor, but more important or well known gladiators would come in from the side doors. This was likely due to the mindset that if they started below the ground that is where they would end up after…essentially they thought it was bad luck.

We ended our time together at the Colosseum by taking a group photo. This was a funny and memorable moment because we ended up stopping the people traffic going both ways while attempting to get our photo taken and having phone malfunctions. In the end we were successful and got a very nice group photo.

The museum we went to on our final morning in Rome was the Mercati di Traiano, or Trajan’s market which is the oldest mall essentially. There were roofs over the main indoor type areas, but its walls were open to the outside for plenty of natural light and airflow. As you walked through you could imagine what it would have been like with all of the storefront spaces filled with vendors selling their products. The place was built to be lively and connect all of the people with a roof terrace that overlooks the Roman Forum. This was another very hot and sunny day with no clouds in sight, but thankfully after we explored all that we could here, it was time to get lunch and then head back to Volterra.

It is safe to say that Rome was a very busy and non-stop weekend, but worth every bit of energy that it took to see all the key parts of the city.

Until the next city, ciao!!

– Scarlett Ambedian