The hotel had a complimentary breakfast every morning that was very, very nice. They had croissants and rolls, jelly and nutella, oranges, yogurt, corn flakes, and pretty much any kind of coffee-like drink you asked for (latte, cappacino, etc.).
So at 8:30 we met up on the 6th floor to set out on our day. The first thing we had on our agenda was the Circus Maximus. For each site that we visited, the group that researched that particular topic was responsible for telling us all about it while we were there, as well as guide us from our hotel to the site. So Group 3 got the pleasure of leading first. It was actually pretty simple: you just got on the Metro, switched from Line A to Line B at Termini, and then took it to Circo Massimo (I think that's what it was called).
We got there in no time at all, and as soon as we walked out of the subway, you were right in front of the Circus Maximus. I was always amazed at our integrated the old and the new was in Rome, such as how close the Metro was to these ancient structures. We walked around the Circus Maximus for a little while and took some pictures. There really isn't that much left to tell the truth. There are a couple crumbling stuctures still standing on the one side, but other than that, it's just a giant gravel track. I had expected a bit more such as some stands remaining or what have you. But nevertheless, it was still very impressive.
There was a hill on the one side of the Circus Maximus and me and a few others decided to climb to the top. From there you could get a really good view of Palatine Hill in the background and it was really a pretty vista.
After the Circus Maximus, we marched on over to the Theater Marcellus. I don't think there were any Metro stations near it so we walked. It wasn't too far and on the way we were able to see a bunch of old ruins here and there, although we didn't really know what they were.
When we got to the Theater, I was a little unimpressed by it. There were only a few arches left of the theater, and you could only see them from the one side. The modern Romans had actually built apartments right into the theater. Sitting right on top of these 2,000 year old arches, we modern windows and balconies. Like I said before, I was amazed at how integrated the new and the old was.
At this point, our group got a little split up and we wandered here and there so I didn't really get any information on the Theater Marcellus.
Our next stop were the Baths of Caracalla. When we first got there, we were a little confused: we saw an arch that said Baths of Caracalla, but when we walked through, there was a track inside with high jump and pole vault and all that stuff. We could definitely tell that we were in the wrong place, especially from all the dirty looks we were getting from the people that were practicing. So we backtracked a bit and eventually found the real baths.
At the entrance we obtained our "Archeaology Cards" which granted us access to several different sites around Rome. So we walked around a bit and took some pictures, and let me tell you, these baths were enormous. It was just amazing how large something as simple as a public bath could be. The arches that were still left had to be at least a couple hundred feet tall. And everything that was left was only made of brick, it's just unbelievable to imagine that everything would have been sheathed in marble at one point.
After we were done with the Baths of Caracalla, we made our way to the Pantheon. Unfortunately, there weren't any Metro stations near by and the best way to get there was by foot. We wandered through the twisting streets for a while and we finally go there after a while. I have to say, I think that the Pantheon is one of the most amazing structures still left from Ancient Rome. Because the church technically owns it, they have preserved and refurbished it over the years and it looks very much like it would have when it was built in 125 AD.
My group was responsible for talking about the Pantheon and so we split up, each of us taking a small group of people and explaining the various facts about this ancient structure. After that, we just wandered around and took some pictures. Unfortunately, I ended up taking too many pictures and lost everyone else. Luckily, the professors hadn't left that, so I stuck with them for the rest of the day.
So I followed the professors for the rest of the day and we ended up going to the Piazza Navona. Here they had some sort of festival going on for Christmas. I think somebody said that it lasts about 3 weeks in December and then the first week of January, but in any case, they had all these booths set up with candy and games and everything you could think of. They even had a merry-go-round in the middle. So we wandered around there for a bit, looking at the various items they were selling. In the center of the Piazza though, they had a giant fountain with a huge Egyptian Obelisk in the center. I don't really know why, but for whatever reason, this was my favorite fountain. I liked it even better than the famous Trevi Fountain.
Eventually, we headed back to the hotel and there I was able to find everyone else again. A couple of us wandered around Rome for a bit that night, going to the Spanish Steps and what not. But we didn't really do anything significant and eventually turned in for the night.
Pictures:
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| From Rome '08 |
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