Arrived in Rome and Saw Some Amazing Sights

We arrived in Rome at 9:30 am after a smooth flight, but relatively "sleepless" night. After gathering up our luggage, we were off for a full day visiting some of Rome's famous sites.

 

Our first stop was Piazza Navona which is an example of Baroque Roman architecture. The Palazzo Pamphili faces the piazza and was the family palace of the pontificate of Innocent X who reigned from 1644 until 1655. In additon to the palace, there are three fountains in the piazza.

 

Surrounding the piazza there are restaurants and cafes that overlook various artists and street musicians.

We then headed over to the Campo de' Fiori (field of flowers - a name given to it in the Middle Ages when it was actuallly a meadow). This square has a marketplace that includes a statue of Giordano Bruno, the philosopher who was burnt alive in the square in 1600 for heresy. In 1889, a monument was dedicated to him on the exact spot of his death - he stands defiantly facing the Vatican as a martyr to freedom of thought.

We found a little cafe and had pizza for lunch. While we were eating, a sudden squall developed and there was a torrent of rain. Unfortunately, our rain jackets and umbrellas were back on the bus. Luckily, there are "salesmen" everywhere who have a supply of brightly colored ponchos for a few Euros.

 

By the time we reached the Forum, the skies had cleared and we beautiful weather the rest of the day. The Forum was the center of life in Ancient Rome. We learned about how the Forum developed, how it got "built over" during a period of Roman history, and how many of the monuments were "cannibalized for building materials. Many of the monuments gradually disappeared from view. In the 1800s, systematic archeological exploration and study of the ancient monuments began and continues today.

 

Another one of Rome's highlights is the Colosseum, the largest amphitheater ever built - it is considered one of the greatest works of architecture and engineering.

 

Greg, the engineer, really enjoyed all the descriptions of how it was built. The Colosseum could hold between 50,000 - 80,000 spectators who would come to watch battles between Gladiators and wild animals.

Even though we had a really long day from the time we left Minneapolis (with a short nap on plane), the opportunity to see sights in Rome this first day was amazing.

 

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