The Colosseum, let the show begin!
Written: Dec 09 '02 (Updated Oct 25 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Awesome site! Amazing History!
Cons: Long lines
The Bottom Line: Rome, "The Ancient City", see it. The wonders of the place will stay with you forever.
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| popsrocks's Full Review: The Colosseum |
My wife and I were in Italy two summers ago. We stayed in Rome for a week before renting a car and traveling through Tuscany for a few days. We then stayed in Florence and then continued to Venice. There is so much to tell about this trip. I will start with one of Italy's most famous sites of ancient history, the Colosseum.
GETTING AROUND
My wife and I cabbed it around Rome. I had not yet had my knee surgery so I was not as mobile as I would have liked. It was easier getting dropped off in front of a site than taking the public transportation. The prices weren't too bad either. I also found that the traffic in Rome, though heavy at times, moved briskly. The Italians all seem to have a very heavy foot on the accelerator once a light turns green.
There are buses and a limited subway system that can still get you right to the Colosseum. The stop is the "Colosseo" and is convenient to the Ancient Rome area.
For buses you must purchase tickets before boarding. You can get them at little newsstands and cigarette shops. There are also automated machines around. Look for the ATAC stickers in the windows of these places. Also be sure to get what you need for the day. Some of these places close before you may be on your way home. Most bus lines are active until about 11:30 PM. Tickets cannot be purchased on the bus.
WALKING THE AREA
The Colosseum is on one end of a wonderful walk starting on the Capitoline Hill and Capitoline Museums area. After exploring these sites go downhill through the ruins of the Roman Forum. From here you can also go to Palentine Hill, the Arch of Constantine and finally the Colosseum. This is the way many guide books suggest taking the walk of the area.
I was anxious to see the Colosseum so we did things just the opposite and I'm glad we did. We started at the Colosseum and then walked the slightly uphill walk to the other sites. The last part of the walk up to the Museums and Capitoline Hill were steep but remember, I was walking with a cane and it was still quite doable.
The advantage going this way is to get into the Colosseum before the lines get too long. The wait can be over an hour and a half on a summer day. If you get there early the lines are shorter. The opening time is 9:00pm. I would suggest being there at that time or even a bit before.
PHOTOGRAPHS
Needless to say you must have a camera. There will be photo opts with some period dressed characters outside the building. These are Italian men dressed up as gladiators. They are looking to make a few bucks posing with you.
The gals seemed to like getting their pictures with these guys. Let me tell you these guys also enjoy the gals. When my wife and I posed with them I had one guy with a sword raised above me ready to take a piece of my head while the other guy was holding my wife very close trying to get a piece of her.... oh never mind. These guys are a lot of fun and be sure to get your photograph with them.
THE COLOSSEUM
The outside of the Colosseum is an unbelievable site especially up close. It is huge and majestic. To think that this stadium, that held over fifty thousand people, was built two thousand years ago is amazing. The structure was faced with marble. That is now gone. It seems over the years, two thousand of them, the marble was taken to build palaces and some was supposedly used for the building St Peter's. It's interesting that the Vatican started the beginning of the end of the destruction of the Colosseum by declaring it sacred area because of the Christians that were slaughtered there. It seems that there is no recorded history that confirms this really happened.
What is written about, is the grand opening of the Colosseum. It started with a one hundred day show in which over nine thousand animals were killed for sport and the entertainment of the Emperor, the wealthy, and the masses.
After waiting in line you pay your fee. I don't remember how much it was a year and a half ago. It doesn't matter anyway. You are this close, you must go in.
The process went quickly with English speaking tellers able to help and explain what was available. We did rent tape players for a self guided tour. These were a "telephone" style look.
ONCE INSIDE
The signs directing you through the tour were easy to find and follow. The tape started off by giving some history and then guided you along to special places of interest. Later in the day when the line was very long and many people were inside the Colosseum it still never seemed to be crowded. The place is huge. The walks through the interior corridors were interesting. They were designed to keep orderly and quick movement of the thousands of people who patronized the place so many years ago. These guys really had their thoughts on construction and movement of people down well. There were guided tours in many languages you could take if you wanted the personal touch and wanted to ask questions.
We went up through the corridors, through the seating areas, and even onto the floor of the stadium itself. When we looked at the interior bottom of the structure we saw right through to the chambers that were used to house the animals, prisoners, slaves, and the dressing areas of the gladiators. There were special "elevator" like systems that hoisted the animals and in fact some of the gladiators to the surface floor. The floor that all the "games" were played on was made of wood and had sand and sawdust over it. This made for easier cleaning of the blood that flowed so freely here.
The self tour showed where and how the seating arrangement were set up. The more wealthy had the better seating below and the masses were above. It was all set up by rank of the people. Sorry no skyboxes here. One thing I found very interesting was that they had a velarium for shade. This was a retractable series of cloth material similar to sails that were rigged over the seating area from the top of the Colosseum to protect people from the hot sun. It was manned by sailors who opened and closed it as needed.
A BIT MORE INFO
The movie Gladiator used special affects that supposedly match what the Colosseum really looked like in it's day. By what I saw in person and the artists sketches there, makes me believe they did an excellent job of duplicating it.
The tour took about an hour. Being self guided you could go faster or linger longer. There is so much to see in the area and we moved on. The Colosseum is wheel chair accessible. Though you can't get to every station you can see most everything to make the visit very worth while.
Just across the road, it's a big one, from there are some restaurants on the side streets. These are fairly convenient. I just don't care for walking across such a busy road. Please be careful if you decide to go that way.
If you start the rest of the tour through Ancient Rome there is not much to eat. There are trailers with "finger foods" available just outside the Colosseum near the entrance. The prices were pretty high for what are usually inexpensive foods. There are water fountains and restrooms available. If you are there in the summer be sure to be carrying water bottles and fill them up when you can. We never had a problem with the water.
I would also suggest that the day of touring this area you bring a light lunch with you or at least some snacks. There is so much to see and little available to eat in the ruins area itself.
Be sure to see the Colosseum lit up at night. It's arches are illuminated in colours. We were in a cab. We had him drive to the road that is right nearby. This road is also raised a bit so you will have a nice view. We asked him to wait for us while we ventured out a bit. There were walls and benches in this area with romantic lovers cuddling together. "That's Amore". After taking some pictures and sitting a while we hopped back in our cab and did a few other night shots of Rome stopping here and there.
I hope to tell you more about our trip to Italy soon. The The Colosseum was a highlight for me.
Other Italy reviews by Popsrocks
Danieli Hotel
Five star Hotel we stayed at when in Venice.
http://www.epinions.com/content_75531980420
Rome
http://www.epinions.com/content_85570719364
Colosseum
http://www.epinions.com/content_82927390340
Spanish Steps
http://www.epinions.com/content_83140644489
The Pantheon
http://www.epinions.com/content_83714805380
Cavelleiri Hotel
a five star hotel in Rome
http://www.epinions.com/content_75315449476
Pisa
http://www.epinions.com/content_82621599364
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Couples
Best Time to Travel Here: Anytime
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