Well, we've had a busy few days. On Wednesday, classes recommenced in the morning and lunch at the nearby Casina dei Pini followed before we set off on the Metro to meet Alessandra, our guide to the Colosseum and the Imperial Forum. We were extremely lucky to be able to access the arena from a special gate that brought us in on that level. Because the stage there rests on wooden supports, the number allowed at any one time is restricted so we could linger just long enough to see the underground passages that held the animals, criminals and gladiators as they waited to be brought up. Slaves under the arena floor had to operate forty elevator platforms that could move those about to compete up to the arena as if by magic, while others were responsible for manoeuvering the giant shade sails so that the Emperor didn't get too hot. The place where the Emperor and his entourage sat is marked today with the cross that is used for the Stations of the Cross service that the Pope leads each year. Just the size of the construction is mind-boggling, plus the fact that it only took ten years to build the three circles of arches that connect together to give the amphitheatre its strength. Moving up through the wide hallways, it was easy to envisage the thousands of people who enjoyed the entertainment, with shops set up and food stalls to keep people going as they spent all day there. From the Colosseum we moved to the Forum, past the Arch of Constantine and up the Capitoline Hill for a view over the ruins of temples and basilicas. Again, it's not hard to appreciate the scale of the Roman engineering feats as we marveled at what they were able to do, even though only traces remain today.
From the Forum the group took advantage of an opportunity to buy some souvenirs and enjoy a gelato or two to keep their strength up before we met Giorgia, our next guide, near the square made famous for the temple ruins and number of stray cats who live there. This time we set off for a walk through the small streets of the Jewish Ghetto, with Michelle and I acting as interpreters for the group. Beginning with the square with the Turtle Fountain, we wandered the stradette with their brass plaques set into the cobblestones. Located in front of different buildings, these plaques commemorate the names of the Jewish residents who had lived there before they were all rounded up during World War II and sent to Auschwitz. Another plaque was dedicated just to the newborn children who suffered the same fate. On that sombre note, we left the ghetto after checking out the newly restored temple built by the Emperor Augustus for his sister Octavia, and crossed the Tiber to the island of Tiburtina. Most of the island is taken up with a hospital and legend has it that during the Plague of the 17th century the priests in the monastery on the island set off for Greece to pray at a particular spot for a cure after one of the priests dreamed of the instruction to do so. On their return to the island, a snake leapt off the boat and there were no more Plague deaths. As a result, the hospital was constructed there and the snake is still used to symbolise the medical profession, as seen on ambulances etc. From the island we continued to Trastevere, on the other bank, where we wandered more little streets and visited the Church of St Cecilia, patron of musicians. A late dinner in a pizzeria finished off our tour so we decided to wind our way back to the Trevi to see it at night. This all went well until we arrived back at the Metro station to find that it had just closed for the night, so while Michelle took a small group back in a taxi, the rest of us really did walk the streets of Rome back to the hotel. I know I warned people that we'd do a lot of walking, but I have to admit I didn't envisage that we'd walk quite that far.
Yesterday, everyone was understandably feeling a little tired so luckily it was an easier day. After morning classes with Francesca (and Carmelina, Giselle, and Maria's with a more international group), we had a short siesta before setting off in the light drizzle for the Villa Borghese, a huge estate that was the country residence of the Borghese family. Once again, our guide was Alessandra who showed us the Baroque splendour of the villa, including statues by Bernini and paintings by Caravaggio, Raphael, Botticelli, and Tiziano. It's amazing to think that one family owned all of this, as well as having enough power to influence the papal voting and install one of the sons on the throne. The last owner of the villa married Napoleon's sister, and then in 1903 the estate was sold in its entirety to the Italian Government for the princely sum of $3,000. Even though that would have been a relatively large amount for the time, it was still a bargain. Walking back through the gardens we spotted a squirrel (and a koala if Michelle is to be believed), before returning to the hotel for another delicious dinner in the restaurant and a relatively early night.
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