I Callum' Like I See 'Em- and I Feel Small!

The Romans were very good at building colossal structures- hence Il Colosseo. Not to mention Il Foro Romano or the Palatino- as much as I was excited to go visit the three most important social centers of Ancient Rome, I sure felt incompetent among the many temples, houses, and gladiator stadiums.

The Palatine Hill was fun to explore as my history teacher enthusiastically retold the story of the legendary founding of Rome that supposedly took place there. Did you know the eternal city was started as a bunch if huts and fire pits? Well, Academia thinks so...It wound up being "the Beverly Hills of Ancient Rome" and houses many remains of high class living.

The next stop was the Roman Forum. It was the place to be back in the day- entertainment, the bank, and Vestel Virgin sightings were all there. Although now it is mostly in ruins, it was still impressive. I enjoyed using my imagination and picturing what it must've been like to be there so long ago.

Finally, we stepped in to the gladiator's domain. We entered the Colosseum and immediately I had a sort of déjà vu moment thinking back on entering Michigan Stadium for a big game. It was ginormous. I know that it must have been fun for the Romans to witness the intense gladiator battles and deaths of foreign animals, but I would just have been there to see this massive structure covered in marble and admire the many statues and architectural features that were removed when it was used as a quarry by many popes throughout the centuries. It took three emperors to complete it (starting with Vespasian) and won the hearts of the people since they got free "bread and circus". It was breathtaking and I certainly got a workout walking around the place.

Although tiring, there is nothing like a day walking around Rome. We had a great time and really took in a lot of history and reflected on it in just a few hours. I have been to Rome numerous times now and in Italy for over four months, and I finally got to experience perhaps the most touristy section of Rome from the inside- and I'm so glad I did.










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