[The following post is from the archives of my In Search Of Incredible blog, originally published on 22 March 2015]

 

26 October 2014, Sunday

After a well-rested night, we woke up bright and early at 7am, with no traces of jet-lag lingering. By 8am, we were out of our apartment. The highlight of the day was the Colosseum, about 2km away from our apartment and reachable within 25 minutes of walking. The streets were still empty at this hour and it felt really nice to walk on the cobbled roads, before the hoards of tourists descended upon them.

We walked past the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument again, and further along was Colonna di Traiano (aka Trajan’s Column), a Roman triumphal column that commemorates emperor Trajan’s victory in the Dacian Wars. And right beside was Foro di Traiano (aka Trajan’s Forum), built in 112 AD. After snapping the customary pictures, we proceeded along the main avenue of Via dei Fori Imperiali towards our main destination, the Colosseum.

An admission ticket to the Colosseum costs 12 Euros but it is advisable to book your ticket online for an additional 2 Euros to avoid the long queues at the site. This is the link to the official website to purchase tickets. There are additional fees if you wish to go for the 45-min guided tour (5 Euros) or the 1 hr 15 min Underground and Third Ring tours (9 Euros). We just opted for the basic admission entrance ticket. If you are really thinking of saving money, you can choose to plan your visit on the first Sunday of the month, where admission is free for all. Of course, be prepared to jostle with the crowds.

We reached the Colosseum at 9am and there was already quite a big crowd. Before entering, we took photos with one of the many “gladiator” mascots positioned outside. Mind you, they don’t come cheap. The three of us took photos with him and he demanded 10 Euros for the 2 minutes of posing with us. Oh well, everyone’s gotta make a living.

Upon entering, we zipped straight to the ticket booth to collect our tickets, bypassing the long line of tourists queuing to buy tickets. It was fuss free and I was glad we booked online. We then stepped into the grounds of the Colosseum. My first thought was that it was not as big as I expected it to be, just like how I felt when I was at Old Trafford – it felt much smaller in real life than it appears on TV. Nevertheless, the Colosseum is still a colossal sight to behold.

Built in 80 AD (it is 1,935 years old!), the Colosseum is the largest amphitheatre in the world, and rightly considered as one of the world’s greatest works of architecture and engineering. It was said to be able to hold up to 80,000 spectators and was used for public spectacles and gladiatorial contests, most famously depicted in the 2000 film, Gladiator. Today, many of the structures such as the gallery seats have deteriorated and vanished but the exterior of the building and main structure remain relatively intact. The wooden floor of the arena is no longer there, exposing the hypogeum (underground).

We spent about an hour completing one round around the arena and taking numerous photographs along the way. Even after exiting, we couldn’t stop taking photos outside the Colosseum, determined to make the most out of our visit to this iconic landmark. Next destination: Trevi Fountain.

Trevi Fountain (aka Fontana di Trevi) is located about 1.5km away from the Colosseum and we took a leisurely stroll there. There were plenty of sights along the way and we occasionally popped into interesting shops to check them out. We also took a short break for lunch, munching on sandwiches. We finally reached Trevi Fountain at about 12:30pm.

While planning the trip, I had already found out that Trevi Fountain would be undergoing major restoration works and it would be fenced up and partially closed. Fendi, the Italian fashion brand, had sponsored 2.1 million Euros to restore Trevi Fountain to its former glory. It had fallen into disrepair over the years and was in desperate need of refurbishment. The project is scheduled to last for more than a year, between June 2014 and autumn of 2015. As such, we were already mentally prepared not to be able to view it in its full splendour.

However, it was still hard not to be disappointed to see the fountain boarded up and its basin drained. As a consolation, a boardwalk has been built to allow visitors to go up close to the statues, which was previously not possible. A small makeshift fountain has also been erected to allow visitors to continue the tradition of throwing coins into the fountain for luck, with their backs facing the fountain. Despite the limited access, throngs of tourists like us had still made the trip to Trevi Fountain, proving that it is an un-missable stop for any tourist visiting Rome.

From Trevi Fountain, we headed towards another Rome icon – the Spanish Steps (aka Piazza di Spagna). It is located just 650m and less than 10 min walk away, but we were distracted by the many sights and shops along the way. There was a spray paint artist who created hyper-realistic works of art deftly using just spray paint, cardboards and bin covers. It was fascinating to watch. There were street performers who seemingly defied gravity, where one man appeared to support another man’s weight solely by holding up a stick. I had previously seen YouTube videos of that trick so I already knew the secret to it. If you really want to know, here’s the link to the clip for this Floating and Levitating Man trick.

Before visiting the Spanish Steps, we took a tea break at McDonald’s, where the McCafe served a delightful assortment of croissants. We bought five croissants and three lattes for 9.20 Euros. After refuelling, we finally reached Spanish Steps at 3:30pm.

As it was a Sunday, the steps were packed with tourists and locals. Many were there to catch a break; others were there just to soak in the atmosphere. It’s amazing how one flight of 135 steps can be so famous that everyone just flocks to it. Nevertheless, you can’t say you have been to Rome if you haven’t been to the Spanish Steps. Just do it.

The real reward comes when you reach the top of the steps, and it is not because of the view from up there. There is a community of artists gathered there and many of them were busy sketching pencil portraits. Some of them were really good! I was a bit tempted to get one done but I didn’t have the patience to sit there with so many people watching. If it were less crowded, I might have done it.

After descending the steps, we plunged headlong into Via dei Condotti, which leads to and ends at the Spanish Steps. It is one of the busiest and most fashionable shopping streets of Rome, and any respectable brand name can be found here – Longchamp, LV, you name it, you have it. As tourists, we felt emboldened to enter the shops and browse just for the fun of it, even though we normally would not have done so in Singapore. It was nice to feel like a high-roller for a day, even though we would never think of buying anything. Cheap thrill, I know, but hey, we’re on holiday!

We then ended up on Via del Corso, the main street in Rome, where there are lots of (more affordable) shops flanking both sides of the straight, 1.5km long street. For dinner, we popped into a pizzeria named PizzaRé, located 14 Via di Ripetta.

We were craving for some authentic pizza and stumbled into it purely by chance. The pizzas are categorised into Red (tomato based) and White (mozzarella cheese based). We ordered a Pescatora-style Red pizza (seafood) and a Chef White pizza (ham, mushroom and Parmesan cheese). The seafood pizza one was really, really good! They were really generous in their servings of prawn, squid and even baby crayfish. This was probably the best meal we had in Italy. So craving the pizza again…

We then burned the calories by walking all the way back to our apartment at Via dei Giubbonari. I think we must have walked at least 15km today. It had been a fulfilling and eventful one, to say the least. Day 2 down, Vatican City tomorrow!