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June & July 2005

Rome & Vatican City

Jeremy Koh
2005-11-05 11:48:59

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of the Coliseum was the hypogeum (literally, "underground"), a network of tunnels and cages where gladiators and animals were held before contests began. There were also numerous trap doors in the arena floor for the various animals hidden underneath. The arena floor no longer exists, and the hypogeum walls and corridors are clearly visible in the ruins of the building. (You can see it in the picture below)

As we only had an hour before closing time, we walked around quickly to explore the place. It feels quite surreal being here, especially with all the birds flying overhead. The place is infested with tour guides and tourists (then again, which place in Rome isn't), but still, it's possible to find a quiet corner to take in everything and be awed by the fact that we're in a place of such historical value and touching stones that were laid such a long time ago. We had barely just begun exploring the second level before we were shooed away from the site by a lady worker who told us that it's closing time.

Well, she didn't allow us even a second longer to linger there and chased us away from the Coliseum. Outside the Coliseum, we saw the Arch of Constantine. It was completed in 315 to commemorate Constantine the Great�s victory over an Italian rival, which made Constantine the absolute monarch of the Roman Empire. Constantine the Great was the first Roman ruler to become a Christian, and under his rule Christians were able to worship freely.

From here, we walked on to the Roman Forum. It's just a short walk away. The Forum was the central area around which ancient Rome developed, in which commerce, business, trading and the administration of justice took place, so most of the historical sites are around the Forum. Today, it's all in ruins, but think of how impressive it must have been in its heyday. Soon we ended up at the Monument of Victor Emmanuel II, which was erected ...