Palatine Hill & The Forum

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We continued our day of sightseeing by also attending a second tour to Palatine Hill and the Forum. I have never really been a proponent of guided tours before coming to a place like Italy, where so much historical context places you in the position of either needing to be a well read history buff (which I am not), or just simply missing out on a lot of what you are seeing because you do not know the historical significance of it. So even a little information is better than no information at all, and we really enjoyed this tour.

You can see by these photos that Rome is truly lovely in the springtime. The historical center and the legendary seven hills take your breath away. You just can't believe you are here where some of the most amazing turning points in ancient history took place.

We first visited Palatine Hill, where the emperors and upper echelon families lived. This is a 5 minute walk from the Colosseum. There were pretty impressive ruins of the formerly palatial digs, complete with sports arenas, public baths, vomitoriums... (if you haven't heard of those, you'll have to read up - the Romans were REALLY over indulgent). The tour concluded at the Forum, which was the bustling city center during those times. The circular Temple of Romulus (Romulus is the guy Rome is named after) is shown in the photos, with its original copper doors. These doors have not been damaged in over 1500 years, as there is local lore that admonishes Romans to preserve these doors at all costs, because if they are ever damaged Rome will burn.

The Forum ruins were really something, including several grottos, niches with amazing sculptural elements, arches with very detailed friezes (sculpture in relief on a wall or facade of a structure, usually depicting a story or scene), cobbled streets with grooves where carts passed by day in and day out for hundreds of years, random pieces of Roman columns and building facades laying about, and all with a backdrop of modern day Rome to highlight how amazing what you are walking through truly is.

As a little token of delight while visiting The Forum, we found this bird bathing in a little niche in the ruins. He was worth a video clip.

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Photos

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Grounds leading to Palatine Hill

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The emperors' private sports arena

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Palatine ruins

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View of Rome from Palatine Hill

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Looking down on the Forum

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Another view. That's the Colosseum in the background.

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Spring has spring in Roma

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Temple of Romulus

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Don't mess with these doors...

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Niche in a wall. Notice the mini gargoyle up top - great face!

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Large overgrown niche grotto

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The arch that separates the grounds of the Colosseum from the Forum

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Frieze on the inside of the arch wall

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The incredibly detailed facing underneath the arch

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A random piece of building facade laying along a street in the Forum... with a circle of olive branches