Roman Holidays Part Cinque

Colosseum - One of the places that I have wanted to go after watching the "Gladiator". I read from books that there are still some gladiators around and we wondered whether those posing pictures are truly gladiators?  

We took a bus from Jewish Ghetto there. Didnt take many photos in the Ghetto - the buildings were brown and grayish and traffic was heavy even though the roads were narrow. Just kinda of sad feeling when we visited the ghetto. 

We used our Roma pass to gain direct entry, again skipping the long q. By now, I was fully pleased with my planning skills - our term used was "excellent organisation skills". Really important to do research or else we would end up queueing and spending less time in the old buildings. The Colosseum was huge. As it was summer, it was extremely hot and we had to hydrate ourselves to avoid any signs of heat exhaustion. Posing pictures was really a challenge due to heat and crowd. 

There was a section of grand stand for the royalties or VVIPs. I would imagine walking down the platform and hearing the roars of crowd. Making reference to the scene of the gladiators, the King would decide the fate of the lost gladiator by using his thumb - up or down. I could not be a good gladiator cos I dun have six packs. But I could imagine the glamour standing in the centre of the colosseum, just like the time when I performed NDP in the old National Stadium. Could feel the public pressure and atmosphere. 

There were no greenery in the Colosseum. You would go round and round and up and up. There was an air con book shop and enuff for us to hide insides.  I rem we went to watch a show showing the couple who went to explore the colosseum at night. Then it rained. It would be scary there as there were no lightning rod. So open area. 

It was very amazing to have right in the roads modern buildings and old buildings. It feels like standing at the crossroads of time zones - past and present. We took some pictures, wary of the people around of us. Right outsides the colosseum was where one of the General marched out to fight a victorious battle. Pebbles, my smartie wife "Advised" that they were meant for horses not soldiers like you and me. Yup, logical. She said so in the pavement outsides avignonsi too. No wonder I felt so uncomfortable walking on the pebbles. Had to eat gelato again to cool down.