Turning the corner, we saw blocks upon blocks of tents. Hardly any of the goods were homemade and there were only a couple of stands selling sandwiches. The other booths had the most miscellaneous items you could imagine. There were silverware, electronics, scarfs, swimsuits, black market purses, towels, leather jackets, sheets and more. The street was claustrophobic, as everyone wanted to see every good and barter for the best prices.
Refusing to be a tourist, we followed the locals’ lead. Well, Becky followed their lead and I just stood there with the goods in my hand.
I believe I previously forgot to mention the quality of towels in our apartments, so I will do that now. Let’s just say it would be easier to dry off with a roll of toilet paper. The towels are super small and see-through thin. I needed and new towel and so did Becky. We found reasonably sized towels at the price of three euros a piece. Becky asked the vendor if we could have two towels for five euros. He tried explaining to us in English that the deal we were asking for was only available for another set of towels that we didn’t want. We put down the towels, took a few steps away and the vendor ran after us, giving us the two for five euro deal. Score!
Just like yesterday, we walked and walked and walked. The tents never seemed to end, but we saw numerous stands selling scarves. I feel that scarves are very European, and thought, “why not?” I am now the proud owner of a blue pashmina scarf. (That barter didn’t work out as well, but we bought them from the vendor selling them at the cheapest price.)
Most everybody we passed knew we were Americans. Apparently our shorts and sandals are the tell-all. I had quite an amusing time throwing them off by greeting the vendors with a “buon giorno” in reply to their “hello.”
Sweating bullets from the scorching hot sun hitting my pasty Midwesterner skin, I needed something cold to eat. And what better place to eat at than McDonalds?
I admit, eating Mickey D’s is a very American thing to do, but we really did wonder what the Italian establishment would look like. The interior was much more modern than stores in the U.S. and the prices were also more expensive. I tried a Cornetto Classico McFlurry and it was scrumptious. I have no idea what it was, but it was chocolately and wafery. I was lovin’ it.
Back from McDonalds, we checked out the map to see which sites we’ve yet to see. The Coliseum was surely an attraction we didn’t want to miss, so we hopped on a bus and somehow made it there.
And it was a site to see. We circled around the exterior and found a tour to join—shady, right? I thought so, but it ended up being only three euros extra and we got to skip the long ticket line. (Only later did we find out that we really saved money with this tour, as we also received free admission to the forum.)
The guide was very knowledgeable and showed us around the Coliseum, spitting out facts like it was nobody’s business. We saw which parts were authentic, which parts were restored, how the animals were brought into the arena, and even learned the origin of why the place was called an arena.
After that tour ended, we took a few dozen more pictures and proceeded onto the next tour of the public forum. Our guide was a Scottish man with a sweet accent who knew every bit of history of Rome. We saw the ruins of temples, basilicas and other buildings that helped maintain peace in Rome.
Fun fact: the Romans were very thrifty. Instead of plating all of the structures in marble, they only plated the lower three fourths. The upper parts were covered in plaster (which looked like marble), thus saving money.
After the forum tour ended, our group explored Palatine. We saw some graves, the Vestal virgins’ garden, arenas and fountains. We walked among some of the largest ancient ruins I’ve ever seen (in pictures, anyway).
Sorry this post is so boring, especially since my day was so much fun. It’s 2 a.m. right now and I need to get some sleep and rest my feet before our group presentation tomorrow. Hope all is well wherever you reside.
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