Rome in Ruins

Ruins are all across Rome.  They have often been blamed for the lack of an extensive Roman metro - a tunnel is dug, and then - dang!  Another ruin!  Bring in the archeologists and the toothbrushes!

Ruins in the middle of the city

The Roman Forum contained a small-towns worth of very extensive ruins, right in the middle of Rome.

Looking down the far end of the Forum.

 The old with the new(er?)

My dad would appreciate this - it looks like a core sample!

A beautifully ornate arch.

And for a point: a man from what country ran barefoot to this arch?

Ruins still lie around everywhere.

Scattered ruins

Perhaps the most famous ruin in the world is the Colosseum.  It's still remarkably huge for, well, being a ruin, and for having its interior quarried for other architectural projects over the years.
 

Here's a hero to all mathematicians - Pythagoras!

Some nicely done friezes. 

Truly Roman.

Here we can look down on the arch from the Colosseum.  

Cart parking, waiting for tourists to take them for a jaunt around Rome.

Now we move into the Colosseum.   The stands have long since fallen down and quarried away, but you can still see where they used to be.

The inside of the Colosseum.  The oval in the center used to be the ground level.  Below that is the basement.  This basement held the props for the shows, the wild animals, and had some complicated gadgets to raise and lower props through holes in the floor into the Colosseum.  My favorite was a giant whale that was raised up to the arena, out of which 50 bears poured out.  Those ancient Romans sure had interesting ideas about entertainment.    

Below one of the arches leading out of the stands.

The stairs leading up into the stands.

The white stands are where the nobels and higher classes would sit.  It is here that the Emperor would give the signal to finish off the wounded Gladiator, or to show him mercy.

Across the stands.

The cross in this picture is a monument to the Christians who lost their lives here in the early days of the Church.
 

After our visit to the Colosseum, I was crowned Empress.  I governed in wisdom and knowledge and my short reign (only 20 minutes) brought peace to the land.

Of course, every good Empress needs a good Emperor.  

After our reign, we headed into the Forum to see more ruins.

These are about three stories tall and are in remarkable condition.

The center of an ancient garden.

Some of the marble flooring, still intact.

A couple of statues still stand in the gardens that they decorated thousands of years ago.

Here you can see the old ground level (around the tree) and how deep the excavations have gone.

Some beautiful surviving artwork.

Wandering through the gardens.

Some of the more secret corners of the Forum.

The main portion of the Forum.

Italian Passion

One of the highlights of our trip to Italy was the food.  I like living in the Netherlands, but the Dutch are not passionate about their food.  So being back in my mother country, I can again celebrate the all important part of life - the dinner table!

So in that spirit, I start with quite possibly my all-time ever favorite food: the cannoli.   We were very lucky to have our hotel right next to a small pastry shop, where I bought a small cannoli and a little chocolate rum ball.  

I will give 5 points to anyone who will send me a real cannoli and have it arrive here fresh, unbroken, and ready to eat.

 And Bram got some tasty creme filled croissants.  

Then the pizza!  Possibly the best meal I ate in Rome was this pizza - fairly simple toppings - just sausage, olives, and mushrooms, but so good!  The crust - thin but not too thin.  Delicious.

Bram with his pasta.

One of Bram's favorite dishes is something Rome is also known for - artichoke.  This artichoke is artfully placed on a mushroom and a slice of cheese.  Very good!

These giant donut things were common street food.

And perhaps the weirdest thing I ate - a cake filled with cheese, topped with bacon in a very strange way.

Some delicious (and pretty!) appetizers.

I made the mistake of ordering an-all fried appetizer.  Fried veggies, suppli, and fried olives.  Delicious, but deadly.

Bram's giant grilled veggie plate.  Much healthier.

Epiphany Parade

Being in Rome for Epiphany was quite special.  In Rome, Epiphany is the "big" day of the Christmas season, where there is a huge celebration and gifts are exchanged.  After being in the Netherlands, where things quieted a bit after Sinterklaas day, and even more after Christmas, it was like going back in time to celebrate all over again.

One of the big events is the Epiphany parade, which runs across one of the main bridges in Rome towards the Vatican.  The parade this year was held by people from Assisi.  People dress up in costumes from all different time periods from the history of Rome.

First off, knights in shining armor.

Followed  by the bowmen.

The town crier, crying out something in Italian.

Even the puppies get a chance to dress up.

Some of the infantry.

Check out this helmet.  It has a huge metallic dragon - almost larger than the helmet itself!

The Lady looketh bored.

La Befana is the Italian equivalent of Santa Claus.  According to the story, the Wise Men got lost looking for Jesus.  They stopped and asked an old woman for directions.  She gave them accommodation for the night, but was unable to help them.  They invited her to go with them on their search for Jesus, but she declined.  Later, she changed her mind, and now wanders from house to house looking for the baby Jesus, leaving gifts as she goes.  Now she is portrayed as a witch, looking very similar to one you would see in Halloween.

Even the photographer gets all dressed up.

It is a little known fact that Afros were common in the Middle Ages.

Enter... the gladiators!

Near the end of the parade, a very enthusiastic flag-thrower tossed his flag a bit too high, and it got caught on the wires crossing the road.

A problem they did not have in the Middle Ages

Another flag thrower tries to get his friend's flag down.  This could end in one of two ways...

... both flags down, or both flags on a wire.

Luckily both of the flags came down.

Now some videos:

And some fancy flag-work.

Another big part of the Epiphany celebration are the markets.  A point if you can name the square where this one takes place.

Statues in the square.

Overlooking the market.