Not Prague, Part 4: The rest of Rome

Before I talk about Rome, I invite you to watch this once, or twice, or two hundred times, at least until the FIFA Copyright Police take it away. I know I haven't gotten sick of it ...



So, anyway. Rome. To bring you up to speed, after I took a certification course in Prague that ended in June, I spent another week traveling. As per the "orders" of my good friend, The Guvnor, the Captain, the Lothario of Lowestoft, Silky Steve Moore, I visited Rome for nearly three full days. My priorities were the Forum, the Colosseum and the Vatican. Everything else fell into the category of Things I'll See While I Walk Around.

Inside the Colosseum.

While guided tours can be useful -- I don't regret being part of one at The Vatican; see my previous post -- I generally prefer just walking around a city and taking in what I happen to run into. There are disadvantages to this, of course. I might miss something, or not understand the cultural significance of a building. But there's something about finding a pleasant surprise around the corner, such as the plaza where restaurants lined all four sides and guitarists and mimes took turns entertaining (or trying to) the diners (i.e. tourists). And it's great to do in Rome, where it's no bother to walk across town. Yeah, I got a few blisters on my toes. There are worse reasons to get them than strolling around one of the world's top five cities.

I've posted the links to two photo albums. You can see ...

• Inside and outside the Colosseum, former home of gladiator fights and other such entertainment.
• An 85-by-65-foot Baroque fountain. 
• The widest steps in Europe.
• A stunning church apparently built on the spot of an August snowfall.
• A statue of the infant twins who founded Rome sucking on a She-wolf.

Click here for the Colosseum photo album.

Click here for the album that features other stuff.

Click here to read about how Brazil was seconds away from advancing to the Women's World Cup semifinals until we crushed their wittle hearts.

Trevi Fountain.

Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, the coolest building in Rome built after 1900.