Fight on!

Today, after sleeping till noon and making a cappuccino (I can do that now!), I rounded up my roommates and headed for the Coliseum. We rode the Metro for the first time, which was literally covered in graffiti. Usually, tagging is a big turn off for me, but the outside of the subways were actually pretty incredible. Not a speck of the train’s original paint could be seen as it was entirely encrusted in giant bubble letters and colorful scribbles. A few minutes later, we hopped off the subway and found ourselves in front of the Coliseum.

It cost us twelve euro to enter, a small fee for what we were about to experience. The place was incredible, but we soon realized that we actually knew nothing about its history. Without our iPhones to fall back on, we had to eavesdrop on tours, translate Italian information posters, and recall movie trivia. I’m proud to say that I now have a fairly comprehensive understanding of the Coliseum’s history and significance, and I figured it out on my own!

We arrived at about 3PM and saw the most gorgeous change of scenery as the sun set. By 5PM, the sky was orange and we all thanked ourselves for bringing our jackets. As I wandered around the ruins, piecing together history, I was amazed at the precision of the whole structure. Each arch was identical and the angles of stairs and walkways were so precise. All of this was done without calculators, protractors, or cranes…and I had trouble with Algebra II!

With my fancy camera, I pranced around the home of the Trojans attempting fruitlessly to capture a photograph that had never been taken of the Coliseum before. Here’s my sorry attempt at originality:

Tomorrow, I’ll pretty much fulfill my tourism quota. We’re waking up early (let’s see how that goes) to visit the Vatican, which is free on the last Sunday of the month. As much as I hate being sucked into tourist traps, I feel so lucky that I was able to visit such an important piece of architecture.