As we slurped big scoops of gelato on waffle cones, we debated, should we or should we not… Finally we decided that we would throw a coin on Trevi Fountain that would ensure our return to the eternal city. Honestly, I don’t believe in these legends but as I stood in front of the Fontana di Trevi and watched hundreds of people tossing a coin into the waters, I thought may be its worth giving a try and if it doesn’t work till the last day of my life, I can tell people ‘It’s not going to work.’ Trevi fountain square in Rome is just a scene straight out of any of India’s festivals; teeming with people of all ages, dressed in their best and posing for photos from different angles of the fountain. Wonder how many actually see the unique fountain and the figures that adorn it.
We had planned that we must see the places that had been shown in films so gloriously and first in the list was ‘The Gladiator.’ So, next day, off we went to meet Russell Crowe, we had a date with the Gladiator at the Colosseum. My daughter was very disappointed to know that even though the film Gladiator had lot of scenes in the Colosseum; the film was not shot here in Rome but at Malta where a replica of this amphitheater was built.
Once again, the structure is gigantic. With tickets to go inside we started climbing up the stony flight of stairs. A word of caution for those who plan to visit this unique piece of Roman architecture, the stairs are big and high and once inside there‘s lot of walking and climbing up and down. Wearing a sturdy pair of shoes is a must.
It would be unfair to just term the Colosseum as huge; everyone is sure to fall short of superlatives, such is its grandeur and size. Built to accommodate about one lakh spectators, the theater was mainly used for gladiator fights, animal shows and fights and even enactment of mythological dramas.
There are three levels and each has its own unique style of showing the amphitheater from different angles; especially the arena and the hypogeum (underground corridors). The original wooden stage is no more there but the hypogeum is clearly visible. In fact there is also a separate tour that allows visitors to go to the hypogeum and visualize how gladiators and animals were kept in the tunnels and cages before the fight began. I generally find this idea of ‘fights’ and ‘hunts’ quite barbaric so I skipped this tour even though my family went for it. The entire complex was so huge and was so elaborately laid out that I could probably end up writing a book on the Coliseum, as it is called in Italian.
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