A boy sits in the stands waiting for his favorite athlete to appear. He’s bored, and scratches a drawing onto his seat. But this scribble is less like Michael Jordan and more like Spartacus. For he lived 1,500+ years ago, and sits in the grandest amphitheater in the entire Roman Empire – Amphitheatrum Flavium, or as we refer to it today, the Colosseum. This simple scrawl reinforced the fact that these contests were not mythology – they occurred, and I was transported back in time. Continue after the break for more of my experience visiting one of the world’s wonders, as well as some tips for beating the line.
Image: Graffiti etched into a marble slab on Colosseum. Top depicts a gladiator fight. Bottom depicts a gladiator fighting a wild beast.
What to say about an architectural marvel dating back over 1,900 years? What to say about the largest tourist attraction in all of Italy, both in size and number of visitors (4.65 million in 2009)? What to say about a monument studied by historians, copied by architects, and glorified by filmmakers, that hasn’t already been said? I’ll say it. Just go! There’s a reason the Colosseum’s the #1 tourist attraction in all of Italy. Oh wait, that’s probably been said already too.
What’s the appeal? The Colosseum is a tangible link to the ancient Roman Empire. You can touch the walls, see the worn steps, close your eyes and imagine the cheers and gasps of 500,000 Roman spectators as Maximus, Spartacus, or Commodus confidently enter the arena. You can physically place yourself in the seats of the Plebeians, gaze across to where the Emperor, Vestal Virgins, and Senators sat, or peer into underground cells where lions, tigers, or rhinos waited to be unleashed. Coming from America’s sports-saturated culture, it was fascinating to stand on the original ground where sport-itself was used to not only entertain, but control, the masses.
What’s to see? Today’s Colosseum is of course only the remains of the wonder used for gladiatorial contests until 500 AD. The ruins of the amphitheater have survived fires, earthquakes, and being quarried for its marble. However, enough remains to awe and appreciate what it once was. After walking the inner and outer perimeter passageways, I wandered back to the museum housed on the 2nd floor. Looking at the artifacts on display brought the Colosseum alive, and transported me back in time. When visiting the Colosseum, take time to study these exhibits, for they allow you to understand the people and culture of the time.
You get a sense of the food eaten and games played as spectators whiled away the hours in the stands; appreciate the hierarchy of Roman society by studying seating arrangements; admire the artwork that once adorned the walls of the stadium; and marvel at the engineering mechanisms employed to carry out the competition. This one monument serves as a microcosm of all facets of Roman society.
Image: inscription on marble for the seat of a Roman Senator named Clodius Ablabius Reginus
A piece of advice for visiting, buy your tickets ahead of time. Tickets can be purchased from home, online, and printed out to have in hand when you arrive at the site – click here to purchase tickets from the official Italian website. Admission costs € 12 (+ € 1.50 processing fee) for adults, and is good for 2 days admission to the Colosseum, Palatine Hill, and the Roman Forum. When arriving at the Colosseum, you will notice a queue snaking towards the ticket window. The wait can be upwards of 2 hours during peak tourist season. However, because you have your ticket in hand, you bypass this line, and can gain access immediately to the Colosseum. If you were not able to purchase your ticket ahead of time at home, you can also take the very short walk down to the entrance of Palatine Hill. There should be no line (or very little wait) at this ticket window, and you can purchase the same 2 day admission pass for the Colosseum, Palatine, and Forum.
Also consider taking a guided tour of the site. During my visit, I signed up for one of the group tours from one of the many companies hawking for customers right outside the Colosseum entrance. This experience included one hour in the Colosseum and another hour of Palatine Hill. Because I had a 2 day pass, I figured the guided tour would orient me to the site, and I could then go back and soak in the details at my own pace. This combined Colosseum/Palatine tour cost ~ € 20, and served the purpose of introducing me to the site. Note: the tour quality is highly dependent on the individual guide. The tour guide for the Colosseum was adequate, but spent too much time flirting with the female American college students in our group. However, the guides switched for the tour of Palatine Hill. This new guide was a Canadian graduate student, incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about the subject, and outstanding.
The Colosseum is readily accessible from anywhere in Rome. The Colosseo Metro station (“B” Blue Line) is located across the street from the entrance. At the entrance to the Metro station is a taxi stand and café to purchase cappuccino or souvenirs. As with any large tourist site, you should be alert and aware of pick pockets. If you plan to visit, prepare to spend at least a couple of hours exploring the site – upwards to half a day if you wish to take in the museum exhibits in details. For more photos of my visit to the Colosseum, check out the full photo gallery featured below.
If you have experienced the Colosseum, have questions, or thoughts of your own on this, please leave a comment below. Disclosure: everything described in this post was paid for by the author. For more travel news, be sure to follow Adventures by Daddy on twitter and “like” our facebook page too.
