Rome Away From Home

Let me preface this by saying that I did a lot less research for this trip than I did for my previous ones. It has become some kind of traveling tradition that I book my excursions during a time of personal turmoil. I was hitting a snag in the job department, which somehow translated to the "fuck it" mentality of buying a ticket across the world (again). Bringing that back around, I had plenty of time on my hands once I hit a low of barely working 16 hour weeks. You would think I'd spend that time planning that non-refundable trip I would be going on in a few months. You would think that. And you'd be wrong for thinking that. Way to go, genius.

I'm sorry. That was harsh. We cool? We cool.

I did actually spend a bit of time finding points of interest and saving them to a map, but that was about it. From what I hear, Rome has a very efficient and somewhat reliable public transportation system. With that information, I decided to ignore it and opt to take taxis everywhere. Or just walk. If your goal is to see all of the ruins, monuments, and The Vatican, Rome is surprisingly compact.

From my rented apartment, I walked a short distance through some side streets that I'm sure had names, but the lack of any street signs prevents me from ever telling you what those names were. I came face to watery face with Tiber River, or the River Tiber if you want to be all proper about it. I happened to reserve an apartment very close to a small island in the river called Isola Tiberina. And I wouldn't be the travel blogger you expect me to be if I didn't go into detail about how important Isola Tiberina is... oh look at the time.

Let this guy sing you a song about its importance.

On the other side of the river, I continued a short distance to the Portico d'Ottavia (Portico of Octavia for the uncultured). Directly to the east was Teatro Marcello. Both were equally intriguing and awe-inspiring, given that they were the first ruins I had seen so far during my exploration of Rome. I don't intend that to mean that they were uninteresting by comparison to some of the larger sights and sounds of the city. Unlike some of those larger sights, neither Portico d'Ottavia nor Teatro Marcello required any ticket for admission. Simply walk around and take in the history however you see fit. The best way would probably be to read some of the information plaques posted around the area. Advice from me to you that I did not follow at all.

Via del Portico d'Ottavia 

Teatro Marcello on the left, Temple of Apollo Sosiano on the right

Another short stroll north and I came to the Altare della Patria. Let me tell you a little something about myself. There are two things that I love, but cannot do due to lack of training and proper funding: architecture and pissing off an entire city. The Altare della Patria began construction in 1885, took 40 years to complete, is the largest single monument in all of Rome, and (at least) was incredibly hated by the general public. Criticism ranges from its ridiculous size to the fact that it looks like a giant typewriter. All of that just adds to why I love it so much. The name translates to Altar of the Fatherland, and was made to commemorate the unification of Italy under Victor Emmanuel II. Toward the end of its construction, the tomb of the unknown soldier was added to the sight.

Alter of the Fatherland

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

I did some additional roaming and found myself at the end of a long street with the Colosseum at the very end. Instead of walking straight, I turned to my left into a restaurant called Wanted. If you're at all interested, online reviews for the place are mixed. I ordered the lamb burger with roasted potatoes. My review is that the food was okay. Not mind blowing, but definitely not anything to complain about. Well deserving of its 2.8 rating on Google. And since I don't take pictures of my food, have a photo of what I saw before I entered instead.

View of the Colosseum down Via dei Serpenti

Right here is where I typed out a long and thorough explanation of why I hate the people walking around major tourists sites trying to sell anyone all manners of useless garbage. I deleted all of that so I could just tell you to say "No" to anyone who attempts to talk to you. "Hey my friend. Are you from America?" No. "Buddy, are you going to the Colosseum?" Nope. "Amigo, do you ever think it's weird that the show Scooby Doo tried to sell Daphne as the attractive sex symbol, but almost everyone these days is drawn more to Velma?" No, sir. That fact that the answer to all of those questions is an indisputable "yes" is none of their business. And they won't be getting my money.

Probably the Colosseum. I'm no historian.

I spent the time exploring the exterior of the Colosseum and the Arco di Constantino (Arch of Constantine, Jesus learn Italian already). I decided not to go inside simply because I was already tired at this point, and I made mental plans to return a few days later to do all of the interior snooping. I also thought it would be a cool idea to go back to my apartment, rest a bit, and come back to take some sick nasty night shots. And that's what I did. See for yourself below.

Arco di Constantino on the left, Colosseo on the right

She big.

And that's the gist of my first day in Rome. Stay tuned for more gists.