Ancient and ancient-er

My first stop for the next day was the Colosseum, another must-see for me. I navigated the buses and was able to avoid the long queue at the Colosseum and head straight to security. When I first arrived in Rome I had bought a 72-hour Roma Pass which gives free access to some attractions, discounted access to others, and full use of the public transport system. It also allows you to skip the queue in many places which saved me hours of lining up. I didn't end up using the Metro (subway) because it didn't go near my hotel, but I used the buses and trams a lot.

Colosseum

I spent an hour or two wandering around the Colosseum. Like most attractions in Rome it was pretty crowded, but still wonderful to see. It's actually the off-season now. I'd hate to be here during peak times!

Inside the Colosseum

After the Colosseum I wandered down past the Arch of Constantine and up a path to the Arch of Titus. 

Colosseum and Arch of Constantine

I had no plan and was just wandering, but it turned out that the Arch of Titus is one of the access points to the Roman Forum, another sight on my list. I was headed down into the Forum when I got side-tracked up a hill to my left. There were the remains of a fabulous ancient manor house (Domus Augustus) and it's surrounds including a stadium, and all sorts of other amazing remains. 

Domus Augustus

I spent a couple of hours wandering around up on this hill and it wasn't until I found my way back down into the Roman Forum that realised I had inadvertently ticked another thing off my list! I had just explored the Palatine Hill.

It is becoming a daily occurrence that I get busy sightseeing and forget about lunch. Most days I think of food at around 3pm, and then decide I can wait until tea. But on this day I found a vending machine and grabbed a packet of chips. The glass was really cloudy and the writing was in Italian. I thought they were garlic flavoured (which would have been interesting but ok). They were ginger… Revolting! Honestly Australia/New Zealand… Never go there! An absolute insult to potatoes!

View of the Roman Forum from the Palatine Hill

 Anyway. I had a stroll through the Roman Forum and headed back to the hotel for a quick rest. 

Before meeting up with Georgia that evening I decided that I could squeeze in a trip to the Trevi Fountain. What a crowd! Could hardly find a spot to see it from (especially when you're not 6-feet tall). But definitely beautiful, and quite special at night.

Trevi Fountain

I got back to my hotel and rang Georgia. We decided that we were both too knackered to go out again and we needed an early night. So we agreed to meet the following night instead...