Traveling Outside and Within: So, Roma, whatcha got?

Our second full day in Rome, and it seems like Rome has got quite a lot of things to share with us: cars, people, heat, size, and antiquities! After a week in Venice with no cars at all, only vaporettos, gondolas and motoring boats of various sizes, so the masses of cars, trucks and scooters here is startling!

In Venice there are large numbers of people as well, but, because they are funneled through narrow passageways, one never sees masses of them all at once, except maybe near Saint Marks. And, oh, my goodness, the heat! A beautiful blue sky allows, even encourages, relentless sunshine! We, and all those people, are out walking (read 'sweltering') on pavement among those noisy, hot cars! Aaarrrrrgh! No relief in sight on the Heat front, so we're planning an evening outing. Tomorrow I'll be in the Vatican Museum, where I'm assuming there will be air conditioning, though I will be walking the few blocks to and fro in the heat. (Our apartment is in an excellent location for visiting the Vatican!)

In Venice, and certainly in Assisi, walking everywhere was reasonable (besides we could easily hope onto a vaporetto), but in Rome we ride the Metro. Plus there are buses, trams and taxis we haven't used yet. The city covers a lot of miles--of sweltering pavement, cars, people, and, of course--antiquities!

But the antiquities! My goodness, has Rome got 'em!

Let's start with everyone's symbol of Rome--the Coliseum!

The structure is incredibly massive; no sense of human scale--just Huge! Although rationally I understand the age and uses of it, it is beyond my comprehension.

Then there is the Arch of Constantine, covered with carvings of previous emperors, as well as Constantine:

On view within the Coliseum are pieces of cornices from columns and other structures:

all magnificently carved!

Now here's a corner of the Forum, where Rome began and wheich wa surrounded with temples, courts and governmental buildings, and Julius Caesar walked through here on the Ides of March!

In the Capitolene Museum, are remnants of a colossal 30 foot sculputre of Constantine:

and just for a sense of scale--

compare the size of those melons! The artist's intentional distortions of the emperor's features (placement and size of the eyes, for example) give him an other-worldly quality that emanates strength and massive power! I was so pleased to see this!!!