Rome trip continued; Colosseum and Forums (warning--too many photos)

Us in front of Colosseum

Weather did not cooperate during our little Rome trip in early December.  Almost every day while we were in Rome it rained, some days all day long and most days off and on with the sun showing its face for an hour or two between drizzles.  At least it was warm!  All that gray and drizzle would have been unpleasant if it had also been cold.  Misty rain we could deal with without discomfort.

As always, click on any image for larger view. The third day of our brief trip was misty and drizzly all day long.  But still warm so that did not hinder our exploring. The 3 of us walked the neighborhood for awhile, but John's legs again were causing him pain so he returned to the apartment to rest.  Bill and I set off on a mission to find a nativity as a gift for our daughter-in-law.  She had said last year that she would appreciate a nativity from Italy.  We eventually did find a unique one in a small shop on the Via della Conciliazione (Road of the Conciliation) right in front of St. Peter's Basilica. This nativity had been manufactured in Naples.  There were only 2 nativities in the shop that were unique enough to excite me to purchase, and the other one was too large to transport in our checked luggage when we flew to Houston.  This one is made from stone and fairly heavy.

We shopped for souvenirs of Rome or Italy for others, especially grandchildren; but did find anything.  Not a thing.  The tee-shirts labeled as an adult size 'extra large' looked like would be too small even for our granddaughter who is only 13 and very thin.   Made for miniature people? 

Castel Sant'Angelo, a/k/a Hadrian's Mausoleum
  http://www.italyguides.it/us/roma/castle_st_angelo/castel_st_angelo.htm

We walked once again around the Castel Sant'Angelo and down around St. Peter's Basilica. And all along the very long wall that connects Castel Sant'Angelo with the Papal apartments in the Vatican -- that famous escape route for the Pope to run along the top of that wall to safety within the castle.  Crowds were less dense this day; thanks to the rain, no doubt. 

You know what this is

More Prosecco and snacks at happy hour in the apartment and followed by another stroll through the neighborhood  to select a restaurant for dinner.  After a day of resting John was up for walking those cobble-stoned alleyways and narrow streets once again.  After much 'shopping' we selected a different restaurant and were seated outdoors right in front of an old church crowded near some kind of old stone wall.  Food here was once again not nearly as good as that we had enjoyed so much at Il Fico Ristorante where we had dined on our first night in Rome.  We vowed not to try any more new places and to return to Il Fico the following evening, which would be our final night in Rome.

The following day would be our last full day in Rome and we had arranged a small group tour of the Forums, Colosseum and dungeons, once again through The Roman Guy company.  http://theromanguy.com/tours/small-group-tours/rome/details/64279/colosseum-dungeon-third-level-and-arena-floor/

One of the impressive buildings adjacent to forums

Once again we took a taxi to the meeting point in front of the Colosseum in order to save wear and tear on legs since we would be walking and standing for next 3 hours minimum.  The guide arrived precisely on time and a guy from Voice, Inc. arrived within minutes with the headsets.  These tour companies have set this up perfectly.  No longer is one forced to listen to tour guides speaking to their individual groups; each group gets headsets tuned to the guide's transmitter frequency.  And this guide was wonderful.  She calls herself Tina, short for Kristina, and has a Ph.D. in archaeology.  She also is a professor of archaeology at the 

how that impressive building looked back then

University of Rome.  She was very knowledgeable and we were very pleased with her handling of this tour.

Normally this tour starts in the dungeons of the Colosseum.  But, due to so much rain in the previous 24 hours, those dungeons were flooded.  She led us off to the Forums instead, hoping that the water would recede in the dungeons if we held off and did that part last.  This tour gets VIP entrance access, no waiting in lines. Time is precious when vacationing, which makes skipping entrance queues a great thing.  We skipped the lines and began learning about the various old Forums.








There is no point in going into detail about the various forums, who built them and when. It is sufficient simply to note that there are several forums which were built in varying time periods by different emperors.  

Senate House is tall building in center

The Senate House was smaller than I had envisioned.  In fact, it reminded me of an old 2-story church building one might find in rural America.   As I noted in the previous blog posting, Julius Caesar was not killed on the floor of this Senate House.  He had ordered that this Senate House be enlarged and at the time of his murder the Senate was temporarily meeting in a different location at the Theater of Pompeii. Caesar was assassinated on the floor of the curia (meeting area) of that theater which was dedicated to Pompeii Magnus.  

Plaque Ara di Caesare

Site of Caesar's cremation

Tina pointed us to the Ara di Cesare.  There is a plaque on this site. This is what I found online:  
"Translation from Latin to English -- ALTAR OF CAESAR -- Caesar’s body was laid in the Roman Forum where the ancient seat of the Roman power resided. There the Roman people gathered tables, chairs and any other type of wood that they found. They lit the fire and all the people witnessed the burning of the fire during the night.  In this place they built an altar and then a temple to the same Caesar, IN WHICH HE IS NOW HONORED AS A god." 

Bill listening to guide.  Tiny Temple of Vesta is the
white columned structure in back right.

One thing that surprises some tourists is the tiny size of the Temple of Vesta, or the temple for the Vestal Virgins.  It was very, very small.  

Ground site is where Vestal Virgins lived.
Structures in background are residences on slope of Palatine Hill

A short distance from the Temple of Vesta are the ruins of the Atrium Vestae, or House of the Vestal Virgins. Supposedly Julius Caesar and his wife resided there for a few years when he served as the high priest in charge of those virgins.  This was well before he became emperor for life.  It was impossible imagine what this home must have been like during its heyday but our guide had a nice photo that illustrated what it probably looked like back then. 

And this is what the residence of the Vestal Virgins was
really like back then.

Enlarge to see menorah

Arch of Titus

We walked  past a triumphal arch, one of many we saw throughout Rome.  If memory serves, this one was the Arch of Titus; it is easy to remember this one because of the menorah commemorating Titus' successful siege of Jerusalem.  This arch was constructed by Emperor Domitian shortly after the death of his older brother Titus.  This arch has provided the general model for many of the triumphal arches erected.  It was the inspiration for the famous Arc de Triomphe in Paris.  

Temple of Romulus

We strolled past the Temple of Romulus with its two columns near the entrance door which are made from the invaluable purple porphyry marble that is no longer available.  The huge door is solid bronze and the lock still works -- 1708 years after this building was constructed. Tina said she had the opportunity to watch the door lock work and the door swing on its ancient hinges when there with a selected group of archaeologists.  Not something we regular tourists would be able to see.

One of the many interior rooms
 of the Imperial Palace

And how that room looked back then

Then we walked up the hillside to the site of the Imperial Palace atop Palatine Hill, one of those famous 7 hills of Rome.  This sumptuous building (or collection of buildings) must have been amazing. 

A stadium within the Imperial Palace

The word 'palace' is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill, meaning that this structure would have been the first palace in the world.  




Guess the building was so impressive and opulent that vocabulary needed a new word to describe it.

And how that stadium looked back then

This site is too impressive for me to begin to attempt to describe it.  

One side overlooks all the old Roman Forums and the Tiber River.  

The opposite side overlooks the Circus Maximus.  

Another side overlooks the Wedding Cake (huge monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, the man who unified the city states into the country of Italy as we know it today); who knows what was there when the emperors of Rome resided here.  

And the final side overlooks the Colosseum.

Here are a few links to information on the Imperial Palace:

http://www.roman-empire.net/tours/rome/palatine.html

http://www.carskapalata.rs/imperialpalace.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palatine_Hill

Exiting that fourth side of the Imperial Palace via slippery stone steps down the hillside brought us to present-day ground level of the Colosseum a couple of blocks away.  The guide warned us to be extra careful of the pickpockets in this area and to avoid the young women who gathered in groups on the sidewalk.  She said a common tactic is for one or two of the girls to come up and start talking to tourists (especially men) and distract the tourists.  Then their friends will grab your belongings and run before you can stop them.  We all clutched our handbags and wallets a bit tighter and moved on past all the teenage girls, ignoring whatever they said.  We would refer to these people as gypsies but that is not PC over here.

John, Judy & Bill standing on 'floor'
level of Colosseum

Another 'floor' level view inside Colosseum

This reconstructed representative seating is not how it was

Looking back toward south entrance, side of Tiber River

At the Colosseum  we were once again whisked through a VIP entrance, avoiding the queue lining the sidewalk.  Once inside we were met by another guide (employee at the Colosseum) and she unlocked the special areas we would be allowed to see.  

Looking down at the dungeon level of Colosseum

Unfortunately, the dungeons were still flooded; we would not be allowed down there.  Crud! Oh well; it is what it is.  This flooding sort of exemplified how easy it had been when the Colosseum was first constructed for them to flood the lowest level to hold mock ship battles for the crowds.  Because there was a natural egress from the entrance on the south from the Tiber River.  They could open the waterway and flood the floor of the Colosseum; then open the opposite waterway and empty the water when the spectacle was over.  All by using natural flow of water due to topography of the land.  

Also looking down from 'floor' level to the dungeons

Contrary to what most of us thought, this was done only for a period of about 10 years.

When the Colosseum was only about 10 years old, construction began to enlarge it.  A raised 'floor' was put into place and dungeons were constructed at the ground level that previously had been flooded for spectacles.  Exotic animals were caged and stored down there.  With trap doors and pulley systems to raise the animals up to the arena level where the fighting would take place.  The gladiators also were kept down there prior to their fighting to the death.  Really, all in all, a gruesome place back then.

Drawing of the levels from dungeons up to cages up to arena floor.
This was very elaborate system with pulleys.  Advanced for its time period.

A few areas of the lower section had a few benches or rows of seats reconstructed to assist visitors in visualizing how the entire Colosseum must have looked back in its day.  Tina said that reconstruction really was not correct and she showed us a drawing of what the seating actually had been like.  

Painting of a typical scene of common folk on bench seating.
Note the guy cooking near center right.

The common people would come for the entire day whenever games or spectacles were held.  They would bring food and even cook food on the benches where they sat.  A very casual day watching animals and people kill each other.  (Still difficult to understand how people found enjoyment or entertainment from this.)






Each tour group is allowed a specified time in each of the restricted areas.  Soon we were moved back to the outer rim, still inside the exterior structure walls.  Since John obviously was having trouble with his legs and using a cane to walk, the guides shuffled our entire little group into an elevator to the 'upper' level.  Normally, one must walk up the stone steps.

This 'upper' level is really more of a mid-upper level.  It is open to all tourists, not just the private tours like ours.  But we walked around to another locked section and waited our turn for access to the real upper level.  That is kept locked and the number of visitors allowed up there at any one time is closely monitored.  

View of inside Colosseum.  Photo taken from uppermost level.
When we first entered, we had been on that 'stage' at the far end.  This became the floor level of the arena after it was enlarged when the structure was only 10 years old.

Playing with phone on upper level of Colosseum

The view up there is spectacular!  The clouds had burned away somewhat for a few hours that afternoon.  We were fortunate to be able to enjoy the views of Rome in all directions for a short time before the clouds again gathered and drizzled once more.  

Looking down from top level of Colosseum to site
of largest temple ever built in ancient Rome

While up there Tina explained that the 'thumbs up' gesture used by the emperor's in movies to indicate whether a gladiator should be granted life or death was never used.  They did not do that thumbs up gesture.  Not at all.  That gesture originated in a painting decades after the Colosseum was ceased to be used.  A French painter included the thumbs gesture in a painting and it became so well-known that most people believe that this was how it was done.  There was a thumbs down gesture and it indicated to lay down the swords and let the gladiator live. 
http://historywithatwist.blogspot.com/2011/01/gladiators-thumbs-up-or-thumbs-down.html

Contrary to what is stated in the link above, the Romans did not use that thumbs up gesture to indicate to kill the gladiator.  According to Tina, the highly educated expert who certainly should know which story is true, the gesture used to indicate killing the gladiator was to move the flat hand sideways across the neck.  As if to say "off with his head."  And the thumbs down gesture was to let him live -- lay down the sword.

 Another link about Gladiators

What that large temple looked like back then.
And the Colossus statue was right between it and Colosseum

Walking back down those ultra steep stone steps required holding the handrail for safety. The stones are well worn.  They also are very narrow.  People probably were much shorter back when this was built and their feet were smaller.  I had to turn my feet slightly side-wise in order to place my entire foot on each step.  Not a place to skip lightly down the stairway without risking a broken leg or worse.





Once outside the locked restricted area, Tina collected our headsets and said goodbye to our group and we were left to roam around the Colosseum as long as we wished.  We wandered slowly down the various levels and then back past the Forums to hail a taxi back to the apartment.

Enjoying top level at Colosseum

We enjoyed dinner at our favorite restaurant once again.  The twin brothers working as bartender and waiter again joked around and it was a fun evening with good food.  Early the following morning the Halldis agent arrived right on schedule to check us out of the apartment.  We also had arranged transport to the airport though Halldis and our driver was waiting for us at the end of the alley right on time.  In the rain.  Yep...it was raining still as we drove to the airport.  Early December in Rome was quite wet in 2014.  Unusually warm, but quite wet.

Looking down from top level of Colosseum at yet another arch

Last note about the Colosseum.  When our sons visited Rome with their high school history classes ~25 years ago, the Colosseum was very dark.  The stone was stained by centuries of air pollution.  Cleaning of the structure is now underway.  The areas that have already been cleaned are once again white.  This cleaning is done today with lasers and does not damage the stone, the same process that was used to clean the Vatican and St. Peter's Basilica and all those statues on the rooftops there.  It is an expensive process.  The government of Italy cannot afford to do this.  The project of cleaning the Colosseum is being funded by Tod's Shoes.  http://www.tods.com/en_us/

I had never heard of Tod's Shoes.  Now that I know they are doing a good deed such as this, I will make a point of shopping for this brand next time I am in the market for shoes, although $600 shoes are completely out of my price range.  I am glad to see a successful Italian company give back to the Italians by way of this public work.

'Driving Tour' of Rome and our gadabouts

 

Fr. John, Judy and Bill.  Standing on hill above site of the Circus Maximus with ruins of the Emperial Palace
on far hill behind us.  That was one HUGE palace.

 As always, click on any image for larger view.

Bernini fountain of Triton

This blog posting should have been written a month ago when everything was fresh in my mind.  Instead, because I waited so long and have been so busy (and failed to take notes while touring Rome, shame on me), now that there is time to write a few blog postings I have already forgotten many of the details of what we saw and did while in Rome.  

On our second full day in Rome we had scheduled a private driving tour with The Roman Guy.  We heartily recommend this tour.  http://theromanguy.com/tours/private-tours/rome/details/68866/private-rome-city-driving-tour/  It was really a delight and very informative.

No idea what this building was.
 No signs anywhere.

I had in my mind that this tour was to start at 12:20 and knew the piazza where we were to meet the guide.  If it had been just Bill and myself, we would have walked the 3 miles or so to that piazza and enjoyed seeing things along the way, but John's legs were giving him a lot of pain and he was already experiencing difficulties walking so much on those old cobblestone streets.  Those uneven stones really are hard on a person's joints.  So we took a taxi and arrived at the piazza early at 11:00 with plans to eat a very early lunch before the tour started.  Except I screwed up!  Another tour on a another day was scheduled for 12:20 -- this driving tour was scheduled for 3:30 this day.  Oh my!  We were there REALLY early!  

Mussolini would stand on that tiny balcony on 5th window
from right and talk for hours to people standing in the square

What to do with all this extra time?  Well...let's go sightseeing for a few hours, of course.  Apologies, John; we will take it slow and catch taxis if your legs get too painful.  But at least at first the walking would all be downhill rather than uphill.  We started out at one of the famous Bernini fountains.

Fountain meeting place for tour--The Fountain of Triton

They have Black Friday in Italy?
Thought that was an American thing

This was the first of many fountains that we visited which were designed by several men of the Bernini family.  We walked for several hours until John could not take it anymore and I was also developing arthritic hip pain; then we caught a taxi back to the Bernini fountain and enjoyed a nice late lunch, finishing just in time to meet our guide for the driving tour.

Trevi Fountains under
reconstruction but can still
make a penny wish at
this statue in front

During our meandering those hours we visited these places:

1. Vittorio Emanuele Monument (called the Wedding Cake by local Romans). The Altare della Patria (Altar of the Fatherland), also known as the Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II or "Il Vittoriano" is a monument built in honor of Victor Emmanuel, the first king of a unified Italy in 1861.  Construction began on this monument in 1885 and was completed in 1925.  Remember that Italy was comprised of city states up until the time Vittorio Emanuele II unified the country.
2. The square and building where Mussolini gave many speeches during his reign.
3. Trajan's Column  http://www.aviewoncities.com/rome/trajanscolumn.htm
4. Trajan's Forum  http://archive.archaeology.org/9801/abstracts/trajan.html
5. Nerva's Forum  http://www.vtpublichistory.org/sites/ImperialForum/?page_id=16
6. Statues of Julius Caesar and of Nerva
7. Trajan's Agora (built to hold back land on hill when excavated area for forum)
8. Old Roman Forum of Julius Caesar's time period
9. Temple of Vesta  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_of_Vesta  (Vestal Virgins)
10. Coliseum in distance (we would tour this in a few days)
11. Trevi Fountains (under major reconstruction) http://www.trevifountain.net/
12. Large columns with no signs as to what this was or when

The Wedding Cake.  Very large and very ornate.  Shame it was not a sunny day so could get better photos.

Trajan's Column

We hailed a taxi and returned to the area of the Bernini fountain.  There were several restaurants in the vicinity and many local families enjoying lunch on this Sunday afternoon.  It was wonderful to get to sit for awhile and lunch was good.  Within minutes of arriving back at the fountain after lunch, our guide arrived and we were whisked away in a nice small van-type vehicle.  All the while listening to stories of the Bernini family and the famous sculptors of that family and their various works strewn around central Rome.

Closer look at Trajan's Column.  The carvings
encircling the tall column tell the story of
his life and accomplishments.

Trajan's Agora was built in that semi-circular
area in background.  He ordered earth removed
to equal the height of his column; then the agora
was built to act as a retaining wall for the hill.

On Sundays the street is closed to vehicles and people
enjoy the area like a park.  In the heart of the old
Roman forums and ruins.

Our tour took us back to many of the places we had just visited on our own.  Only this time the guide provided lots of history about each place.  It honestly is too much to absorb and retain; too much, too quickly.  After again viewing the old forums near the Wedding Cake and Trajan's Column, we were driven around to the back side of Palatine Hill to see the Circus Maximus.  

Our driver and van, waiting patiently.

Our guide explaining the Circus Maximus

A small part at the end of the Circus Maximus under renovation.
Someone asked about the 'MTV' graffiti in this sign.  Please
see the postscript of this blog posting for explanation.

Ancient drinking water fountain still functions

Then up to the top of another of the famous hills of Rome (Aventine, maybe?) with nice view of the Tiber River.  In the gardens at the top of this hill stood an ancient water fountain which still spewed drinking water.  It was decorated with the head of a wolf, honoring the she-wolf who suckled Romulus and Remus.

Looking at Trajan's Forum and
Agora and Column

And right across the street from the
Trajan stuff stood the ruins of older
Roman forums and houses.

I cannot remember half of the places we visited on this tour.  It has become a blur over the past month.  One place of note was the Jewish Ghetto.  This was larger than I would have expected and we were surprised to see Italian Kosher restaurants lining the streets in the walled-off ghetto area.  

Sad reminders of Jews slain by Nazis.

On the sidewalks were small bronze plaques honoring the Jews who were taken away and killed by the Nazis during WWII.  If I recall correctly what we were told by the guide, more than 1200 Jews were taken by the Nazis and only 6 people lived through the war to return to Rome.  Such a horrible, despicable time of history.  It is nice to see these bronze plaques embedded in the sidewalks and streets in front of the buildings in which these people lived.  A way of keeping their memory alive despite their tragic and senseless deaths.

Ruins of building honoring
Octavia

self explanatory

Adjacent to the ghetto area stood a large building ordered built by Emperor Augustus Caesar (Octavian) in honor of his sister Octavia.  I would have liked to wander a bit through that area but it was quickly getting dark and there were lots more things to see on this tour.

Palace of Pope Septus IV, still owned by Vatican

And the next place was of special interest even though none of us had ever heard of it.  It was owned by the Vatican.  Even though situated well away from Vatican City, this remote building in old Rome is not part of Rome.  When one enters the doorway, one is legally in the Vatican.  This was the palace of Pope Septus IV.  And here is where we learned a tidbit about Julius Caesar that surprised all 3 of us.

Julius Caesar was not killed on the floor of the Senate House!   He was killed in a different place!!

We had been taught that Caesar was killed in the Senate House, not on the steps as shown in many movies but inside on the floor of the curia, the area where the Senators gathered before being seated in the Senate.  Well...it turns out that, yes, he was killed on the floor of the curia -- but it was not the curia of the regular Senate House.  Julius Caesar had ordered that the Senate House be enlarged and renovated.  While that work was being accomplished the Senate was meeting temporarily in another location.  The Senate meetings were temporarily being held in  the Curia of Pompey, a meeting place within the larger Pompey's Theater built by Pompeii the Great.  Julius Caesar was assassinated on the floor of that theater which had been built by his friend and later enemy, Pompeii Magnus. 

http://www.history.com/news/julius-caesars-stabbing-site-identified

Piazza Navona.  One of the beautiful fountains.

The exact spot was discovered just a few years ago when a statue was unearthed, upon which was engraved wording that this statue marked the "killing spot of Julius Caesar."  This statue was erected by order of his nephew Octavian, Emperor Augustus Caesar.  The location of the murder was opened to the public in 2013.  This spot was very close to the palace of Pope Septus IV that we visited.  We did not get to visit the exact spot of Caesar's murder because it was already well past dark and there were still other destinations on our tour.

In front of one of the spectacular fountains
in the Piazza Navona

Next we visited the beautiful Piazza di Navona.  I would have liked to see this place during daylight, although our guide said that most tourists prefer to visit this piazza during evening hours when everything is all lit up.  There are 3 very large fountains in this piazza and it is just beautiful.  And crowded when we visited.  Cannot imagine how crowded this place is during high tourist season.  Glad we were here during early December instead of August.

http://www.aviewoncities.com/rome/piazzanavona.htm

http://www.skylinewebcams.com/en/webcam/italia/lazio/roma/piazza-navona.html

Floor of the Pantheon, drain holes are imperceptible.
Gorgeous original marble floor. 

Next was the absolute highlight of all we saw in Rome -- the Pantheon.  We were more impressed by this building than any other.http://www.rome.info/pantheon/


This building is amazing.  It actually is the third Pantheon and had the original dedication inscription above the entry which states "M. AGRIPPA.L.F.COSTERTIUM.FECIT" which translates to "Marcus Agrippa son of Lucius, having been consul three times made it".  

Inside Pantheon

The first Pantheon was built in 27 B.C. to honor Agrippa, friend and faithful military commander to Emperor Augustus Caesar (Octavian).  (BTW, there also is a large amphitheater situated at the base of the hill where the Parthenon is located in Athens that also was built in honor of Agrippa.  We visited it several years ago.)  The original Pantheon burned to the ground in 80 A.D.  Another Pantheon was constructed and it too very soon burned to the ground.  The Emperor Hadrian built the current Pantheon and once again dedicated it to Commander Agrippa.  The current Pantheon was built and dedicated between 118 A.D. and 125 A.D.  This structure was originally built as a temple to the pagan gods worshiped by Romans.

Inside Pantheon

The only reason this building was not sacked and destroyed was that it was changed to be a church as soon as Christianity was adopted by the Romans.  It is a most unusual building. It is huge.  The top of the dome is an open circle called an oculus.  Rain falls inside onto the marble floor, which is slanted very-so-slightly toward the center where numerous tiny drain holes are in place.  The floor is original, exposed to the elements for 1900 years and still in perfect condition.  The exterior of the dome was once covered in bronze, but that was raided for other construction elsewhere (Vatican?) centuries ago.  In fact, many of the old Roman ruins were assisted in becoming ruins because bronze and marble were removed to be placed in other newer buildings, many in the Vatican. 

Look closely and can see arches constructed in the brick
exterior walls of the Pantheon.

We found this building fascinating as well as beautiful  The large Christian statues displayed all around the interior were breath-taking.  The exterior brick walls were interesting and we wished it had been daylight so we could have studied these more closely.  The exterior walls were constructed with arch after arch placed all the way around the circular building, offset with other arches as one looked higher and higher up the walls.  These brick arches provide the strength that keeps the building intact.  The construction is simply fascinating.  Definitely the highlight of our visit to Rome. Even more-so than St. Peter's Basilica or the Vatican.

Another famous statue by  Bernini

After the Pantheon we drove by a few more statues and then to the Spanish Steps.

http://romeonsegway.com/7-facts-about-the-spanish-steps/

At the bottom of the Spanish Steps is the 'best' shopping district in all of Rome.  Not my thing but others were shopping like mad.  This was of no interest to us.

The guide said goodbye to us here and kindly asked the driver to take us back to our apartment rather than us having to find a taxi.  We were all very tired after our mid-day walking and then the tour.  I cannot imagine seeing all that we saw without having that nice guide and driver and comfortable vehicle.  This driving tour allows one to see the most while expending a minimal amount of physical effort.  And yet all 3 of us were exhausted.

At the apartment we snacked and shared a bottle of Prosecco.  I have come to really enjoy that beverage.  After resting and getting wined up, we once again walked the neighboring narrow streets to find a restaurant for dinner.  I do not remember the name of this one, and the food was not as good as what we had eaten the previous evening at Ristorante Il Fico; but it was a lot of fun because there was a table of 3 priests seated near us.  John especially enjoyed visiting with them and sent over complimentary drinks.  One of them plans to come to Texas in the not-too-distant future and John might connect with him again.  As I have mentioned previously, Bill's brother John is a priest; so these guys have lots in common.  It was a fun evening.  After a tiring day.

P.S.: Someone asked about the 'MTV' graffiti displayed in the photo above of the building reconstruction in the 'end zone' of the Circus Maximus.  I suspect that the MTV graffiti is placed in that location because the ancient Circus Maximus was used to host a rock concert.  I do not know if MTV was actually involved in organizing this concert or not.  Heck, the person who painted MTV on there might not know either. Last summer The Rolling Stones performed in the Circus Maximus, with their stage being erected at the opposite end of the field from that barricade behind which the ancient buildings are being renovated.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCQUxu3uvqQ

Can you imagine sitting or standing up in the ruins of the Emperial Palace at the top of that hill, looking down on the crowd and stage!  Our guide said she was higher up and enjoyed that view.  Who cares about the quality of sound in this venue!

There was a lot of criticism evoked by the renting out of this ancient site for this concert.  The Rolling Stones paid only 8,000 Euro to rent the Circus Maximus.  And the concert supposedly generated 6,000,000 Euro revenue.  
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/10917991/Rolling-Stones-hire-Romes-Circus-Maximus-for-a-bargain-8000.html

Wish I understood Italian.  This video mentions Lady Gaga and sort of implies she might have been the opening act for The Rolling Stones for this concert.  But the image of the papers shown near the end indicate that John Mayer was to be the opening act.  Do not know which performed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6602VnVp2zs

There are a number of videos on YouTube of parts of the performance at this concert.  Here is one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pq5vCvcZdRM