I have now endured the longest queue that I have ever submitted myself to. Needlessly, as it turns out – I could have gotten a ticket a lot faster if I had purchased it at the Roman Forum rather than the Colosseum (the tickets are combined for both attractions). After more than an hour, I finally got my ticket. At the time I was in the Colosseum, there was an exhibition on the Emperor Nero, famous for his strange sexual urges, killing his mother, and possibly burning down Rome so he could start again – quite the passionate individual. The room where he lived was absolutely amazing, a sunken marble terrace with spouting fountains all around. Lucky guy! The colloseum itself was quite amazing, it was quite brutal the way they put executions by animal or fire on show, as well as animal vs. animal, animal vs. human, and human vs. human fights on show.
The Roman forum nearby is beautiful, as well as the rest of the ruins, which stretch out over a long space. These included various arches, pillars, palaces, and gardens. The palace itself was absolutely huge, originally built with two massive wings stretching over hectares, and intended to have an extra wing. I found it very strange, seeing brick-and-mortar buildings from the time of Jesus, built as the normal masonry material of the time. I expected marble, but having seen this, it's amazing how little our building techniques have changed over time – 2000 years and no advancement!
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