We used Roma passes to maximize our savings in Rome. It includes your first two entrances free, 50% off the rest, and unlimited public transportation for three days. We decided to see the most expensive places first, which meant the Colosseum in the morning.
Another panoramic. In the first 100 days of being first built and open, 2000 men and 9000 animals died in battle. It was just incredible to see and think about. 
From the top (yes, more stairs) you can see the Arch of Constantine. Yay for Christianity! 
We went to see it up close as well. Outside the Colosseum there were men dressed as Roman centurions putting on a show. But we learned from Rick Steves that if you take a picture of them, they expect to get paid...handsomely. And they are armed with swords. So we stayed away from them.
The entrance included the Roman Forum, Capotoline Hill and some other places. They started looking similar to me, but here are some pictures of them. 
We read our Rick Steves guide to fugure out what was what, but we were pretty turned around by the end. 
So we just found a shaded, quiet place and walked around. 
It really was a pretty place. 
I believe this is the Arch of Titus. I'm much too lazy to go back in the book and check. 
After touring, we tried out a Roman water fountain. They run constantly, so you just plug the hole and it squirts up the top for you. They're supposedly safe to drink, but we stuck to bottles of water mostly. After my experience in Mexico, I was not risking anything. 
Our next stop for the pass was the Borghese gallery. There is a sprawling lawn out front that was pleasant after a long walk there. 
Pictures were not allowed inside the Borghese Gallery but there were nice sculptures by Bernini. One bust of the pope was cracking as he finished, so he whipped up another one in 3 days. So impressive. There was also a "simple" sculpture he did at age 10 or 11. Our favorite was Apollo and Daphne. The legend says the god of love hit Apollo with an arrow that made him love Daphne, and hit Daphne with an arrow that made her hate Apollo. When he starts chasing her, she asks her father (also a god) and he turns her into a tree.
Another panoramic. In the first 100 days of being first built and open, 2000 men and 9000 animals died in battle. It was just incredible to see and think about. 
From the top (yes, more stairs) you can see the Arch of Constantine. Yay for Christianity! 
We went to see it up close as well. Outside the Colosseum there were men dressed as Roman centurions putting on a show. But we learned from Rick Steves that if you take a picture of them, they expect to get paid...handsomely. And they are armed with swords. So we stayed away from them.
The entrance included the Roman Forum, Capotoline Hill and some other places. They started looking similar to me, but here are some pictures of them. 
We read our Rick Steves guide to fugure out what was what, but we were pretty turned around by the end. 
So we just found a shaded, quiet place and walked around. 
It really was a pretty place. 
I believe this is the Arch of Titus. I'm much too lazy to go back in the book and check. 
After touring, we tried out a Roman water fountain. They run constantly, so you just plug the hole and it squirts up the top for you. They're supposedly safe to drink, but we stuck to bottles of water mostly. After my experience in Mexico, I was not risking anything. 
Our next stop for the pass was the Borghese gallery. There is a sprawling lawn out front that was pleasant after a long walk there. 
Pictures were not allowed inside the Borghese Gallery but there were nice sculptures by Bernini. One bust of the pope was cracking as he finished, so he whipped up another one in 3 days. So impressive. There was also a "simple" sculpture he did at age 10 or 11. Our favorite was Apollo and Daphne. The legend says the god of love hit Apollo with an arrow that made him love Daphne, and hit Daphne with an arrow that made her hate Apollo. When he starts chasing her, she asks her father (also a god) and he turns her into a tree.The details, like the thin leaves (picture from Borghese website) are just amazing.
After our fun times at the gallery, we walked around the grounds for a bit.
Then we went on to explore the city some more and found the Hard Rock in Rome.
Our next stop was the Pantheon, which is free! Luckily it was sunny out because the oculus was wide open.
I taught John about coffering and it reminded me of a tour I took of the Capitol.
Outside there were more Roman centurions so we went off a little ways and took our own.
We roamed the city some more and came across many cool buildings.
We looked them up in our guide book to learn what they were, but I have since forgotten.
It's interesting how such a bustling metropolis can have these ancient ruins just scattered throughout the city. (I felt like it should be Runes. Thanks Hermione) 
Since I was now a devoted Michelangelo fan, we had to stop by the church of St. Peters in Chains to see his Moses sculpture. The entrance at these churches is usually free, but then you put coins in to turn the lights on over the statues. Sneaky.
John with Peter's chains.
John recognized the Ecstasy of Saint Teresa sculpture in the guide book and was excited to see it in person. Plus, after two hours in the Borghese, we felt like old friends of Bernini and thought we owed it to him to check it out, so we headed over to Santa Maria della Vittoria.
We just couldn't get our fill of churches, so we went to the Santa Maria Degli Angeli e dei Martiri (also designed by Michelangelo), which was once the Baths of Diocletian.
The coolest feature is this Meridian Line, which serves as a calendar. The close-up picture shows where the light would enter, and it crosses the line at solar noon, so it can tell time, too. I'm sure John could explain it better, but if we wait for him to blog we'll never get to the end of our trip.
Overall we saw some incredible sights in Rome. Our tired feet dragged us back to our hotel, where we discovered the breakfast cafe nearby moonlights as a pizza place. They sell pizza by the gram, so I was a little nervous about the cost since I have no idea how much pizza weighs. It turned out to be really inexpensive, though, and extremely delicious. Double score.
Still jealous of your trip. I often look at your blog entries over and over whilst at work and imagine I'm touring Italy instead of battling evil robots all night.
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