Bonnie Bee and Yond: Rome

We docked early in Civitaveccia, the Port of Rome. Ricky had a night of GI issues and little sleep. He felt so bad, he really debated on staying on the ship. He finally decided to push himself to go to Rome. He really wanted to see the Colosseum, so we made it our goal to see it and get back to the ship as easily as we could. We did not set the expectation to try to see anything else. I wanted to stay with Ricky as he wasn't feeling well.

We headed out the port on a hot, hot morning.

Civitavecchia is a port built in 106 AD at the behest of Emporer Trajan. The port still retains some original features like the Roman Dock.

This is a picture of the fishing dock.

These are original walls. We drove through one "gate" and on our left was the opening the ships went through.

Remains of a Roman ship (as per our guide.)

This a fort Michelangelo designed and helped build. It was finished in 1537 and built on top of ancient Roman ruins.

I took a lot of pictures because the fort was so big.

We made a pit stop at an Italian convenience store, the Q8. I was intrigued by the Italian products.

One of our fellow travelers said she got one of the best cappuccinos she has ever had.

I also saw American products in the store, Barbie, Spiderman, Starbucks.

The parking spots were covered with solar panels.

I tried to take some pictures of the countryside from the bus without much success. The drive was about 90 minutes each way.

Random castle we passed

This is the entrance to the ancient Roman forum on the Palatine Hill.

This is the triumphal arch dedicated to Constantine the Great, commissioned by the Roman Senate in 312 AD to celebrate Constantine's victory over Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge. It was dedicated in 315 AD. It spans Via Triumphalis, the route that military leaders followed when they entered the city in triumphal procession. It is the largest Roman triumphal arch.

It is situated between Palatine Hill and the Colosseum.

Our first view of the Colosseum

After taking pictures of the Colosseum we began searching for a place to light because we had a 4 hour wait until the bus took us back to the ship.

We found this small cafe off the beaten path, and the waitress was so welcoming.

Unfortunately, the view wasn't very interesting.

I enjoyed this delicious peach drink.

We hung out until they started serving lunch. Ricky ordered Margharita pizza. (But didn't get any basil. 😔)

I had egg pasta with tomato sauce parmesean. It was okay but not spectacular.

We stayed as long as we could without wearing out our welcome. Then we relocated to another restaurant around the corner with a better view.

The heat is starting to get to me. Lol

The name of this sidewalk cafe across the street from the Colosseum is Hostaria Al Gladiatore.

So our afternoon became kind of a "man vs. food situation." In order to sit at the cafe, ordering food was required. Ricky's stomach was bothering him and it was really hot which didn't help. I ordered a second lunch of Greek salad. Thankfully it was very fresh and I could munch on it slowly.