Mass Transit and the Masses

I blame me for making us come to Rome close to Easter, when the entire world is on spring break. I also blame me for deciding that no one would be at the Colisseum at 2:30 in the afternoon. But I blame Lola for making us get off the bus a couple of stops too early, causing us to have to walk and walk until we saw this:

First of all, the buses were all packed. We bought a 3 day pass and you're supposed to validate your ticket when you get on. On about 4 rides, I saw one person validate a ticket. I'm guessing this is an honor-type system although you're warned that an official could get on the bus and ask to see your ticket. We validated once when we were close to the machine, but in most cases, you couldn't get near it even if you were trying to do things legally.

Our "no line" vouchers for the Colisseum really meant there was no line to get the official tickets after going through security. The voucher suggested going about 15-20 minutes early but the wait was about 30 minutes. We were most surprised by the lack of signage in both the Colisseum and the Forum. We got audioguides which were not too informative. We did get to take the elevator to the second level, though; it is reserved for people who have trouble walking and those over 65 years of age. We were both at that point.

As with all tourist areas, the most annoying thing was people taking selfies. In Venice and Rome, we've seen hardly any vendors near the sites except for people selling selfie sticks.  Some of the churches have signs that say "No sellfies" but the Colisseum actually had a place designated for selfies.

  

View of the 1st floor

We probably spent more than an hour in the Colisseum but the crowds were overwhelming so we went on to Palatine Hill and the Forum. Also, full of people. No signage. Yes, we should have taken our own map but who would have thought there would be no signs for say, the entrance and exit.

There is a lovely garden spot and maze at the top of the hill with views of all the ruins. 

Lunch did not fit into our travel plan so we were starving by the time we got back to the neighborhood. Close by, a cafe called Mimi & Coco's has good reviews so we tried it. Here was dinner:

I'm not tired of pasta yet but I like to get a hamburger in every country I visit. This was perfectly cooked and the roasted potatoes were delicious.  Since we missed a whole meal today, we're off for some gelato soon.