My OneWorld Around The World Trip: Rome, Day 3

Slept great, woke up bright and early, easy, since it still feels like we slept until 1pm or so, but in fact, it is just early morning still. We had the huge breakfast at the hotel again, and promptly headed out to see the Catacombs. I wanted to see these ever since I was a kid and was here, but didn’t get a chance to that time. I carefully plotted our route, and we set out. We made it right to the metro station I found that was not “too far” from the Catacombs themselves, and then we set out to walk the remaining distance. Unfortunately, I was a poor judge of distance on the map! It turned out to be over 2 miles, maybe as far as 3. The weather was nice, and it was not too hot, but allergies got the best of me, and it made the walk a bit miserable in some parts. I persevered and pushed onward! Also, the catacombs as it turns out are actually out quite a bit into the countryside. On several roads we had to walk, there was almost no shoulder or sidewalk for pedestrians. We seriously considered giving up for a few minutes at one point, but finally, we found ourselves on the last road, and made it up to the site.

We were so glad, too, that we didn’t give up. The grounds are beautiful, maintained by the Catholic Church, and serene, with lots of garden areas - very picturesque just as one might picture the countryside of old Italy. We even saw a shepherd with his flock of sheep grazing by as we walked up the grounds. Once we got to the ticket office, we found we arrived during their siesta from 12-2pm, but it was already 1:30, so we just had to wait 30 minutes before they reopened. This worked out fine, since we were able to cool down from our walk, get a little food and water, and I got my allergies under control. We sat in the shade and waited, and before we knew it, we were called up for the English tour. So we got to see the ancient Catacombs at St. Callisto then, and it was wonderful. No photography is allowed inside the catacombs themselves, since they are considered a sacred place (for good reason) but we got some nice pictures outside. We were both deeply moved to see the site where Christians buried their dead for centuries during the early persecutions by the emperors, and to know we were so close to the foundations of that early church. There are over 10 miles of tunnels in the St. Callisto complex alone – the largest of the known catacombs around Rome. But there are 60 known catacombs. During the time of the persecution, there were at least 500,000 buried in St. Callisto alone. One of the early Popes was murdered there as he was holding a mass underground, when Roman soldiers rushed in. We saw his crypt, along with the crypts of several other notable martyrs from that time, and heard their stories of courage and faith in the face of death. We saw the remains of 2 famous martyrs, 2000 years old, and still clearly recognizable. Most of the bones have been removed in recent years for preservation, but two were still preserved under glass so one can see the original state of the tombs. Many Christians in the time when they were used held worship in the tombs, both to be near their dead loved ones to pray, and also because they could not openly practice Christianity above ground without persecution, frequently to death.

It was a solemn time to walk through those halls. But we emerged with a deep sense of gratitude for the sacrifices of those who came before us and suffered when the world was so much darker than it is now, who helped build the foundations of the world we live in today, which despite our continued struggles, has largely been freed from the kind of horrible persecution that was utterly ubiquitous in former times (and not only for Christians of course). I know even now, we need not look far to see great suffering and hardship, even persecution, in the modern world. But for a vastly greater number of people now than ever before in history, true freedom is a reality, and we are able to live independent from tyranny and meet our needs through honest labor as we best see fit. For much of the world, food and basic sustenance is now so widely available that the plight of the poor is no longer starvation, but obesity. Basic human rights are widely defended more and more even from governments who might not be inclined to do so of their own accord, but must, simply because the modern era and political pressure from the world at large forces them. It is unquestionably true that the world has advanced and the state of humanity has improved drastically over these last 20 centuries, and the history of the Church is due much of the credit. I am so happy to be able to touch that history and in a small way, be a part of it, in my brief time here so far.

One side benefit of being in the tunnels too was that it seemed to help my allergies a lot! They calmed right down! The air was cool and humid, and free from much breeze to move particles around. Needless to say, though, we opted for the bus on the way home. It was easy to find, since there is only one road heading out of the Catacombs! Most of the rest of the group we were with touring the site were already standing by the bus stop when we passed it, so we just stood where they were, and shortly, a bus was along to pick us up, which delivered us straight to the Circus Maximus, by the Forum and Coliseum, so we knew right where to go next! We grabbed two cannelloni from a stand, and some drinks, and continued on!

Since we found ourselves back at Palatine Hill, we decided to take the chance to really explore it on our own today. We paid admission again, but not for any “guided tour”, and just spent hours walking through the incredibly numerous ancient sites. We saw the palaces of several emperors, Titus, Augustus and Nero I remember, and also the “Cryptoporticus” where it is believed the insane and evil Caligula was assassinated, of course, the Forum itself, in all its glory, and the former temples, now churches, of Castor and Polix, to Romulus, the site of the former Colossus of Nero, destroyed later for a temple to Venus. We walked through the ancient Senate building, where Julius Caesar was stabbed to death by the all the Senators together. We walked through tunnels, on grand terraces, through ancient cobblestone streets, all through the vast site. When I was younger and got to come to Rome, we were not allowed to directly walk through these sites, as they were closed due to a renovation. So it was really special to finally be able to be there, up close. We spent the better part of the afternoon just wandering and exploring, right up to the time they closed, at 6:15pm. Our feet were tired and aching, but our spirits were high as we made our way then back to the hotel again.

We headed out after we got cleaned up and refreshed, and intended just to hit McDonald’s honestly! But once we got out on the street in the cool evening air again, we wanted to explore a bit more, so we took the metro a couple of stops down, and emerged at the Spanish Steps, a famous and beautiful spot where tourists love to flock, a former stairway built by the Spanish Embassy, with a nice fountain at the bottom. We walked up them, then back down, and then realized we needed to head up again to get home! But since they are quite a climb, we headed around the neighborhood to just explore and see what we could find, and try to work our way back. We ended up at the Trevi Fountain, Rome’s most famous of many fountains, fed by ancient aqueducts still working to this day, which deliver fresh clean tasty water from the mountains miles away right into the heart of the city. We refreshed ourselves with a drink once we made it down to the fountain through throngs of visitors, all laughing and generally having a great time. We heard one marriage proposal and everybody clapped and cheered for the happy couple. What a lovely spot it was!

We were quite tired now, though, and had still not eaten since the lunchtime, we were getting pretty hungry. We decided to find some food, and headed off. But we realized after we were a few blocks away, we forgot to toss a coin into the fountain, a long held tradition to “ensure your return to Rome”. But we were just too tired to head back, so we resolved to return before the trip was over, and just headed back toward the metro. We got to the metro only to realize it closed though! So we trekked about 10 blocks back to Via Nazzionale and our hotel. We just went to the same little restaurant where we ate the night before, since it was good, and we were too tired to think about going someplace else! Tonight we got pasta – I got simple spaghetti with tomato sauce and David got lasagna, and we both had dessert. It was delicious, and nourished us well. We fell right asleep back at the hotel shortly after.

Made it to the Catacombs

Picturesque setting at San Calisto

The small structure in the foreground is a shaft leading down into the catacombs, placed at regular intervals for air ventilation when they were originally dug.