Pagan Rome

Another early start to our day! We were up and at breakfast by 6:30 a.m. and ate while our luggage was being transferred from our room to our bus. We headed out into the streets of Rome, which were largely empty (quite a contrast to the last couple of days!) and made a path for the Coliseum. Unfortunately, there was a big bike race going on in the city, which caused us to have to reroute.

We spent the morning walking above the Roman Forum, the place where power had resided during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. The Senate building, which is really the only building still standing (because it had been used for a church at one point), is closed to the public now (though Christopher and I were able to go into it four year ago). We stood across from the Mamertime Prison, where Paul was imprisoned before his execution. And we marveled at how the system of government they dreamt up is still in use in our country and many others.

After a walk along the street and seeing the bike race, we got to go into the Coliseum. It’s as magnificent and breathtaking as it was before, and it was packed. Only a third of the original Coliseum still stands; it’s hard to imagine what an impressive sight it must have been to those who came there to watch games of death. I did not get lost in the Coliseum this time!

From there, we big Rome “arivederchi” and headed to the port city of Civitacchio, the main Roman port, originally built in Emperor Trajan. Part of the port still dates to Trajan’s time. We were very excited to see and get checked into our cruise ship, the Azamara Quest, and begin to find our way around our new home for the next twelve days. Lunch was fabulous! After unpacking, we ran into the rest of our crew, who just arrived from Indiana, then we went to a safety drill, followed be a spectacular dinner, sitting by the window as we made our way across the Mediterranean. I’ve never been on a ship before, and the motion is making my head a little dizzy, but I am loving the ship life. The crew is wonderful, we’re able to get food and drink whenever we want it, and the breeze out on deck feels great. Tonight, we sail toward Greece, and tomorrow will be an “at sea” day filled with fun, sun and a couple of talks on the Apostle Paul by our resident scholar, Dr. David da Silva.

In a lot of ways, it seems like two different days, beginning in Rome and ending on the sea. But it’s good to have some time to rest after the days of walking around Rome…so we can get ready to walk again in the footsteps of Paul, John and Jesus.