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When Rome dominated the world, one of the most popular places for Romans to go for entertainment was the Flavian Amphitheater. This huge elliptical stadium could hold crowds of up to 50,000 citizens in the six acres it covered. But it went by another name of Il Colosseo or as we call it, The Colosseum. The famous scenes of humans and animals fighting in the Colosseum that we see in movies are accurate to the kinds of things that went on there in the first century. But the centuries have erased any evidence of those games except for the passageways and vaults underground where participants in those spectacles entered the Colosseum or were stored until it was their time to fight.

The Colosseum was not thought of as being a very sacred place to begin when it was first created. However, in the 16th and 17th century this all changed and, despite some opposition, the area became synonamous with religion. It still has very strong connections with the Roman Catholic church and every year on Good Friday, the "Way of the Cross" procession starts in this area and is lead by the Pope.

The different tiers in the structure were allocated to different types of people. In the days when the amphitheatre first opened it's doors, the best seats in the house were reserved for the Emperor and other royalty as they offered the greatest views. Then there was the senatorial class's level. These were reserved for a certain type of upper class people and had amazing views as well -visitors even got to bring their own chairs. The levels above that were for the poorer visitors as the view made it a lot harder to see what was going on.

The opening of the Colosseum launched a celebration that lasted 100 days as noblemen and barbarians alike visited the stadium. It was quite common when coming for a night of entertainment at the Colosseum to see gladiators fight until only one survived or to witness the brutal Roman approach to lion taming and other performances that were just as violent to our modern minds. Where you sat during these spectacles reflected your rank in society. Naturally the Emperor had the best seat in the house near the base. The highest levels of the stadium were occupied by women who had no connection to the Emperor's party. While that is pretty high up, those citizens could still see the brutal games happening on the floor below. The exotic animals such as hippopotami, elephants and rhinoceroses that were all part of the huge show going on each night would be easy to view from anywhere in the stadium.

The great works of art decorating the walls and roofs of Rome's churches whet many an appetite for the glow of fleshy pinks and the chubby faces of cherubs, and for many visitors seeing the art is one of the best things to do in Rome. The Galleria Nazionale Di San Luca is attached to an art academy and its collection is open to the public in the mornings, or one of the biggest museum complexes, the Capitoline Museums is free on the last Sunday of the month.