When in Rome...

Rome, one of the oldest cities in Europe and regarded as the birthplace of Western civilisation is an amazing city. It is the only city in the world that is the capital of two states, Italy and the Vatican! Since the 1st century AD, Rome has been considered the seat of the Papacy and in the 8th century it became the capital of the Papal States, which lasted until 1870. In 1871 Rome became the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, and in 1946 that of the Italian Republic.

  

When in Rome you must take a guided tour of the Coliseum to soak into the history behind that magnificent

 structure. Visit it at least twice. Once in daylight and once at night when it is beautifully lit up. It is listed as a

world heritage since 1980 by UNESCO.

It is the largest amphitheatre in the world and been in existence since 70-72AD. It was called Amphitheatrum Flavium as it was constructed by the Emperors of the Flavian dynasty. The name Coliseum is believed to have been derived from the colossal statue of Nero that was built just outside the amphitheatre. Now only the base of the statue exists.

Adjacent to the Coliseum is the Roman Forum. In Latin, Forum means plaza or square. This forum is

surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings and the ruins of the Roman kingdom's earliest shrines and temples.

In the next post we will take a walking tour of Rome.

Open Bus tour of Rome

Our Colosseum tour ended on the topmost existing level from where we could get some beautiful views of the lovely ancient city of Rome. As I looked below at the streets I saw an 

open roofed bus full of tourists going around the city. It kindled in me a desire to charter one of these buses, sit on the roofless top and go around the historic city of Rome with my 

favourite glass of Black Dog Centenary Scotch and celebrate the astonishing history of Rome with the finest scotch. I did precisely that in my fantasy.

As the bus took me around Rome, I sipped on the Black Dog Centenary scotch which has a pronounced rich malt and oak and sherry sweetness that spreads warmly in the mouth like silent waves. The aroma of matured wood and toasted malt that emerges everytime the glass is raised for a sip was incredible in the warm sunny weather of Rome as we passed the Colosseum and the Forum. We also noticed fountains in every Piazza (square) and corner. Apparently the water from any of these fountains is drinkable! I did the next best thing. 

Poured some of the pure water from the fountain into my glass of the finest scotch, the Black Dog Centenary and celebrated the historic city with a historic drink.

Live in Style guys!

Cheers!

Drink responsibly.