We checked into the hotel and then went on a bus trip to downtown and the Coliseum. 

This is the monument to Victor Emanuele II 

 It looks like a building but no it is just a monument! So many things have changes since our visit 25 years ago. There are now fences all around all of these places.

 So you can get your picture taken with a ROMAN SOLDIER.

 Headed down to the Coliseum are all these other ruins and work is going on the uncover more, from the guide sheet it appears the whole area is called Areo di Tito, which includes all the separate tributes to this person and that one. 

 It was rather a Zoo to get to the Coliseum, street sellers trying to sell anything and everything you can imagine! The panels tell the story of Rome.

 The place was peppered with tour groups and sells people, we took our shots and left. MANY spring breakers from the states, We visited with some and they were nice kids. It does not look like it in this picture but it was a little crazy.

 Back side of Victor's memorial 

The size of these columns are hard to realize, standing 100 to 200 feet away they looked like they were at least 6 feet from one side to the other.