Good job...comes with a house, but...

We orienteered in the morning today, around the park and woodland of Villa Ada in the North East of Rome. I was headless chicken on my course and finished in 20th place which was actually better than I expected which probably means other competitors were headless too. Tony did much better to finish in 4th place on his course!

Afterwards we headed back to the centre to use our Forum/Palatine tickets and had a good walk around both sites. The guide yesterday told us that when they improve the transport system they have to make tough decisions about which bits of archaeology to preserve and which to lose...there is just so much of it wherever you look.

I have decided to upload this blip of the house of the Vestal Virgins. The Virgins were six maidens chosen from Patrician families. They were accorded special privileges but had to remain chaste and there is documented evidence of one who was buried alive when she broke that vow! The reconstructions of their house reflects their privileged position. The constructions in the foreground of my blip would once have been lily ponds and the house would have been very beautifully decorated.

Tomorrow is the big race! We start at the Colisseum and run around the streets passing some of the main sites such as the Trevi Fountain and Spanish Steps so it will be elbows out and 'scuzi' in many places! Afterwards we plan to cross the Tiber to the Vatican.

More blips of Roman history here!