Saturday, March 19, 2010 (Part 2)Also within the Campi di Fiori section of Rome, you will find the Jewish Ghetto of Rome and some interesting sections of the ancient Roman ruins that, I think, are probably ignored by most tourists. We walked from the market, down Via dei Giubbonari and through the Piazza Cairoli, to the Portico Octavio and the Teatro di Marcellus.
The Jewish Ghetto is not very distinct. The only signs that we were in a Jewish section of the city was an occasional Star of David on a building or the word "kosher" on a store sign. We did
not spent much time searching out areas of interest in the Jewish Ghetto and so the area was a bit of a disappointment. Our primary goal, however, was to get to the Roman ruins in this area.
Our first sight of interest, and delight, was the Portico of Octavia. The portico and surrounding columns and walls are the remains of a rectangular portico to a massive 1st century AD piazza that housed markets and temples. Although a mere shell of the entryway is still standing, it gives a good indication of the massive scale of the complex of buildings that once stood here. What is more amazing is the way in which other buildings have been built arou
nd the remaining ancient walls. The Romans obviously believed in recycling. They were environmentalists long before their time!
A small walk from the Portico of Octavia is the Theater of Marcellus. Remeniscient of the Colosseum, the remaining walls are and curved and contain numerous, large archs. This building, building between 27 BC and 47 AD, was a huge amphitheater. As we had also seen with the Portico of Octavia, the ruined walls of the Theater of Marcellus have been used by subsequent generations of Romans as support walls for additional, "new" structures. These old walls are incorporated into other buildings, some of which are still in use today. It is an odd, but very interesting, complex.
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